Converging Runway Display Aid in the NAS: Challenges, successes and outlook

The Converging Runway Display Aid (CRDA) is a simple, passive visualization tool that has been available in the terminal automation systems in the National Airspace System (NAS) for about 20 years. CRDA is geared towards simplifying the use of intersecting or converging approaches and paths. Its simplicity has often prompted aviation enthusiasts to hypothesize wider use in the NAS to improve both the safely and capacity of the system. Even so, the tool has not realized wide-spread use in the NAS. Recently, RTCA Task Force V recommended that it be implemented at more sites in the NAS. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has incorporated its wider use as one of its flight plan goals. This has helped its deployment at several new key sites. This paper explores basic factors that contribute to the challenges in deploying CRDA and how they could be addressed. It presents the example of the recent CRDA deployment at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to document and illustrate how this process can and has been applied successfully. It describes the impact of the CRDA use at EWR by analyzing one year of operational data. It concludes with a report on the outlook for CRDA deployment in the NAS.