NextGen for Airports, Volume 4: Leveraging NextGen Spatial Data to Benefit Airports: Guidebook (2016)

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5 Conclusions and Technology Trends Conclusions and Technology Trends | 43 NextGen began in December 2003 with the Vision 100 Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act. Its goals were to “take advantage of data from emerging ground-based and space-based com-munications, navigation, and surveillance technologies; [and to] integrate data streams from multiple agencies and sources to enable situational awareness and seamless global operations for all appropriate users of the system.” Airports play a critical role in achieving these goals. Along with the accompanying volumes in the ACRP Report 150 (NextGen) series, this guidebook is intended to help airports fulfill this important role and maximize the benefits they receive in return. This volume focuses on one key aspect of airports’ role in NextGen: the creation, maintenance, and use of spatial data that is critical to many NextGen programs. This chapter summarizes key facts relevant to spatial data and NextGen and documents the find- ings and conclusions of the research conducted in ACRP Project 09-12. Technical trends discovered through the research are also described. Overview of Airport Spatial Data Relevant to NextGen Facts NextGen encompasses a variety of technologies, standards, and processes, which are implemented as a series of programs that, together, improve the entire NAS. Those technologies and programs that improve capacity, efficiency, and safety of aircraft approaching, departing, and operating at airports are directly relevant to airports. Specifically, the NextGen priorities that are most relevant to airport op- erators in the near future are PBN, MRO, and surface operations. • The spatial data that is needed to support these programs includes accurate information on runway ends, NAVAIDs, obstacles, and other data critical to the safe operation of aircraft. Accurate maps of airfield movement areas, including runways, taxiways, and aprons, also are needed to support NextGen surface operations capabilities. • The geographic extent of the data required encompasses airfield movement areas as well as areas under airspace protection surfaces. An example of this extent is shown in Figure 5-1. Most notably, these geographic areas are where airports develop or need spatial data to support their everyday operational requirements. For example, airports are responsible for ensuring that objects affect- ing navigable airspace are identified, removed, and/or mitigated according to certain standard requirements.

44 | LEVERAGING NEXTGEN SPATIAL DATA TO BENEFIT AIRPORTS Conclusion • Not all aspects of NextGen programs require or produce spatial data, but those that do often relate to safety-critical operations. The locations of obstacles, runway ends, NAVAIDs, and other safety- critical spatial data are key ingredients of PBN procedure, development, and planning for improved MRO. Up-to-date maps of airfield surface configurations also are critical for surface operations situational awareness displays. These programs could not be implemented without these key spatial data sets. Spatial Data Requirements Fact • The FAA requires airports to collect and submit data that it considers critical to the safe operation (i.e., landing and take-off) of aircraft. This data includes runway ends, NAVAIDs, and potential obstructions to navigable airspace. Additional requirements for submitting spatial data for airfield construction, master planning, NAVAID citing, and other projects are defined in FAA’s AC-150- 5300-18, Survey and Data Standards for Submission of Aeronautical Data Using AGIS. Conclusions • Many airports find it difficult to understand what is required of them to support the implementa- tion of NextGen. This challenge is specifically evident with regard to spatial data, as many airports are not clear what they are to collect, maintain, and submit to the FAA that either supports Next- Gen programs or will, in turn, provide benefit back to the airport. • A gap exists between airport spatial data that is developed and submitted to the FAA via AGIS to comply with AC 150/5300-18 and airport spatial data that is developed to comply with RTCA Figure 5-1. Extent of airport spatial data relevant to NextGen (Woolpert, Inc.).

