OI. The story of the status quo
NextGen solves using GPS and flight procedures - results in billions of dollars in profit and flight delay reduction
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- Inherency - Next Gen Funding Stalled
- Next Gen wont be fully funded in the status quo - lack of federal commitment means project wont be completed
- Cuts to NextGen budget now – stable funding key to reliability and efficiency
- Congress bickering is blocking the roll-out of NextGen
1ACContention II. Solvency NextGen solves using GPS and flight procedures - results in billions of dollars in profit and flight delay reductionGBTA 12, (Global Business Travel Association, “NextGen – Air Traffic Control Modernization”, 2012, AD: 07/09/12, https://www.gbta.org/usa/governmentrelations/Pages/NextGenAirTrafficControlModernization.aspx | Kushal) The Issue: The nation’s air traffic control (ATC) system, based on 1940’s era radar, is inefficient and inadequate to meet growing demand. In the next few years, more passengers and aircraft will tax further an already overloaded system. With approximately 720 million passengers in 2011, FAA projects a billion passengers-per-year will be flying by 2021, increasing chokepoints and flight delays in already heavily congested airspace. Without continuing modernization, the increasingly inefficient ATC system will suffer gridlock in severe weather and business travelers will pay a steep price. NextGen is comprehensive ATC modernization using a Global Positioning System (GPS) built on reliable satellite-based navigation. GPS and other sophisticated technologies/flight procedures will reduce flight delays, flight times and aircraft fuel burn/emissions. NextGen will help business travelers get to their destinations on time and avoid lost opportunities. FAA projects that by 2018, NextGen will reduce flight delays by 35% and provide $23 billion in delay reduction benefits. In a 2011 business case study, Deloitte estimates $29 billion in net benefits in the U.S. each year of full system deployment, beginning in 2026. GBTA Position: GBTA supports initiatives to accelerate ATC modernization as a modern, safe air infrastructure is essential to the business travel industry. Accelerating NextGen means business travelers will see fewer flight delays in the next few years, rather than ten years from now. Congress must approve the Administration’s proposed 11 percent increase in NextGen funding in the Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Request and the FAA must remain focused on achieving measureable benefits. In addition, strong agency leadership is essential to strengthen the management, oversight and implementation programs. Inherency - Next Gen Funding StalledLack of funding delaying implementation of NextGenNPR 2011 [Brian Naylor, "'NextGen' Air Traffic System Has Yet to Take Off", October 15, http://www.npr.org/2011/10/15/141378127/nextgen-air-traffic-system-has-yet-to-take-off] ttate The government is trying to modernize the nation's air traffic control system, but cost overruns, software problems and management concerns are making some wonder whether the so-called "Next Generation" system may take another generation to complete. The radar screens in the nation's aircraft control towers are based on technology dating to World War II. Many of the routes airliners fly were laid out at a time pilots followed bonfires for navigation at night. The promise of NextGen, as explained in a video on the Federal Aviation Administration's website, is to bring all that into the 21st century. "You will appreciate the increased safety, environmental benefits and reduced delays as the Next Generation Air Transportation System is adopted," the video says. What sounds so whizzbang in the video isn't really all that different from the satellite-based GPS navigation systems many Americans have in their cars, but adopting that technology to the airline industry has been a challenge. The Transportation Department's inspector general reported that one of the key software components of the system is running more than $300 million over budget and might not be fully phased in for another five years. Airlines, too, have been investing in elements of the new system. One, in particular, would enable aircraft to land in a more efficient, fuel-saving manner — better than the way planes land now. "You can actually feel it, where a plane will lose altitude and it will drop, say 5,000 feet, and then it will stay steady for a while at the same altitude and then it will drop again," says Steve Lott with the Air Transport Association, the airline industry lobbying group. "It's this stepped landing approach that is not particularly efficient, and using satellite technology, we can have a smoother landing." Lott says the airline industry wants the FAA to allow more use of the advanced navigation procedure, for which many aircraft are now equipped. The deputy administrator of the FAA, Michael Huerta, told a congressional panel recently the agency is working on making that happen. "In the year ahead, what we really want to do is focus on how can we improve the quality of these procedures, and how can we see the very real benefits associated with reduced fuel consumption, reduced time and corresponding environmental benefits as well," he says. But Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says until Congress approves a long-term bill for the FAA, the NextGen program will remain in a holding pattern. "We're stuck in mid-air because of the fact that Congress won't pass an FAA bill. As soon as they pass a bill, we've got a big, bold vision for Next Generation technology," he says. The government's share of the