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5 days ago
NEXT IN A VIDEO SERIES | Panel discussions at the ATCA Technical Symposium in Atlantic City - Software and Systems Engineering Strategies for BNATCS Implementation
NAS modernization and transformation demand a fresh look at how systems are developed, tested, deployed, and managed. This panel discussed critical adjustments to the verification and validation of systems and services in order to promote new acquisition strategies and BNATCS implementation.
Our attendees in Atlantic City - and now our member viewers online - can gain practical insight into the frameworks, processes, and tools that will enable timely deployment of NAS capabilities while preserving the rigor and operational integrity necessary for their safe, secure, and effective application.
Our panelists were:
✈️ Eric Hoover, Manager, Test and Evaluation Services Division, FAA Tech Center
✈️ Tom D., FAA, Group Manager, Aviation Weather & Aeronautical Services (AJM-33)
✈️ Shaelynn Hales, Managing Director, Data Management and Analytics, CNA
✈️ Moderator: ATCA Board Member Dan Brudnicki, Co-Founder and COO, IntegriSys, LLC
Hales used the example of the FAA's successful NOTAM cutover in April and cited mindset, innovation, and collaboration as keys to software and systems engineering strategies for BNATCS implementation. "It truly is a team effort to achieve what we did," she said.
Watch the full video on the members-only side of the ATCA website here: https://lnkd.in/eYq8jCZv
NAS modernization and transformation demand a fresh look at how systems are developed, tested, deployed, and managed. This panel discussed critical adjustments to the verification and validation of systems and services in order to promote new acquisition strategies and BNATCS implementation.
Our attendees in Atlantic City - and now our member viewers online - can gain practical insight into the frameworks, processes, and tools that will enable timely deployment of NAS capabilities while preserving the rigor and operational integrity necessary for their safe, secure, and effective application.
Our panelists were:
✈️ Eric Hoover, Manager, Test and Evaluation Services Division, FAA Tech Center
✈️ Tom D., FAA, Group Manager, Aviation Weather & Aeronautical Services (AJM-33)
✈️ Shaelynn Hales, Managing Director, Data Management and Analytics, CNA
✈️ Moderator: ATCA Board Member Dan Brudnicki, Co-Founder and COO, IntegriSys, LLC
Hales used the example of the FAA's successful NOTAM cutover in April and cited mindset, innovation, and collaboration as keys to software and systems engineering strategies for BNATCS implementation. "It truly is a team effort to achieve what we did," she said.
Watch the full video on the members-only side of the ATCA website here: https://lnkd.in/eYq8jCZv
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ATCA
June 11
NEXT IN A VIDEO SERIES | Panel discussions at the ATCA Technical Symposium in Atlantic City - AI-Enabled Decision Support in NAS Operations.
Artificial intelligence is being introduced into the Brand New Air Traffic Control System as a decision-support capability to enhance situational awareness, predictive safety, and operational efficiency. Moderator and ATCA Board Vice-Chair Michael Hawthorne, MPA, PMP, Leidos, Senior Director/FAA Account Manager, Air Traffic/Homeland Sector, led this discussion that examined the pathway for transitioning AI-enabled tools from research and development into operational use within a safety-critical ATC environment.
Our panelists were:
✈️ Dr. Swati Saxena, PhD, NASA Ames Research Center
✈️ Dr. Cara Herbers, Palantir Technologies, Enterprise Lead, FAA
✈️ Joe Galushka, FAA Tech Center, Chief Scientist
✈️ Gian Burdhimo, FAA, Deputy, Vice President, ATO
✈️ Luke Gotszling, Noam Inc CEO
“I feel like in aviation, we’ve been a little bit ahead of that curve,” said Hawthorne about the ability of a machine or computer system like AI to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence. “In aviation, we’ve got a knack for inventing cool ways to do things that become more prevalent in society in general. Honestly, we’ve been using complex algorithms in our air traffic control systems for decades, helping controllers understand where aircraft are, how quickly they’re moving, where they’re going, what conflicts are out there, and how to resolve those conflicts.”
