WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Department of Transportation Inspector General has released a scathing report outlining numerous shortcomings of the FAA’s efforts to implement reforms intended to help the agency operate more effectively and efficiently, improve the delivery of air traffic services, and modernize the U.S. air traffic control system.
The report finds that the FAA’s efforts have fallen short of anticipated cost savings and operational efficiencies, as well as in improving the delivery of new technologies and capabilities.
According to the Inspector General’s report, although the FAA has implemented performance-based compensation systems, established the Air Traffic Organization (ATO), contracted out flight service stations operations, and reorganized multiple times over the years, costs continue to rise while operational productivity has declined.
The FAA has also missed opportunities to complete large-scale facility consolidations that would maximize operations, improve the flow of air traffic, avoid the cost of maintaining aging facilities and facilitate the transition to NextGen capabilities.
Furthermore, major FAA air traffic control modernization projects continue to experience problems that delay the introduction of new technologies, postpone benefits to users, and defer the retirement of costly legacy systems, the report noted.
The Inspector General found that several underlying and systemic issues, including overambitious plans, shifting requirements, software development problems, ineffective contract and program management, and unreliable cost and schedule estimates, impact FAA’s ability to introduce new technologies and capabilities that are critical to transitioning to NextGen.
The Inspector General’s complete report, “FAA Reforms Have Not Achieved Expected Cost, Efficiency, and Modernization Outcomes,” is available here.
Here is the bottom line,
To all those who think Privatization is better than the current system we have now. Please read this.
A corporation and/or organization is run to enhance/profit the executive’s of that corporation. Period.
Just look at any corporation, profit or non-profit. The first rule is to keep the money flowing so the executives stay in power by essentially any means within the law. Whether that is thru the sale of stock and/or other perks. The executives don’t care what is done nor how it’s done, just keep the “Status-Quo”. They will manipulate the facts and data to maintain that.
Even Non-Profit executives run corporations the same way. Don’t let the name of “Non-Profit fool you.
Just look at their salaries and benefits. In addition to that, most are provided their own choice of car and a company credit card for fuel, dinners and whatever else they feel like. Many non profit organizations provide housing or very low interest loans that the average person can’t get. Just look at the Wounded Warriors Organization. The executives have access to many perks that no one else has. The list goes on.
Whereas a standard regular gov’t. employee gets mileage or whatever gov’t car there is from the motor pool. There are also instructions to use it only for official business. It’s not a luxury type. The gov’t credit card is only for official business and every item has to be justified on a report. Only specific jobs get housing and that housing is just basic subsistence not luxury accommodations and locations.
Sorry, no one can convince me Privatization of the Air Traffic Control system will be better run than what we have now. Look at Amtrak, what a money pit and disaster that is. No one is in control and who can be fired for incompetence. No one.
The military fires commanders left and right for incompetence. Why should we let some new organization be created in hopes of better performance. It just won’t happen. There is too much temptation for Incompetence, fraud and corruption. It has happened before throughout history. Also, how do you monitor it and how much does that cost ? Again, more tax payer money down the drain.
This idea of privatization is a bad one. It just won’t work and will be more expensive than the current system. It hasn’t happened before. How can it happen now ? Just look at other projects, such as bridges, highways, utilities, cable TV, etc.
@ Jeffrey. Sorry Sir, but it ISN’T Privatization at all that’s being considered here by Congress and some key aviation organizations. IT IS instead A SPLIT OUT OF ATS from the present entirely dysfunctional FAA, as a separate AVIATION industry supervised entity, and a NOT FOR PROFIT entity. Further as a protection, it is with an aviation airspace user community level of supervision. Sorry, sir, but your arguments against a split-out as “privatization” simply don’t apply. Additionally, we’ve tried fixing FAA from the top, and inside, many times now for over 3 decades, to no avail. The only hope for GA and the rest of aviation now is to completely redo the AVS/AFS/AIR parts of FAA, while splitting out ATS as a wholly separate entity, answering more directly to airspace system users. It is GA’s last hope. The current ATS system is much too expensive, obsolete, and hopelessly fouled up to ever be fixed from the “inside”. It is time now for a bold ATS and FAA organizational change, and ATS system generational change, as happened following the Grand Canyon mid-air, and with the ATCAC (et. al.) efforts in the period ’56 to ’60. Otherwise GA is just going to be further strangled and crushed, as will all sport aviation, gliders, and drones, even while military and security ops are also further pressed into giving up, or not expanding into very much needed airspace. True “Fully allocated” costs of ATS for GA needs to drop by at least one if not two orders of magnitude, to ever be affordable to the country, and to GA operators.