NextGen program is estimated to be more than $20 billion. That's another big concern of its supporters — coming up with that cash at the same time the government is desperately looking for ways to cut spending. Next Gen won't be fully funded in the status quo - lack of federal commitment means project won't be completedHoleywill and Lippman 12 [Ryan - staff writer @ Governing and Daniel - Governing contributor, "The 5 biggest US Infrastructure projects, plus 5 at risk", Governing, http://www.governing.com/topics/transportation-infrastructure/gov-5-biggest-us-infrastructure-projects-plus-5-at-risk.html] ttate The project, which aviation administrators began planning in 2003, is dubbed NextGen, and proponents say it would revolutionize air travel in this country by switching from radar-based to satellite-based flight-tracking technology. That, along with other technological advances like improved weather forecasting and communication systems, would allow planes to fly more direct routes instead of following the existing, inefficient flight paths that are arranged like highways in the sky. The result: More flights in the air at any given time, fewer delays and less wasted fuel. But the cost is enormous. FAA officials say they’ll need between $20 billion and $27 billion for the project through 2025. The Government Accountability Office says the cost could actually be as high as $160 billion. Meanwhile, there’s an ongoing debate about what proportion of the cost should be picked up by the airline industry, which has historically been skeptical of the benefits of government-mandated technologies. A recent report from the Department of Transportation’s inspector general said the system will likely face delays because the “FAA has not made critical, longer-term design decisions on NextGen ground and aircraft systems.” To complicate matters, the FAA has spent more than four years without a long-term funding bill, thanks to congressional inaction. That’s made it difficult to pursue larger projects like this one. A long-term bill signed earlier this year should help on that front, but the funding for the effort is still in question. The president’s 2013 budget calls for just over $1 billion for NextGen, which is a drop in the bucket. In a Congress focused on spending cuts, launching something like NextGen could be tough. “I’m guessing we’ll muddle along,” says David Plavin, an aviation consultant. “They won’t provide the big, incremental investment … that’s ultimately necessary.” Cuts to NextGen budget now – stable funding key to reliability and efficiencyGAO 11 [The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan agency that works for Congress and investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars. This paper was written by Gerald L. Dillingham, Ph.D., who is the Director of Physical Infrastructure Issues “NEXT GENERATION AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM FAA Has Made Some Progress in Implementation, but Delays Threaten to Impact Costs and Benefits” http://www.gao.gov/assets/590/585588.pdf, 10-5-11]Lin Delays in program implementation, as described above, and budget constraints have also affected FAA’s capital budget planning. The Page 5 GAO-12-141T Administration has proposed reducing FAA’s capital budget by a total of $2.8 billion, or 20 percent, for fiscal years 2012 through 2015 largely due to governmentwide budget constraints. Most of this proposed reduction is on NextGen and NextGen-related spending, as reflected in FAA’s revised 5-year Capital Investment Plan for fiscal years 2012 through 2016. Congress has not completed FAA’s appropriation for fiscal year 2012, but current House and Senate appropriation bills propose to fund the agency near or above 2011 levels. FAA will have to balance its priorities to ensure that NextGen implementation stays on course while also sustaining the current infrastructure—which is needed to prevent failures and maintain the reliability and efficiency of current operations. Congress bickering is blocking the roll-out of NextGenKarp 12 [Aaron - senior editor at Air Transport World,”US chamber says NexGen ATC should be ‘top priority’”, http://atwonline.com/operations-maintenance/news/us-chamber-says-nextgen-atc-should-be-top-priority-0112, 1/13/12] Jeong US Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Thomas Donohue called on Congress to make transitioning to a satellite-based, NextGen air traffic control (ATC) system "a top priority." Delivering his annual "State of American Business" address in Washington Thursday, the influential business lobbyist said upgrading ATC should be part of a "broader effort to modernize the nation's entire physical platform." Financing for the NextGen system is tied up in long-stalled talks in Congress over FAA reauthorization; FAA's latest temporary funding extension expires Jan. 31 (ATW Daily News, Sept. 19, 2011). Donohue said that a "new NextGen air traffic control system ... will ease delays, conserve fuel, create jobs and save lives." Government creating certainty on ATC and other infrastructure funding would be helpful to a US business community dealing with a slow recovery from the 2008-09 financial downturn, he said. "Unfortunately, we think the economy will actually slow down in the early months of the year," he warned. "We expect [US GDP] growth to average about 2.5% in the first half and then work its way back to about 3% by the end of the year." He noted areas of apprehension for US business: "We are deeply concerned that our largest export market and commercial partner, the European Union, faces an unresolved financial crisis and a looming recession. 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