Said Dr. Saxena: "When data moves from research to the operational environment, the validation of that model is very important. We need to be aware of how the model will perform with time. I believe there is a huge opportunity with AI to help us with current challenges."
Watch the full video on the members-only side of the ATCA website here: https://lnkd.in/eYq8jCZv
Artificial intelligence is being introduced into the Brand New Air Traffic Control System as a decision-support capability to enhance situational awareness, predictive safety, and operational efficiency. Moderator and ATCA Board Vice-Chair Michael Hawthorne, MPA, PMP, Leidos, Senior Director/FAA Account Manager, Air Traffic/Homeland Sector, led this discussion that examined the pathway for transitioning AI-enabled tools from research and development into operational use within a safety-critical ATC environment.
Our panelists were:
✈️ Dr. Swati Saxena, PhD, NASA Ames Research Center
✈️ Dr. Cara Herbers, Palantir Technologies, Enterprise Lead, FAA
✈️ Joe Galushka, FAA Tech Center, Chief Scientist
✈️ Gian Burdhimo, FAA, Deputy, Vice President, ATO
✈️ Luke Gotszling, Noam Inc CEO
“I feel like in aviation, we’ve been a little bit ahead of that curve,” said Hawthorne about the ability of a machine or computer system like AI to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence. “In aviation, we’ve got a knack for inventing cool ways to do things that become more prevalent in society in general. Honestly, we’ve been using complex algorithms in our air traffic control systems for decades, helping controllers understand where aircraft are, how quickly they’re moving, where they’re going, what conflicts are out there, and how to resolve those conflicts.”
Said Dr. Saxena: "When data moves from research to the operational environment, the validation of that model is very important. We need to be aware of how the model will perform with time. I believe there is a huge opportunity with AI to help us with current challenges."
Watch the full video on the members-only side of the ATCA website here: https://lnkd.in/eYq8jCZv
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ATCA
June 10
ATCA today proudly congratulates House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO) on being selected to receive ATCA’s highest honor, the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award.
Chairman Graves will be honored on September 29 during an evening award soirée at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., site of the permanent home of the trophy.
Established in 1986, the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award recognizes individuals whose achievements span more than one aviation discipline and who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to aviation safety. The award is dedicated to the memory of Glen A. Gilbert, one of the “Fathers of Air Traffic Control,” who in 1935 helped develop the first air traffic control system by creating a communications framework to track aircraft en route and reduce collision risk.
“Chairman Graves’ leadership exemplifies the very spirit of the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award,” said Stephen Creamer, ATCA President and CEO. “His tireless advocacy for aviation safety, infrastructure modernization, and the men and women who operate and maintain our National Airspace System has had a profound and lasting impact.”
Chairman Graves, who has announced that he will retire after the end of this term, his 13th, is only the third member of Congress among the 37 recipients of the award, joining former House T&I Committee Chairmen Norman Mineta (honored in 1996) and James L. Oberstar (honored in 2005).
“I am humbled and honored beyond words to receive the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award”, said Chairman Sam Graves. “Growing up with a small airport on my family’s farm, aviation and flying have been part of my DNA my whole life. I have been truly blessed to carry my love of aviation into my congressional career and to ultimately chair the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Passing the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 – which included the first ever title in law dedicated to general aviation – providing substantial investments in modernizing America’s air traffic control system, and continuing our work to improve the safety of our aviation system have been such rewarding highlights of my time as Chairman and of my life, and I can’t thank ATCA enough for honoring me with this distinguished award.”
Read full release: https://lnkd.in/efW54wJQ
Chairman Graves will be honored on September 29 during an evening award soirée at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., site of the permanent home of the trophy.
Established in 1986, the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award recognizes individuals whose achievements span more than one aviation discipline and who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to aviation safety. The award is dedicated to the memory of Glen A. Gilbert, one of the “Fathers of Air Traffic Control,” who in 1935 helped develop the first air traffic control system by creating a communications framework to track aircraft en route and reduce collision risk.