To ManyDecadesGA and All,
Sir, I think your real name is Dave Pyle and we just have a difference of opinion and disagree on many subjects. You also seem to take up the opposite side of any argument no matter what, just for the sake of argument. That being said, he is my response.
The current Air Traffic Control system was brought about mainly by the Grand Canyon crash of two independent airlines that were operating under rules created by the airlines and approved by the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). That was the aeronautical governing government body at the time.
I am sorry why I can’t understand why a government body such as the CAB was not under the influence of the “Corporate Structure of Big money and influence of the airlines”. They were, no matter how you cut it they were. The CAB was under their influence and that whole structural fiasco led up to the “Killing of many innocent people”. That is the truth of the matter.
Yes, it was smoothed over by the media and the aviation authorities by being a newer industry that didn’t want a badly tarnished record early on. It was also hampered by the lack of instant and long distance media we now have today. For example, anyone can now turn the TV and see almost instantly was is happening in Anytown USA or the world. It’s live on CNN and other stations. Remember, that wasn’t the way it was back during the Grand Canyon crash days. Television was in it’s infancy and practically nonexistent during that time period.
Again sir, you can’t convince me that the whole restructuring would be good for GA and the airlines.
Just look at the internet as a perfect example of corporate influence and greed. The speeds of service available.
For example. Many of the big companies have the ability to change speeds of downloads and information while the FCC and other government authorities initially said that was fine and ok. Then, in a turn around of policy and threatened court action. The internet has now opened up where companies can no longer manipulate speeds of service. Also their is free access to everyone. Let’s not go into rates. That is another boondoggle fiasco.
Back to the subject matter, Big business is fine, but they don’t play on a level playing field, never have and never will. Also remember, most of these so-called aviation executives and experts couldn’t make it in the private sector. That’s why they want a government job with security and benefits. The private sector thru them out on their butts mainly due to incompetence. Do we want them to run a quasi-government agency ? Answer, NO, and no way in hell. They failed in the private sector,then why do we need them in a government job with no incentive to produce or do a good job.
Now, If a restructuring of the Air Traffic Control system were to occur, many of these issues I have discussed would rear their ugly head. While GA and the flying public would suffer thru many years of stifling progressive self imposed rules made by these corporations for the profit of their staffs of executives holding down huge salaries and benefits and no accountability to the stakeholders such as GA.
These are not government GS rated jobs we are talking about, but non competitive executive level salaries like the president at the executive level. Now how is that going to fair. Answer, It’s not. Check the facts.
Again, this whole idea is wrong and won’t work for many of the reasons listed. Please read my previous comments on the subject.
Thank you.
Jeffrey Aryan
@Jeffrey. Sorry sir you’re not correct on all counts. From your incorrect ID that is completely mistaken, to your assessment of the effects of breaking up FAA, I fear your assessment is wide of the mark. Instead, it is time for another extra-FAA candid technical assessment (at the presidential level – perhaps after the election) of both the FAA’s inappropriately evolved and seriously flawed regulatory structure (medical and drone examples), as well as ATS service provision (completely inadequate capacity response) just as we did in both the Eisenhower era after the Grand Canyon accident, as well as later with the ATCAC efforts several decades later (and the “Upgraded 3rd Generation ATC System” of NAS-Stage A and ARTS III era). ATS costs are now completely out of control (cost-per-unit-separation service). ATS costs need to come down by one to two orders of magnitude, as well as increasingly providing for shared dynamic airspace access, especially in WX, which needs to increase dramatically (for GA air transport and military ops. [e.g., even today – there is a ridiculous 64 mile diameter TFR already being blocked out over the Superbowl just for an example]. None of this will be solved within FAA. Excessive Executive salaries for a NON-PROFIT ATS ANSP will be the least of the issues we all face in GA, …if we don’t take up this remarkable one-time opportunity to finally break up FAA, and start over with a more rational regulatory body, and a separate NOT-FOR-PROFIT ANSP managed by airspace users.