Conclusions and Technology Trends | 45 DO-272 and sold by vendors to aircraft operators and others. Efforts to harmonize AC 150/5300- 18 and DO-272 have helped close this gap, but further resolution of data structure and specifica- tions—and of the data development process—may reduce any redundant data development and ultimately make more airport spatial data available to all who need it. • Data security is an increasingly important requirement as use of the Internet and connected tech- nology continues to proliferate. Although cybersecurity attacks against government agencies and commercial organizations have frequently made headlines, airports have also been directly targeted or indirectly fallen victim to cyber-attack. This is relevant to spatial data in that some spatial data depicts security systems, and operations can be considered sensitive security information (SSI) as defined in 49 CFR Part 1520. Some sensitive data is relevant to airports and to NextGen. Utili- ties that support critical communications, the location of essential NAVAIDs, GPS signals used for navigation, and maps delivered to cockpits or ground personnel are examples of spatial data that, if compromised, could impact the efficiency and potentially the safety of aircraft and airport opera- tions. Further information on airport cybersecurity concerns and best practices can be found in ACRP Report 140: Guidebook on Best Practices for Airport Cybersecurity (Murphy et al. 2015). • Other users of spatial data are viewers who are not necessarily using the data for analysis, but rather to view a map for information such as present location of an aircraft, locations of other aircraft relative to that airplane, or where the next taxiway is. This kind of spatial data applies to digital flight bag map displays, surface movement mapping applications, and others. The Importance of a Single Authoritative Source Fact • In 2010, NAV Lean was created to improve and streamline processes used for developing and implementing all IFPs, including PBN, and to support EAs and NextGen operational improvements to surface operations and MRO. The FAA’s goal for NAV Lean is to create a single authoritative source for each IFP data element in an accessible data repository available to the FAA staff that has need of it. Conclusions • A challenge encountered by many users of spatial data has been the many sources of data that are sometimes redundant, not broadly accessible, and of varying degrees of quality. Duplications, re- dundancies, and inconsistencies may occur across data sets that reside at the FAA and those being developed by airports, other public-sector agencies, and third-party sources. • One result of having disparate data sources is that an abundance of spatial data that could be uti- lized in support of NextGen programs that is not being used. • Under NAV Lean, authoritative sources for airport, NAVAID, and obstacle data are being established to help address the problem of disparate data sources. Significant progress has been made, but the objectives of NavLean have not yet been fully realized due to funding constraints. • As more airports develop data that complies with FAA requirements, AGIS can eventually fulfill the role of being the single authoritative source for airport spatial data.

46 | LEVERAGING NEXTGEN SPATIAL DATA TO BENEFIT AIRPORTS AGIS’s Important Role in Fulfilling Requirements Facts • On March 29, 2006, concurrent with the cancellation of FAA No. 405, the FAA published AC 150/5300-18 and began AGIS. In 2009, AGIS requirements became official with the publication of an updated version of AC 150/5300-18. The current (2015) version of AC 150/5300-18 provides a comprehensive set of standards for collection for all features associated with an airport. • Published in 2011, AC 150/5300-17 establishes requirements for imagery collection. The collection of airport features utilizing photogrammetry, including obstacles, has greatly enhanced the abil- ity to efficiently and accurately collect aeronautical data. Photogrammetry also materially assists in validating coordinate data. Concurrent with publishing AC 150/5300-18, the FAA canceled Survey Standard 405 (FAA No. 405). • The FAA’s primary objective for AGIS is to collect, collate, validate, store, and disseminate airport aeronautical information to the NAS. This objective includes the collection of survey data and the integration of this data with FAA systems and products, and the management of airport data to ensure that the most up-to-date information is available. Conclusions • The AGIS program has long been called an “enabler” of NextGen. Although AGIS has provided high-quality data required for the development of PBN and other flight procedures, many pro- grams within NextGen do not currently utilize AGIS data to the fullest extent possible. Flight proce- dures and airspace analysis clearly take advantage of AGIS-compliant data where it exists, but many NextGen capabilities rely on spatial data produced by third-party vendors. The main reason for this is the existence of an immediate need for this data as these new map-based technologies are rolled out. Thus far, AGIS has not been able (nor expected to be able) to provide airfield configuration maps for a comprehensive number of airports. • The AGIS database is not complete for all of the NPIAS airports, or even for all the major airports in the United States. Approximately one-third of the busiest 30 airports currently do not have a full airfield AGIS project in the system. Aside from those airports for which AGIS data has been used in developing flight procedures—and until the AGIS database is complete—other NextGen programs will look elsewhere for their map data. • Some reasons airports have not developed and submitted data to AGIS include: (1) they do not perceive that the benefits exceed the costs of doing so; (2) the local FAA ADO is not enforcing or strongly encouraging it; and (3) many airports lack the resources needed to maintain this data over time. • The nexus of AGIS and NextGen can be expected to generate increasing positive gains for the NAS and for airports. It is apparent that both programs have focused attention toward airports and aspects of the NAS that impact the largest percentage of the aviation market. More recently, at- tention has been given to the larger metroplexes and larger airports. NextGen capabilities that are easier to achieve and have a very positive impact, such as PBN, have been stressed. • As AGIS continues to expand, the potential exists that the more accurate data developed under AGIS will be incorporated into many of the viewing-based applications, and will be used more and more by airlines, ATC tower staff, and pilots. However, more airports will need to obtain a com- pleted AGIS data set for these program applications to take advantage of this data.

