FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APA 14-99
January 20, 1999
Contact: Les Dorr, Jr. or Mitch Barker
Phone: (202) 267-8521 or (425) 227-2004
AUBURN, WASH.—Transportation Secretary Rodney E. Slater and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Jane F. Garvey today dedicated a new, first-of-its-kind air traffic control system, opening an intensive FAA program to modernize major portions of the air traffic control system.
"President Clinton, in his State of the Union address, stressed the need for meeting the challenges of the 21st century," said Slater. "This state-of-the-art system is another milestone in our continuing effort to infuse new technologies in the air traffic control system of tomorrow. It will also help keep our skies the safest in the world while air traffic continues to grow."
Slater and Garvey officially dedicated the Display System Replacement (DSR) at the FAA’s Seattle Air Route Traffic Control Center in Auburn, Wash. DSR replaces 20 to 30 year old equipment at the center with upgraded displays, computer hardware and software. It also provides a platform for future upgrades that will increase productivity and help cut costs for the airlines and other aviation users by making the system more efficient.
"This system is a cornerstone of our air traffic modernization efforts," said Garvey. "And DSR is on schedule and within budget."
With DSR in operation, Seattle Center air traffic control operations has moved to a new control room environment, leaving behind the legacy of more than 35 years of service from the old control room. The complex transition of operations to the new environment was accomplished without interrupting or compromising service to the flying public.
DSR features new color displays and consoles for controllers. It uses modern computer processing technology for improved speed, capacity, maintainability and reliability. DSR also can be easily upgraded with future hardware and software enhancements.
DSR is now in various stages of installation and testing at FAA en route centers around the nation, but Seattle is the first to use it to control air traffic. All 20 centers in the continental United States—which control aircraft between airports, usually over parts of several states—are expected to be using the system by the summer of 2000. Lockheed Martin Air Traffic Management, Bethesda, Md., is the prime contractor for the $1.055 billion acquisition.
The FAA is aggressively upgrading its air traffic control systems to meet the increasing demands of U.S. aviation. By the end of 1999, the FAA will have replaced the obsolete "host" computers at all of its en route centers. The host processes flight plan and radar data and sends that information to controllers at the center and other air traffic facilities.
Over the next several years, the agency will field major improvements to the display systems in FAA Terminal Radar Approach Control facilities (TRACONs) and airport towers. As part of the Free Flight Phase 1 program, the FAA also is installing five new technologies at selected air traffic facilities to bring tangible benefits to airspace users by 2002.