Page 8 - Volume12 Number 5

and crossing restrictions. The graphic on page 4 illustrates the complete DataComm plan that is the focus of this NIWG.
These DataComm services
are accessed by aircraft that are
equipped with Controller Pilot
Data Link Communications
(CPDLC) that were originally
developed as part of the Future
Air Navigation System (FANS)
for deployment in oceanic
operations. It is understandable
that the King Air community
would not be that familiar with
a capability that is viewed as
only applicable for oceanic
airspace, but it is important
to consider the current and imminent operational benefits of DataComm. For operations at airports with the DataComm services, departure clearances are delivered direct to the aircraft and more importantly, re-routes are “pushed” to the aircraft for upload into the nav system. This is particularly important when the clearance delivery or ground frequency is overloaded during the peak demand caused by significant weather events, etc.
In late 2018, Memphis and Kansas Centers will implement the initial set of enroute data services. Other Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCCs) will follow and by the end of 2019, all 20 ARTCCs in the U.S. NAS will provide this service. NavCanada implemented this capability several years ago and for those of us that operate CPDLC-equipped aircraft in that airspace, the transition from voice to digital communications with ATC is pretty amazing.
PERFORMANCE BASED NAVIGATION (PBN) – TIME BASED FLOW MANAGEMENT NIWG
In 2016 the FAA published the PBN NAS Navigation Strategy in close collaboration with industry through an ad hoc committee of the Performance Based Aviation Rule Making Committee (PARC) and was endorsed by the NAC. The strategy describes a number of FAA goals and commitments that are necessary to transition to a “PBN-centric” NAS. The current work of the PBN NIWG is focused on bringing the Strategy to an operational level which requires a huge quantity of resources and planning.
A tremendous amount of PBN work has already been accomplished that is visible and useful to King Air operations across the United States. PBN routes and procedures have been deployed across all phases of flight. Each application has specifications that define the airspace and equipment requirements and operational procedures. The current inventory of all types of PBN routes and procedures published by the FAA in the U.S. NAS is over 15,500. Because of the nature of PBN, it is quite cost-effective to continue to expand the inventory of
6 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
Map of the national PBN infrastructure which includes enroute, terminal and approach procedures. (CAMEROON AERONAUTICAL FORUM)
routes and procedures and as the FAA deployment plans continue to be defined, it is clear that will be the case.
ENROUTE
Over the past decade, the FAA has deployed 133 high altitude “Q” and 101 low altitude “T” airways. These PBN airways augment the existing inventory of 274 high altitude “J” and 664 low altitude “V” airways that are organized around the ground network of VOR stations across the NAS. The deployment of PBN airways will intentionally be less than the conventional airways that have existed over the past several decades. This is in accordance with FAA airspace plans that embrace the PBN concept of route structure where beneficial and point-to-point flexibility elsewhere with RNAV navigation.
TERMINAL
Conventional Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs) and Standard Terminal Arrival Routes (STARs) have been used for many decades to organize the flow of traffic to and from airports. The success of these types of procedures has been greatly expanded with the increased flexibility of PBN. In addition to the lateral flexibility provided by PBN for STARs, there has been a focused effort by the FAA to provide a vertical descent path along the lateral path.
The result has been that PBN SIDs and STARs have been deployed quite successfully in improving aircraft efficiency benefits in combination with community environmental improvements. The total number of PBN SIDs and STARs deployed in the U.S. NAS is over 900, which outnumbers the current inventory of conventional SIDs and STARs.
PBN has also been deployed to improve the quality of guidance for pilots in the event of an engine failure on departure. For these considerations, PBN can provide a contingency route that balances payload (performance) with flyability and better separation from obstacles and terrain.
MAY 2018