Conclusions and Technology Trends | 47 • The utility data definitions available in AC 150/5300-18 do not accommodate all of the details airports typically require, such as material, size, and ownership information. This data could be invaluable to the FAA and specifically to NextGen programs that install NAVAIDs, communications facilities, and other equipment at or near airports. A complete and accurate understanding of an airport’s utility infrastructure can help FAA projects avoid costly design changes or utility breaks. FAA employees participate on an ASCE committee that is developing a utility “as-built” standard that includes a model for data exchange. • Airports will benefit from up-to-date, accurate information to support airfield operations and maintenance activities, which are increasingly reliant on maps integrated with FAR Part 139 report- ing, maintenance management, and gate allocation systems. (For a full description of the benefits airport could realize, see Chapter 3). Benefits and Costs of Spatial Data Facts • Submitting up-to-date spatial data defined by the FAA as safety critical for flight operations, along with as-built data reflecting airfield changes, is a condition of AIP grant offers and PFC decision documents. • To meet the FAA’s accuracy requirements, spatial data must be collected using field surveys or photogrammetry, which require local on-the-ground and/or aerial data collection. The data that is collected must be analyzed, attributed, and checked before being submitted to the FAA, and submissions should include a detailed report and extensive supporting documentation. This work must be done using specialized software and experienced analysts. These factors drive the costs of collecting this spatial data, and costs can vary greatly based on the number and type of surfaces to be analyzed, the terrain around the airport, and the relative number of obstacles. Conclusions • Some airports have expressed concern that the data they submit to AGIS is not of direct benefit to them. • Many airports perceive that they bear new costs but do not reap new rewards for the collection of spatial data. Airports are in fact gaining new capacity, reducing minimums, and increasing safety because they have collected this data. These benefits, unfortunately, have been less apparent than the costs, an issue which the FAA, RTCA, the ACRP Project 01-28 research team, and others are try- ing to address. • The system-wide benefit-to-cost ratio of spatial data for procedure design is immeasurably high. The challenge is that, from an airport’s perspective, the costs are immediate, tangible, and manda- tory whereas the benefits are prolonged and indirect. • Although the FAA’s requirements do increase the cost of collecting airfield configuration data, they also hold promise of providing new direct benefits. If airports maintain their non-safety critical data as required by the FAA (DeLeon 2012), they will benefit by having up-to-date, accurate information to support airfield operations and maintenance activities, which are increasingly reliant on maps integrated with FAR Part 139 reporting, maintenance management, and gate allocation systems. • There are benefits to airports from NextGen initiatives that require spatial data. Not all spatial data is generated by the airport; nevertheless, benefits such as situational awareness technologies using