“Chairman Graves’ leadership exemplifies the very spirit of the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award,” said Stephen Creamer, ATCA President and CEO. “His tireless advocacy for aviation safety, infrastructure modernization, and the men and women who operate and maintain our National Airspace System has had a profound and lasting impact.”
Chairman Graves, who has announced that he will retire after the end of this term, his 13th, is only the third member of Congress among the 37 recipients of the award, joining former House T&I Committee Chairmen Norman Mineta (honored in 1996) and James L. Oberstar (honored in 2005).
“I am humbled and honored beyond words to receive the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award”, said Chairman Sam Graves. “Growing up with a small airport on my family’s farm, aviation and flying have been part of my DNA my whole life. I have been truly blessed to carry my love of aviation into my congressional career and to ultimately chair the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Passing the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 – which included the first ever title in law dedicated to general aviation – providing substantial investments in modernizing America’s air traffic control system, and continuing our work to improve the safety of our aviation system have been such rewarding highlights of my time as Chairman and of my life, and I can’t thank ATCA enough for honoring me with this distinguished award.”
Read full release: https://lnkd.in/efW54wJQ
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ATCA
June 3
FIRST IN A VIDEO SERIES | Panel discussions at the ATCA Technical Symposium in Atlantic City - Delivering BNATCS: Transforming ATC Roles & Responsibilities.
Rebecca Guy, FAA Acting Chief Technology Officer, and Jim Eck, ATCA Board Member and L3Harris Technologies VP of Strategy and Business Development for the Mission Networks, joined ATCA President & CEO Stephen Creamer to discuss the strategic execution of BNATCS.
Creamer said that if the Modern Skies Summit hosted by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford in Washington in April was the why and the what of BNATCS – the vision, the funding, the urgency – then what this panel at ATCA Tech was focused on was the how:
⚙️ How does a generational rebuild of the air traffic control system get architected, planned, and sustained inside an operational NAS that cannot stop moving for a single second?
🔎 How do we accelerate the pace and still hold the FAA’s uncompromised safety mandate at the center?
💡 How do we phase in capability without phasing out reliability?
Guy, on the three-year timeline for BNATCS: “It feels like the NFL Draft. 'You’re on the clock.' And it is good to have a clock because often, if you don’t have a clock, you will just sit there and think of other great ideas and how to move forward versus actually implementing and getting it done. But as we do that, we have to ensure the safety side."
Eck: "The foundation has been laid, and we are getting the benefits from the $12.5 billion down payment (on BNATCS, from Congress). I think that will spread operationally to switches and radios and radars. Users will have a clear line of sight to the benefits."
Watch the full video on the members-only side of the ATCA website here: https://lnkd.in/eYq8jCZv
Rebecca Guy, FAA Acting Chief Technology Officer, and Jim Eck, ATCA Board Member and L3Harris Technologies VP of Strategy and Business Development for the Mission Networks, joined ATCA President & CEO Stephen Creamer to discuss the strategic execution of BNATCS.
Creamer said that if the Modern Skies Summit hosted by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford in Washington in April was the why and the what of BNATCS – the vision, the funding, the urgency – then what this panel at ATCA Tech was focused on was the how:
⚙️ How does a generational rebuild of the air traffic control system get architected, planned, and sustained inside an operational NAS that cannot stop moving for a single second?
🔎 How do we accelerate the pace and still hold the FAA’s uncompromised safety mandate at the center?
💡 How do we phase in capability without phasing out reliability?
Guy, on the three-year timeline for BNATCS: “It feels like the NFL Draft. 'You’re on the clock.' And it is good to have a clock because often, if you don’t have a clock, you will just sit there and think of other great ideas and how to move forward versus actually implementing and getting it done. But as we do that, we have to ensure the safety side."
Eck: "The foundation has been laid, and we are getting the benefits from the $12.5 billion down payment (on BNATCS, from Congress). I think that will spread operationally to switches and radios and radars. Users will have a clear line of sight to the benefits."
Watch the full video on the members-only side of the ATCA website here: https://lnkd.in/eYq8jCZv
Read more
ATCA
May 13
ICYMI, all of ATCA’s webinars are available on-demand to our members through the ATCA Member Portal.
