NextGen, who's paying for this stuff.

"NextGen, the latest innovative technology in aviation designed to make our airways safer and more efficient than ever before."  This is one of those taglines you would see at the beginning of a presentation, with the typical response from the crowd something along the lines of 'ooooh' or 'ahhhhh'.  So, the question remains, what is NextGen?  See, I got your attention.  Well, simply put, NextGen is the Next Generation of Air Traffic Control, replacing our current radar tracking system with a more precise, more reliable GPS based system.  That's about as plainly as I can put it.  For a more detailed writeup on what it involves, you can click this link, and be given a pretty good rundown of what is it.  Now, granted, it's a wikipedia article, put it takes it's information from this FAA website, so it's rather reliable.  It involves 5 different elements to make it work, those being:

1. Automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B). ADS-B will use the Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite signals to provide air traffic controllers and pilots with much more accurate information that will help to keep aircraft safely separated in the sky and on runways. Aircraft transponders receive GPS signals and use them to determine the aircraft's precise position in the sky. These and other data are then broadcast to other aircraft and air traffic control. Once fully established, both pilots and air traffic controllers will, for the first time, see the same real-time display of air traffic, substantially improving safety. The FAA will mandate the avionics necessary for implementing ADS-B.
2. System Wide Information Management (SWIM). SWIM will provide a single infrastructure and information management system to deliver high quality, timely data to many users and applications. By reducing the number and types of interfaces and systems, SWIM will reduce data redundancy and better facilitate multi-user information sharing. SWIM will also enable new modes of decision making as information is more easily accessed.
3. Next Generation Data Communications. Current communications between aircrew and air traffic control, and between air traffic controllers, are largely realised through voice communications. Initially, the introduction of data communications will provide an additional means of two-way communication for air traffic control clearances, instructions, advisories, flight crew requests and reports. With the majority of aircraft data link equipped, the exchange of routine controller-pilot messages and clearances via data link will enable controllers to handle more traffic. This will improve air traffic controller productivity, enhancing capacity and safety.
4. Next Generation Network Enabled Weather (NNEW). Seventy percent of NAS delays are attributed to weather every year. The goal of NNEW is to cut weather-related delays at least in half. Tens of thousands of global weather observations and sensor reports from ground-, airborne- and space-based sources will fuse into a single national weather information system, updated in real time. NNEW will provide a common weather picture across the national airspace system, and enable better air transportation decision making.
5. NAS voice switch (NVS). There are currently seventeen different voice switching systems in the NAS, some in use for more than twenty years. NVS will replace these systems with a single air/ground and ground/ground voice communications system.  

Sounds amazing, doesn't it.  It sure does to me.  Some of the benefits include route efficiency, lower fuel costs, and tighter separation of aircraft.  Everyone wants this, especially the airlines.  There's one little problem with it all.  Who's paying for all of this?

First, lets give a very fast, quick rundown of the costs.  The Cato Institute wrote an article on what the costs of this systems implementation would be.  Initial estimates put the implementation around $40 billion (with a B), but new estimates are now placing it around $160 billion (yes, another B).  I don't know about you, but I don't have a billion dollars in my back pocket.  The article goes into a little more depth than I have, but the point has been made.  This is going to cost a lot.  So, again, the question is, who is going to pay for all of this?

The quick answer would be, "Well, Uncle Sam should pay for it. The .gov is implementing the program, which is something we can't control, so why should any of us pay for anything regarding that system?"  Well, times have changed.  We can't just get the government to pay for it.  I know I can't outright afford to put ADS-B equipment into my aircraft, some estimates are saying as low as $10,000 and as high as $50,000 for GA type aircraft, and the cost to put something like that into an airliner are even higher.  At the same time, aircraft would essentially be required to have this equipment to operate into controlled airspace (I like flying in class G airspace as much as the next guy, but sometimes, you just have to hit a class C or B airspace to get to your destination).  For the third time, we ask, "Who is paying for all of this?"