48 | LEVERAGING NEXTGEN SPATIAL DATA TO BENEFIT AIRPORTS ASDE-X data and spatial data technologies that share data between the TRACON and the airport tower provide better safety and airfield movement efficiencies. A lot of the spatial data associated with these benefits comes from third-party vendors rather than from the airport; however, the airport is receiving benefit. • As more NextGen programs, FAA lines of business, and airports use spatial data for more purposes, the ROI will grow, the benefits will become more apparent, and cost-benefit analyses of these ac- tivities will no longer be of concern. Monetization and Liability of Spatial Data Facts • Airports develop spatial data that is of interest to third-party groups such as developers, contrac- tors, and airlines. • If data is provided or sold directly to these third parties without any stipulation or guarantee as to the accuracy of the data—or, conversely, without appropriate disclaimers—airport sponsors are potentially liable. Conclusions • GIS data is not a likely candidate for monetization by most airports due to legal constraints stem- ming from public records laws, nor has it proven economically viable in most cases. Furthermore, airport data that is uploaded to AGIS may subject otherwise-proprietary data to public disclosure. However, GIS data is local by its very nature, and there may be special circumstances under which the data collected by an airport has value to a third party such as an airline. • Liability may be an issue if the data is provided to a particular, narrow group of users such as pilots (as opposed to the general public) and one of the users is injured as a result. Indeed, liability for damages or injuries suffered through reliance on an inaccurate map or survey is not uncommon. PBN Fact • PBN procedures cannot be designed without spatial data. Like all flight procedures, PBN proce- dures use coordinates for runway ends, obstacles, and NAVAIDs, as well as elevation data for ter- rain, existing traffic flow patterns, and airspace restrictions. Conclusions • One objective the FAA has for NavLean is to establish a more consistently applied, systematic ap- proach of conveying spatial data to procedure designers. The extent of data required by procedure designers that is currently available is unclear. • Spatial data showing noise impacts, land use, and demographic information is needed to sup- port the FAA’s environmental pre-screening process and EAs for new procedures. Some procedure designers do not use this data because it is not readily available and can slow their process down.

Conclusions and Technology Trends | 49 Instead, where required, they rely on environmental specialists to conduct the necessary assess- ments. Many new procedures are exempt from the NEPA EA process because they are covered by CatExes under which a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is issued. • Cases have occurred in which, because of these exclusions, procedures designers did not use spa- tial data that could have allowed them to evaluate alternative procedures with less noise impact. Together with effective community engagement, the use of spatial data could have prevented or mitigated noise issues in tightly spaced corridors over local neighborhoods, reducing political tur- moil for many of the parties involved and avoiding negative press for the airport and the FAA. Improved Surface Operations Facts • Third-party spatial data sets support NextGen programs that support communications with, data exchange between, and the coordination of, aircraft and surface vehicles operating on the airfield. Air traffic controllers, vehicle operators, and airport personnel use this information to improve the safety and efficiency of surface operations such as the taxiing of aircraft and the movement of ground service vehicles. • These capabilities provide pilots, controllers, dispatchers, and ground personnel with maps that display the locations of aircraft and properly equipped surface vehicles. • Base maps used in these applications are assembled from third-party sources that rely on data from AMDBs, which adhere to the requirements documented in RTCA DO-272, airport spatial data up- loaded to AGIS, traditional ALP drawings, airport diagrams prepared by the FAA, and other sources. Conclusions • Airports are more likely to benefit from NextGen surface operations capabilities if they collect and maintain spatial data that accurately depicts the current layouts of their airfields. Some airports have begun to develop and share such data, but significant room for growth remains as NextGen capabilities continue to be rolled out. • NextGen-related technologies such as ASDE-X produce a rich data set that has the ability to en- hance existing spatial data for an airport’s noise program or for situational awareness. One of the capabilities of ASDE-X is determining the position of an aircraft on the airfield or on final approach. When added to an airfield base map or overlaid on a map showing noise complaint locations, this data can greatly add to the value of these spatial data sets and provide the airport with greatly enhanced safety and public outreach benefits. Improved MRO Fact • Another portfolio of NextGen capabilities that will continue to benefit airports is improved MRO. Improved MRO have already improved air service at numerous airports and will continue to do so, resulting in higher revenues, reduced operating costs, and higher customer satisfaction.

