FAA, CANADA, MEXICO IMPLMENTATION DECISION. Sept 2004 On Sept 22, 2004, senior FAA managers and their counterparts from Canada and Mexico reviewed the major elements required for RVSM implementation on January 20, 2005 and made the decision to proceed with implementation on that date.

• FAA OEP Plan:
  Inclusion of Domestic RVSM in the NAS OEP. The NAS OEP is a commitment to meet the air transportation needs for the U.S. for the next 10 years. May 2001
   
• Concept of Operations:
  Document containing the operational description of DRVSM including the goals/benefits, procedural changes/issues, system modifications, etc. Dec 2001
   
• MOU with DoD:
  Memorandum of Understanding with the Department of Defense regarding accommodation of non-approved military aircraft. Dec 2001
   
• ATC Simulations:
  Simulation & modeling of scenarios to determine effectiveness, efficiencies or problems, human factors, and controller workload issues associated with various altitude bands considered for DRVSM implementation. Oct-Dec 2001
   
• NPRM Publication:
  Publish Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Regulatory Evaluation. Apr 2002
   
• Airspace Standardization:
  Establish measures to identify aircraft/operators in RVSM airspace without approval. Apr 2002
   
• Monitoring System:
  Deploy system to monitor aircraft altitude-keeping performance. Jun 2003
   
• Publish Final Rule:
  Publication of the Final Rule on Domestic RVSM. Oct 2003
   
• Readiness Review:
  DRVSM Team reviews all factors affecting implementation decision. Mar 2004
   
• Safety Assessment/Fleet Readiness:
  Complete safety analysis and review fleet readiness assessment. Jun 2004
   
• ATC System Modifications:
  Complete all NAS ATC system modifications required for Domestic RVSM, e.g. Conflict Alert. Jul 2004
   
• DRVSM Implementation:
  RVSM implemented FL290 – FL410. January 20, 2005