Well, there is really no answer for this.  Everyone has an opinion, including me.  So, here's my idea.  Have the .gov pay for all the implementation on their side.  Then, they are going  to have to help subsidize the GA field in some way, an example being 50% cost covered by the FAA, and then a different type of subsidized cost for the airlines (after all, this really is for them).  GA pilots end up paying out of their own pocket, and most of the time, don't have an aviation based income (based around that plane) to cover the rest of the costs.  The airlines, on the other hand, do have that ability.  The airlines can turn around and pass that cost off onto the consumer, and pay it off over a period of time.  Now, the good thing is that NextGen is supposed to have 100% functionality by 2025, which means we still have a good 13 years to get there.  Not every aircraft in the fleet has to be upgraded immediately.  If the airlines raise their ticket prices by $10 - $15 one way trip, per person, to simply cover the cost of this implementation, they could make that figure.  On that same account, an agreement should be made with the government to allow that additional per ticket charge to not be taxed, and held into some sort of trust fund, with the stipulation that those funds are only used to pay out for upgrading the fleet to NextGen capability. No tax would ever be paid out on those funds after they are used either, protecting the airlines.  Simple math would show that over just a few years, given the number of people that fly every day, and the number of flights, the cost would make up for itself.  

We do not need to implement GA user fees to do this either.  There's no need to.  As a  big proponent of the GA community, user fees would do nothing but harm the GA community as a whole.  Flight training, at this point, is so incredibly expensive.  Implementing GA user fees would finally put flight training out of reach for a lot of people.  It's already too much for some people.  Would be pilots simply balk at the idea of paying 40-50 thousand dollars to get the ratings they need to get a job, which has left us with an overall pilot shortage, but this conversation is for another time.  

So, there it is.  This is my idea to implement NextGen into our airspace system.  For the record, I think NextGen is an absolutely brilliant idea.  The ease of use and efficiency it brings is what this country has needed for its airspace system for a very long time.  But, like everything else, it comes down to cost. This is my idea.  What's yours? 

To TSA, or not to TSA. That is the question...

September 11, 2001 was a day that will forever be seared into my head.  I was awoken by a close friend telling me we were under attack and to turn the news on.  I put on CNN just in time to watch the second plane hit the World Trade Center.  I remained glued to the T.V. for the next four days.  I had no work to go to, as I had just started my vacation that fateful Tuesday, and was planning to fly to New Hampshire for a wedding.  Our lives were forever changed after that day.  The world of aviation was altered entirely.

There was, without a doubt, a severe lack of security needs at our nations airports.  No proper screening was in place, we could come and go to a terminal at our leisure, we could even take a blade on board an aircraft if it were no longer than 3 inches long.  This is how the terrorists were able to get by, hijack our aircraft, and do their bidding.  After 9/11, there was no doubt that we needed more stringent security at our nations airports.  Thus, the Department of Homeland Security was born, and the Transportation Security Administration was created.  The TSA is responsible for the passenger safety of all modes of public mass transportation in the United States.  They are tasked at averting the daunting reality that terrorists will do what they can to create havoc upon the American people.  I have no qualms about their intentions being noble, but when it comes down to it, their methods are less than subtle.

As time has gone on, the powers that be at the TSA have continued to up the ante in their quest to create a more secure way of travelling.  Little by little,  they continue to find ways to make it more difficult for terrorists to use our methods of mass transportation against us, but at what cost to the average law abiding citizen?  Last year, the TSA introduced a new full body scanner that is designed to detect the slightest of substances on a persons body (mind you, this is any substance, it doesn't matter).  So, if you take out everything except a receipt that you forgot in your pants pocket, it will see that.  The TSA agent is then notified that there is a foreign object, and a pat down ensues.  The body scanner uses 'radiation' to scan ones body.   RADIATION.  Now, we receive radiation every day from the sun, electronics, and whatever else gives off the slightest radiation, but it's radiation nonetheless.  The TSA states the amount of radiation given off by the scanner is no more than we would receive on a standard flight to our destination.  What they don't tell you is radiation doesn't dissipate from your body.  It accumulates over time.  Now, for the infrequent flyer, someone that flies maybe once every year or two, it's not so much of an issue.  The frequent flyers, however, that would be a long term problem.  I fly back and forth to Florida 4 to 5 times a year.  That's a lot of radiation over an extended period of time.  I'll get back to this in a moment.

