GAO Study: VLJs Will Be Safe, But Opinions Vary on Capacity Affect

A new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) concludes while experts have varying opinions about how very light jets will affect airspace capacity, most believe VLJs will have little overall effect on safety.

The GAO said most experts it talked to believed that VLJs will likely have little impact on safety due to FAA's certification procedures for aircraft, pilots, and maintenance.  FAA officials contacted by the GAO noted that the agency's current policies and procedures will apply to VLJ operations because they will operate similarly to other aircraft.  Furthermore, since they will enter the National Airspace System (NAS) incrementally, there will be adequate time to make any necessary safety-related adjustments.

The GAO admits its discussion of how VLJs will affect capacity is inconclusive, for a number of reasons, including:

• The lack of unanimity on the rate at which VLJs will enter into the NAS, and in what numbers.

• A lack of consensus concerning which airports VLJs will primarily use and to what extent they will use those that are currently capacity-limited.

• A lack of clarity about VLJ's typical operating profiles in terms of aircraft usage, trip length, and altitude.

• The rate and extent of airspace modernization.

In the long term, the FAA expects that the deployment of the U.S. NextGen modernization initiative will help integrate VLJs into the NAS because these aircraft will have the advanced electronics necessary to take full advantage of new air traffic control technologies.  A number of experts cautioned, however, that the FAA needs to rapidly deploy these technologies.

Other factors which could influence VLJ's effect on capacity includes:

• The various ways VLJs might operate in the NAS, such as air taxi or recreational aircraft, will affect capacity differently. Those used as air taxis will likely have a greater effect on capacity as opposed to other users.

• Some FAA personnel, and experts representing active aircraft controllers, believe VLJs will increase airspace complexity due to their different performance capabilities from air transports and larger business jets, and that controllers will need to segregate them from faster traffic if they operate in the same airspace.

• On the other hand, if VLJs mainly operate at intermediate altitudes, they will have little effect on capacity.

The report notes that the FAA is taking steps to address issues associated with VLJs by establishing a cross-organizational group to facilitate their introduction.

The effect of VLJs on FAA's costs and revenues will depend on factors such as the number deployed, the extent to which they replace existing aircraft, and whether they facilitate a large-scale air taxi industry, according to the report.

The full report of 38 pages can be found on the GAO's Website.  08-26-2007.

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