To ManyDecadesGA,
Sir, once again we continue to disagree.
You also don’t state your name so no one really knows who you are and that worries me and makes me wonder what are you hiding from.
I believe if you want to post something here out in the open then you should also have the fortitude and guts to post your name and stand up for what you believe in. Sort of like volunteering for military service. Stand up and be counted. Whether I agree with you or not. Again, I disagree with your statements and stand by mine.
Also, salaries do matter. They matter allot. Because, in the future they become cushy jobs for the political hacks who can’t make it in the private sector.
These jobs also become political favors positions mainly for people who have no idea what aviation and transportation is all about. Just look at the current FAA administrator. He is not a pilot. Has no experience in the air, but has so-called transportation experiences with busses. It is very hard and difficult to follow someone who hasn’t done and experienced the same things as you have. Good Leaders lead from the front and not the rear.
All of this will eventually be watered down to another so-called Blue Ribbon committee who will waste time and monies on recommendations and nothing will be accomplished. It has happened before in many other industries and gov’t positions. It will happen again.
This discussion is over on my end. I have started to read the latest proposal H.R. 4441 and will write my congressional leaders my opinions and thoughts.
Good day sir whoever you are,
Jeffrey Aryan
This report was no doubt sought by Congressional proponents of privatizing ATC. Privatization will almost certainly happen despite all the objections from various stakeholders and this report will serve as justification. Follow the money or the lack thereof. That will be the deciding factor and yes we’ll probably be looking at user fees in the future. The government has been broke for some time now living on borrowed money and time and its only getting worse, decidedly worse, under the current administration. If it is replaced at the top by someone whose history is replete with money management experience, the hammer is almost certainly going to fall on the FAA along with some other agencies who have failed for years to manage their expenditures always solving their shortages by simply inflating succeeding budget requests. It’s gonna stop. It has to. It must!
@ Paul.
Well spoken.
But the fundamental underlying problem (beyond simply an ineffective and entirely obsolete FAA with poorly informed executives and managers) …is that the present ATS system is vastly over-expensive and bloated and obsolete compared to what it now could be, if PROPERLY modernized [but NOT FAA’s failed concept of NextGen]. Present ATS is horrendously inefficient for both addressing airport/runway airspace capacity in a dynamic WX environment, as well as primitive in addressing multi-user dynamic airspace access, and ATS now costs far more than needed for exceedingly expensive “Cost-per-unit-separation service”. and “Capacity-per unit time-per acre- per dollar”, … whether for drones, for gliders, for sport, for GA, … up to high end BizAv, to military needs, as well as for jet transports…
The question is: What will the I.G. do about it? If there aren’t any firings at the top with their replacements being given instructions on what to do or else, there won’t be any progress.
To All,
After reading the report, This is main reason why “Stakeholders” such as GA don’t trust the FAA. Constant manipulation of the Facts and Data. The report states that.
This is also another reason not to separate the FAA or Air Traffic Control. If Air Traffic Control did separate then Congress and the American people would lose control over our airspace system without true accountability.
One of the other things of the FAA is the compensation system. In my opinion, The current law or approval according to the report is the FAA can implement bonus system without any real outside competition is wrong.
The FAA and the people who work their, “Work for the Government”. Period. Working for the government is not a for profit job.
People working for the Government should not be their for profit or have political gain. Government employees do a job and that’s all. Not get rich by it. If they want to get rich or achieve some other gain, then go into the private sector.
Wow!
What a surprise!
I would have never guessed that FAA had any “shortcomings” !
Wake up GA… it is long past time to split up FAA, and reconstitute it conceptually, from the top down (especially AFS and AIR), …while splitting out ATS as a separate ANSP, and completely redesigning NextGen (it should instead be called [PastGen], to be vastly more efficient and effective at vastly lower cost. Future ATS could be done much better within the laws of both physics and modern economics, by properly using tools like automated 3D and 4D RNP based trajectory separation, and a family of D/Ls, while dumping FAA’s seriously flawed and overly expensive ADS-B “pseudo-radar” concept, and also scrapping utterly fiscally wasteful obsolete ideas like SBAS and LPV. The time is now, for change, if GA access and reasonable cost at the low end, and successful drone integration [inevitable], and adequate military ops airspace is ever to be achieved, with societal demanded air transport.