If you opt out of the body scanner (which you can), you have to go through a thorough and invasive pat-down.  I have told myself many times if I ever go that route, one of two things are going to happen:  I will either request a woman to do it, or act in a manner that will make the male TSA agent VERY uncomfortable. Yes, I know it's not their fault they are told to do this, but at the same time, I believe I have the right to have a little fun at the governments expense.  Back on topic now.  The pat-down is a very invasive, and very intense pat down.  They literally run their hands along a persons entire body, head to toe, between legs, touching genitalia, you name it, they touch it.  It's a very uncomfortable situation.  At the pure essence of it, it is a search and seizure.

Now, back to the radiation thing.  My last flight down to Florida, I saw the guy in the line next to me opt out of the body scanner and get pat down.  After I got through security (I was lucky enough to hit the metal detector line), I walked up to him and asked him why he did that.  He said he was a doctor.  It doesn't matter if it's a small amount of radiation, it's still radiation, and he wants none of it.  The body doesn't get rid of it.  If a doctor won't go through it, why should I?

All of this brings me to my point of the legality and health safety of the situation.  We have already established that even though it's a very small amount of radiation, it's still radiation.  Would you want a pregnant woman going through that thing?  I know I wouldn't want my pregnant wife going through it.  What about the pat-down, is it legal?  It's arguable at best.  The 5th and 14th Amendments of our constitution state that no person that be unlawfully seized and searched without due process.  That means probable cause and a search warrant.  In this article, you will see that Texas has passed a bill that states "A person who is a public servant [acting under color of his office or employment] commits an offense if the person: (2) while acting under color of the person's office or employment without probable cause to believe the other person committed an offense: (A) performs a search for the purpose of granting access to a publicly accessible building or form of transportation." Sadly, this shouldn't have even needed to be passed.  It's already in our constitution, but as we have seen over and over, our government has pushed the constitution aside to do their bidding.  Last I checked, this law is still under review in the Appellet court system, and not implemented yet, as I'm unable to find a news article that says otherwise.

Benjamin Franklin once said "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."  How many terrorists have the TSA actually caught? None. The TSA's motives are noble, don't get me wrong. It's their implementation that is piss poor at best. The last attempted terrorist attack using an airplane as means was Christmas, when the famed underwear bomber came in from OVER SEAS (yes, did not even pass through our TSA system). That wasn't a fault of the TSA, that was a fault of several pieces of intelligence falling through the cracks and letting that lunatic on a plane from a foreign country. Our security measures were doing their job. They are a deterrent. No security framework will ever be perfect. But it is enough to be a deterrent. No amount of security will ever stop anyone from doing something if they want it done bad enough. We do not need to give up our freedoms and constitutional rights. Once we give these up, the terrorists have won. They see things like the TSA's increasingly tightening security mandates as a victory, because it causes undue duress to the common, law-abiding citizen.

We should not have to give up our liberties at the expense of a little safety.  The lessons of 9/11 have taught us that we can stand up to terrorism, and that the common citizen has more power than any fanatic ever will.

The Great Automaton Pilot

"Automation is the wave of the future."  Wait, did I just say that?  No, I didn't, but I've heard it said many times before.  In the commercial airline industry, that statement is likely said at least 10 times a week.  Automation has offered safety, efficiency, and savings.  It all but takes the human element of error out of the equation.  But, what about the pilots skills in the event of an automation failure?  Common sense would dictate that pilots have the ability to compensate through training.  By the time a pilot gets a job with a commercial air carrier, they typically have several hundred, or not thousands, hours of flight, as well as consistent recurring training, all of which is FAA mandated, and then there is the constant recurrent training required of the air carriers themselves.  With everything the FAA and air carriers require, shouldn't that be enough?  In a perfect world, yes, but in reality, things are a little bit different.

