Associate technology in the NAS - an integrated network system

This paper describes an integrated network system to be used by the National Airspace System (NAS) to provide information to all NAS users. Associate technologies can be integrated at each level of operations in the NAS to provide a common method of communicating and sharing information. The United States NAS is a complex system that consists of a wide range of participants. Operation within, and management of the NAS has become a complicated task. The ever-increasing quantity of flights has created an unbearable demand on its capacity. As a result, users suffer significant operational impacts. Although the FAA and airlines have worked diligently to collaborate and establish cooperative traffic flow management (TFM) tools, the NAS is in dire need of an integrated network system that provides pertinent and valuable information to the users of the airspace simultaneously and in realtime. One approach for building such a paradigm is by distributing associate system technology across all levels of the NAS. Associate system architectures provide intelligent decision-aiding solutions, planning, data sharing, and information management. Associate technologies can be integrated at each level of operations in the NAS to provide a common method of communicating without requiring a centralized authority. Providing an integrated network system for NAS operations, associate system technologies raise the level of airspace awareness to all NAS users, improve efficiency, and provide airlines with a tool that better distributes traffic to match forecasted capacity.