A Proactive Assessment of the Changing Non-conformance Risk Profile for Arrival and Departure Procedures in NextGen

Abstract The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is currently executing a considerable transformation of the National Airspace System (NAS). One of the primary areas of emphasis included in Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is the utilization of performance-based navigation through Area Navigation (RNAV) and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) approach and departure procedures. This project provides a two-phase approach to assessing the human performance impacts associated with executing NextGen RNAV/RNP operations. Phase one developed an RNAV/RNP execution factor profile describing the factors known to impact the successful execution of RNAV/RNP procedures. Phase two assessed the potential positive and negative impact on the execution factor profile based on a series of proposed NextGen changes. Seventeen NextGen changes planned for implementation between 2014 and 2020 were analyzed including interval management concepts, RNP established approaches, and reduced separation requirements for approaches and departures. Human-System Interaction Models (HSIMs) were developed for each NextGen concept to outline the impacted tasks and interactions associated with implementing each change. A panel of subject matter experts then compared the HSIMs for each NextGen change against the RNAV/RNP execution factor profile. The resulting assessment found consistent impacts of NextGen changes to performance monitoring associated with executing RNAV/RNP procedures and aircraft eligibility assessments associated with assigning RNAV/RNP procedures. A summary of overarching impacts of these changes on RNAV/RNP procedure execution in the NextGen environment are described.