As an instrument rated private pilot with over 190 hours and currently working toward a commercial certification, I can absolutely appreciate the convenience of automation.  The use of the autopilot, the G1000 glass cockpit, and everything it offers, makes flying the aircraft from point A to point B a lot easier.  Complacency is my biggest enemy.  I've caught myself many times becoming too 'relaxed' and forcing myself back into scanning mode in the cockpit.  I spend hours outside of the cockpit reading up on systems and regulations, trying to keep my senses sharp.  I also tend to keep very hands on in the cockpit, continuously scanning, only using the autopilot when I need to.  Unfortunately, there are those pilots that become so complacent, that they practically become reliant upon automation, and that's when accidents happen.

This AVWeb article gives an interesting look at what happens when a pilot becomes complacent.  Reliance on automation has become too high.  Most training on an airline commercial level appears to be based upon using automation in the cockpit to perform the flight.  Emergency training appears to me primarily hands on, but the time training on those procedures compared to the time spent on hands off automation training appears to be waning.  Airlines want efficiency, because that means more money in their pocket.  Who can blame them, they are there to make money by providing the fastest and most efficient service, and make as much money that is feasible in the process.  It comes down to a Risk vs. Safety margin, and what balance between both offers an acceptable amount of risk, while offering the largest gain in profits and buffer for safety.  It may sound like there is basically a dollar figure on safety because there is.  The business is there to make money.  If they didn't, they would not exist.

So, what do we do about complacency with automation?  Simple really.  There needs to be more training on the use of the hands on technique at the airline level.  Recurrent training on the airline level, need to focus less on automation.  Once automation is learned, is easy to follow.  The human brain has a tendency to follow the path of least resistance, and easily retains the knowledge associated with that.  Automation is that path.  It's easy to follow.  Training, and recurrent training, needs to focus much more on the hands on approach.  the brain needs to be reminded constantly that 'you are the best option available', not the machine.  The AVWeb article puts it into a rather simple perspective: "...while we're ensuring those pilots maintain their flight-control skills, we should also be focusing on how to train airline pilots for the day when what they'll really need are better ways to manage complex systems and maximize cockpit resources."

The same can be said of GA pilots, only we have to motivate ourselves to do so.  We have to want to be the safest pilots we want to be.  Complacency is our biggest enemy.  The day we become complacent is likely to be a bad day.

Planes, Michigan, and Corsairs! Oh My!

Every once in a while, you come across a situation that is truly breathtaking, and totally surreal.  I could not believe this happened to me today.  Today, I decided to take a plane from KYIP to KJXN, pick a friend up, then fly us both to KHYX (Saginaw).  It was a nice IFR day, and I was in and out of the clouds for both legs of the flight.  I ended up picking up a visual approach at KHYX, and began my approach.  Not long after I entered the pattern, I heard "Corsair 179PT 8 miles North inbound landing 27 Saginaw County."  I really didn't give it much thought after that.  I continued to hear his calls in the pattern as I touched down.  After landing, I looked over and saw the airplane on the downwind.  I just stared for a few seconds.  I couldn't believe what I was seeing.  I could make out the long nose and unique rear stabilizer of what looked like an F4U Corsair.  I passed it off as visual illusion and went to taxi and tie down.  

Just after locking up my trusty 172, I looked up to see the aircraft I was looking at land, and was completely taken aback.  It was an F4U Corsair!  I couldn't believe my eyes!  What were the odds that I fly into a middle of nowhere airport, and right behind me, on that same day, someone flies in a World War II legendary warbird!?  I promptly walked up to the pilot as he hopped out of his aircraft and asked him if he wouldn't mind me looking over his aircraft.  He said he didn't mind at all, and then he left into a building.  I never did figure out why he was there.  Admittedly, I was curious, but I was too busy taking pictures, and just generally drooling over this magnificent piece of machinery.  

I touched her, ran my hands over her wings, and felt her from tail to nose.  She was amazing, and I felt like I could feel how alive she was.  

Every once in a while, something truly amazing happens, and you are there to witness it.  This was one of those days.