In just the last six weeks, we’ve hosted four timely webinars covering some of the most important issues shaping the future of aviation:
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: BNATCS in Action
How L3Harris is building the telecommunications foundation for the NAS
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: The ROTOR and ALERT Acts
Understanding the most consequential aviation safety legislation in decades
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: Who’s Flying Now? – Part 1
A journey into the future of aviation and new entrants
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: Who’s Flying Now? – Part 2
Continuing the conversation on emerging operators and evolving airspace
👉 ATCA members: Log in to the Member Portal anytime to catch up, revisit insights, and stay informed on the issues driving aviation forward.
https://lnkd.in/eyp-Qyzt
In just the last six weeks, we’ve hosted four timely webinars covering some of the most important issues shaping the future of aviation:
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: BNATCS in Action
How L3Harris is building the telecommunications foundation for the NAS
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: The ROTOR and ALERT Acts
Understanding the most consequential aviation safety legislation in decades
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: Who’s Flying Now? – Part 1
A journey into the future of aviation and new entrants
✈️ ATCA Webinar Series: Who’s Flying Now? – Part 2
Continuing the conversation on emerging operators and evolving airspace
👉 ATCA members: Log in to the Member Portal anytime to catch up, revisit insights, and stay informed on the issues driving aviation forward.
https://lnkd.in/eyp-Qyzt
Read more
ATCA
May 12
#America250 As we count down to America's birthday this summer, WTOP News' Dan Ronan interviewed ATCA's Stephen P. Creamer on the development of America's Air Traffic Control system.
“A good day is when nobody knows you’ve done the job,” he said. “Controllers go to work, solve the problem, and go home without making the news. That’s the goal.”
https://lnkd.in/e8EPrSJT
“A good day is when nobody knows you’ve done the job,” he said. “Controllers go to work, solve the problem, and go home without making the news. That’s the goal.”
https://lnkd.in/e8EPrSJT
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ATCA
May 11
Happening tomorrow: ATCA Webinar Series | BNATCS in Action: How L3Harris is Building the Telecommunications Foundation. As the FAA accelerates its drive to modernize the nation’s aviation infrastructure, L3Harris is tasked with ensuring the necessary enhancements to the telecommunications infrastructure to support the new systems. In this webinar, discover how L3Harris Technologies is implementing the transition from legacy copper and TDM systems to a dynamic, high-capacity network powered by fiber, advanced wireless technologies like LTE, and LEO satellite solutions. L3Harris' Kathy Zangari Crandall and Michael Popp, will provide status of the TDM Infrastructure Replacement (TIR) activity that is deploying the new capabilities, as well as provide insight into the flexibility and scalability built into the solution that will allow a seamless integration of the new BNATCS voice switches, radios, radars and automation systems. With the upgrades that are already in place, the FAA is beginning to realize benefits of a digital, resilient infrastructure that supports the goals 2028 goals for BNATCS. Join us to explore the future of aviation communications, the innovative technologies in play, and what it means for operational excellence and national airspace safety.
Register: https://lnkd.in/gBkrhGHs
Register: https://lnkd.in/gBkrhGHs
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ATCA
May 6
ATCA’s Tech Symposium was spectacular! We were proud to bring together 400+ attendees, 30 exhibitors, 9 dynamic symposium sessions, and 20 exhibits at the William J. Hughes Technical Center for Advanced Aerospace, along with several engaging walking tours.
Across every session, ATCA dove deep into BNATCS and the technologies advancing at record pace—ensuring the NAS of the future is safer, smarter, and powered by the latest innovations.
Thank you to our speakers, exhibitors, sponsors, and attendees for making this event such a success. We’re already looking ahead to what’s next!
#ATCATech #BuildersofBNATCS
Across every session, ATCA dove deep into BNATCS and the technologies advancing at record pace—ensuring the NAS of the future is safer, smarter, and powered by the latest innovations.
Thank you to our speakers, exhibitors, sponsors, and attendees for making this event such a success. We’re already looking ahead to what’s next!
#ATCATech #BuildersofBNATCS
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