- [Chris] Hello, I'm Chris Southerland
with the Central Operation Support Group,
and I'm here today to give a brief presentation
on the FAA Flight Procedures Management Program.
We will discuss the modernization of the NAS,
National Airspace System, and FAA Order 8260.43
that details the Flight Procedures Management Program.
We will also have a Q and A session
with subject matter experts following the presentation.
As aviation equipment and users evolve,
the NAS needs to do the same.
In 2016, the FAA introduced the PBN NAS Nav Strategy,
what it's called the Performance Based Navigation
National Airspace System Navigation Strategy,
and reaffirmed the same strategy in 2019,
and it is still in place today.
The same NAS infrastructure continues to be upgraded
with PBN instrument flight procedures, IFPs,
in and out of airports,
as well as the PBN high and low airway structure
across the country.
All submissions of IFPs go through the online IFP Gateway,
and the requests include potential safety concerns
or efficiency through the creation,
amendment and cancellation of IFPs in the NAS.
The submission process will also be detailed later
in a briefing by Jill Olson discussed an AFP Gateway.
All submissions via the IFP Gateway or in accordance
with the 8260.43.
FAA Order 8260.43, current version is Charlie,
establishes the process for coordinating, approving,
and prioritizing all instrument flight procedures
requests in the NAS.
The order also establishes three separate teams
that detail the responsibilities.
The teams include the Validation Team, Prioritization Team.
and Oversight Teams.
The Validation Team is made up of representatives
from Flight Procedures, Planning and Requirements,
Air Traffic Control, and the Office of Airports
from all three FAA service areas across the country,
and each service area has their own Validation Team.
The team reviews the IFP request submissions
and ensures it is feasible, provides a benefit to the NAS,
ensures it is an adequate use of resources
and is aligned with the current FAA initiatives.
If the IFP is considered valid,
it is forwarded to the prioritization team.
The prioritization team has representatives
from three service areas that include safety, airports,
flight programs, airspace,
and aeronautical information services.
The team establishes and maintains
a national IFP prioritization list
and schedules of valid requests within a three-year period.
Validated requests include identify safety, airport,
infrastructure improvements, magnetic variation updates,
and national initiatives to have been identified
by the Oversight Team.
The Oversight Team is made up of directors from Safety,
Air Traffic Control, airports, and Mission Support Services.
They provide direction and oversight
of the Flight Procedures Management Program,
and they also meet as needed to resolve conflicts
with competing national initiatives that impact the NAS.
Some examples of the IFP request
and prioritization categories include the following,
but are not limited to safety,
mandatory publications for navigational aid installations,
infrastructure changes, and national initiatives.
So national initiatives include the VOR MON,
and the PBN NAS modernization.
Why is it validation and privatization of IFPs so important?
It prioritizes IFPs on a national basis
and ensures that safety remains the most important factor
and the operational and strategic needs are met
while putting the FAA in position to meet the current
and future needs of the National Airspace System.