A Review of the Next Generation Air Transportation System Implications and Importance of System Architecture (2015) / Chapter Skim
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enterprise software development approach and safety and human factor design. In response to this request, the NRC formed the Committee to Review the Enterprise Architecture, Software Development Approach, and Safety and Human Factor Design of the Next Generation Air Transportation System to conduct this study.
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was entitled "Transformation of the National Air Transportation System,"1 and early vision documents referred to ambitious goals such as integrated data streams for situational awareness in seamless multi-agency global operations, scalability, the use of emerging space-based communications and surveillance technologies.2 Although progress has been made, not all parts of the original JPDO vision will be achieved in the foreseeable future. This was true even at the outset of NextGen and is understandable, given changes over time.3 However, even 1 White House, "Transformation of the National Air Transportation System," Executive Order, released November 18, 2008, http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/ releases/2008/11/20081118.html.
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NextGen, as currently executed, is not, however, broadly transformational. That is, it does not set out a series of planned steps toward a fundamentally transformed end-state (such as free flight, decommissioning surveillance radar stations, automating air traffic control processes with a completely digital information infrastructure, or shifting authority from ground to air)
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The current enterprise architecture as presented to the committee appears to be a set of functional enclaves that are providing individual services, described in a set of documents at the NAS enterprise architecture level. Additional improvements and modifications seem to be either changes to what is already deployed or overlays onto what is already there.
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A tacit architecture is not appropriate for a system of NextGen's scale and importance and is at odds with recommendations in standards such as ISO/IEC/IEEE 42010.6 FAA's approach to architecture (which focuses on the enterprise architecture) is not an adequate technical foundation for steering NextGen's technical governance and managing the inevitable changes in technology and operations.
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For architectural insight and expertise internally, it depends on a very small number of individuals and lacks the critical mass that characterizes a vibrant and effective technical community. Digital communications will take on increasing importance as the NAS is modernized, so the FAA will need additional technical expertise in designing modern digital networks and protocols.
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Recommendation: The Federal Aviation Administration should conduct a small number of experiments among its system integra tion partners to prototype candidate solutions for establishing and managing a vibrant architectural community. Recommendation: Should the Federal Aviation Administration continue to act as the systems integrator of Next Generation Air Transportation System programs, it should maintain architectural leadership and not delegate architecture definition and control to contractors.
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In all engineering projects, and particularly software engineering projects, this usually means understanding the consequences of risky decisions as early in the life cycle as possible, lest the costs of unwinding previous bad decisions become prohibitive, and the architecture becomes a source of change friction that burdens efficiency of execution. By contrast, an effective architecture can be a basis for risk assessment and mitigation and can be used as a tool to support decision making and the recording of decisions.
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And cybersecurity by its very nature demands constant adaptation to a dynamic threat environment. NextGen is no exception to modern cybersecurity risks and threats; indeed, the safety of life implications and the vital economic importance of air travel make the security of NextGen and the NAS critically important.
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The challenge of integrating UAS into the national airspace illustrates the challenges of accommodating changing requirements within the current approach to managing architectural and system evolution. The expected integration of UAS into the NAS will present new safety issues stemming from increased reliance on data links, limited operator sensory and environmental cues, and so on.
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When human actors f are not included at the outset, products and services need to be modified subsequently to meet the human factors requirements, which delays the release of products and services and significantly increases cost. Recommendation: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
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7 Federal Aviation Administration, The Business Case for the Next Generation Air Transporta tion System: FY 2013, Washington, D.C., 2013.
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