ATC
'NowGen' ATC changes could speed up FAA's NextGen plan
Two recent ATC conferences underscore the various points of view about the most efficient ways to implement the next generation of air transportation, eith

Two recent ATC conferences underscore the various points of view about the most efficient ways to implement the next generation of air transportation, either gradually, taking advantage of today’s technology, or all at once in 2025.

At the RTCA 2008 Symposium (RTCA is a non-government advisory body, formerly named the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics), held in Washington in May, the emphasis was on NowGen, a recently coined term describing the technologies that many operational people feel are required to speed up NAS modernization. NowGen would implement essentially proven near- and mid-term equipment and procedures to increase airspace capacity and throughput, well in advance of the arrival of the full NextGen program in 2025.