50 | LEVERAGING NEXTGEN SPATIAL DATA TO BENEFIT AIRPORTS Conclusions • Airports that have CSPRs, runways with converging paths, and other multiple runway configura- tions have begun to benefit from a variety of NextGen capabilities that improve access to air service capacity while preserving high safety standards. • Spatial data is one of many essential ingredients that help deliver these benefits to aircraft operators and airports. Relevant Information Technology Trends The methods of developing, exchanging, and using spatial data will continue to evolve as new technologies become available. If applied prudently, new technologies can offer better spatial data, delivered more quickly and cost-effectively. They will not only support NextGen implementation, but will help the FAA, airports, airlines, and other stakeholders analyze, plan, communicate, implement, operate, and maintain their respective components of the NAS. • Cloud-based services have become a critical component of many data and software solutions. These data storage, software application, and other information technology (IT) services provide robust, scalable, and cost-effective capabilities to organizations without the burden of procuring, operating, and maintaining the infrastructure in-house. The AGIS program, for example, has loaded aerial imagery for numerous airports into cloud-based storage, and will be making that imagery available via a cloud-based imagery server. Airports are increasingly moving some of their IT needs into the cloud as well. As this trend continues, more spatial data and more GIS capabilities will be available to airports and to the FAA to support NextGen and other aeronautical and aviation platforms. • Digital sensors, including cameras that collect imagery and lasers that collect LiDAR, continue to offer increased resolution and accuracy. Aerial sensors can now collect high-resolution data over the typical area of interest around an airport very cost-effectively. Satellite-based sensors also have improved to the point that they can be used to develop spatial data to meet many aviation needs. Several vendors of DO-272-compliant AMDBs use satellite data as their primary data source. Some airports have used airborne or ground-based LiDAR to collect millions of laser beam returns that measure the location of the objects they hit, ultimately providing rich 3-D spatial data. A few airports have used multi-spectral imagery to collect environmental data to assess tree growth rates, wildlife habitats, and carbon emissions. The use of this remotely sensed data will continue to expand as the capabilities of remote sensors continue to improve and the costs of using them go down. • Automatic feature extraction is anticipated to become more widely available via these new digital sensors. The sensors will be able to see a feature, map that feature, and automatically determine what type of feature it is. As this technology continues to mature, it promises to bring down the cost of mapping by a small to medium order of magnitude. This type of capability requires lots of testing, however, and automatic detection and feature identification will need to be proven to work at an accuracy level that does not have an adverse impact on safety. • UAS already offer capabilities that serve a variety of commercial purposes in some jurisdictions, and they may soon be approved for similar uses in the United States. One such use is collecting high- resolution spatial data, such as that required by airports. Regardless of their purpose, however, UAS must be controlled to operate safely within specified areas that do not conflict with other aircraft

Conclusions and Technology Trends | 51 operations. Spatial data will also be needed to identify these areas and plan UAS missions. While use of UAS is not directly tied to a NextGen program, these constraints must be planned in a man- ner that is compatible with the airspace and flight procedures that NextGen enables. • The platforms on which digital sensors are mounted also are rapidly evolving. UAS are bringing aerial sensors closer to the ground, allowing higher resolution and accuracy than aircraft-based or satellite-based sensors can offer. Vehicle-mounted sensors of different types allow different data sets to be merged, creating a more complete picture of the immediate surroundings. Improvements to the sensors used in cellular phones and tablet computers have allowed field personnel and others to collect useful imagery, much of which can be easily geocoded to provide spatial data. These platform improvements will continue to result in spatial data that is closer in position and time to the objects that pilots, airports, and others look to see in maps.