Thank you, Carmine [Gallo, FAA Regional Administrator].  Hello, everyone.  Thank you for joining us.

Memorial Day weekend is around the corner, and families across the country are getting ready for vacation.  With summer travel comes summer weather – including thunderstorms that can disrupt and delay flight plans.  While we can’t change the weather, the FAA is working to move air traffic more efficiently around it. 

We’re here at Newark Liberty International Airport today to highlight a NextGen technology that is delivering big benefits in the busy New York airspace – particularly in bad weather.  It has to do with how we clear flights for takeoff.  Let me explain.

Before a plane can depart, the air traffic control tower has to send the pilot a clearance on his or her filed flight plan.  The tower sometimes has to amend these plans, for a variety of reasons – like re-routing around congestion, or issuing a new cruising altitude to avoid bad weather. 

Communicating these amendments has traditionally been a time-consuming process.  The air traffic controller has to call the cockpit and verbally relay new instructions, which the pilot has to confirm and manually enter into the aircraft computer system.

It’s a bit like calling your friend for directions to his house and writing down what he tells you.  There’s a lot of back and forth – making sure you have the street names right, and that you know which way to turn at intersections.  Suddenly, 15 minutes have gone by, and you still haven’t left the house.

With Data Communications, the NextGen technology we’re demonstrating today, you don’t have to call your friend for directions.  His address is pre-programmed into your car’s GPS system – and all you have to do is press “GO.”

Data Comm is being used here at Newark to give air traffic controllers and pilots the ability to transmit flight plans and other essential messages with the touch of a button instead of multiple verbal communications. 

This switch from voice to text doesn’t just speed things up.  It also increases safety – reducing the chance of a read-back error while relaying information. 

Additionally, it allows controllers to send text instructions to several aircraft at once – a much more accurate and efficient process than having numerous conversations.

Data Comm also cuts down on travel delays.  Let me give you an example.

Two planes are in line for takeoff when an incoming storm requires air traffic controllers to re-route them.  The plane using voice communications has to get out of line so the pilot can manually input the new instructions – a process that can take up to 15 minutes.  It then has to get in the back of the takeoff line again – ultimately putting the flight 30 minutes behind schedule.

The plane using Data Comm, on the other hand, has its new flight plan sent via text directly to the cockpit.  The pilot accepts the updated instructions with the push of a button.  The plane keeps its spot in the takeoff line and departs on time.

It’s not hard to see the benefits of this technology.  Airlines stay on schedule, packages get delivered on time, and passengers get off the tarmac, into the air, and to their destinations more quickly.

This is particularly important here at Newark International.  On any given day, a third of all U.S. flights connect with New York airports.  Making departures more efficient here can improve air travel nationwide.

In addition to Newark, Data Comm is currently being used at Memphis International Airport, where it’s delivering great results.  Later this summer, it will expand to Houston and Salt Lake City.  In 2016, we’re aiming to have Data Comm in more than 50 air traffic control towers – three years ahead of schedule.

Data Comm is the latest tool the FAA is using to modernize our national airspace system and make every phase of flight more efficient.

Earlier this spring, we finished upgrading our air traffic control computer systems to ERAM, or En Route Automation Modernization.  This was one of the largest technology change-overs in the history of the FAA.  It lets us see a much bigger and richer picture of our nation’s air traffic – and enables other important NextGen technologies like Data Communications.

The implementation of Data Comm here at Newark has been a big success – and it wouldn’t have been possible without the help of our partners.  I’d like to invite them to share a few words about their experiences.

• Thomas Bosco, the Director of the Aviation Department for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, will discuss how Data Comm is improving performance here at one of the New York metro region’s major transportation hubs.
• Captain Chris Williams, Director of Operations for UPS, will discuss how important Data Comm is in a business where minutes matter.
• Paul Rinaldi, President of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, will talk about how Data Comm is improving processes for air traffic controllers.
• Mike Perrone, National President of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, will discuss the importance of the aviation workforce in integrating Data Comm into our airspace.
• Jim Compton, Vice Chairman and Chief Revenue Officer from United Airlines, is going to talk about the benefits Data Comm is providing for air travelers.
• Paul Cassel, Senior Vice President of Flight Operations for FedEx Express, will talk about how Data Comm is helping the company meet customer expectations and deliver packages on time.