Boeing

Boeing Air Traffic Management (ATM) has joined the Lockheed Martin team in competing for the En Route Automation Modernization (ERAM) program recently announced by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.

For this effort, Boeing will apply internally developed, advanced airspace modeling tools to help ensure that ERAM achieves its envisaged operational capabilities. These tools will bring a new level of systems engineering and analytical capability to the critical environment of air traffic management.

"The hardware and software upgrades provided through the ERAM contract will give the FAA an integrated en-route solution," said John Hayhurst, president of ATM. "The critical need for more capacity to meet long-term demand is the fundamental reason our business unit was established about one-and-a-half years ago," he said. "ERAM will be an important step toward meeting that goal."

According to Hayhurst, the timing of this opportunity to work with Lockheed Martin coincided with ATM's maturing business model, growth of its organizational structure and progress in developing its requirements-analysis modeling tool.

ATM continues to develop and refine its concept for comprehensive change to the nation's air traffic system. This effort includes initiating a stakeholder Working-Together team, which is documenting a wide range of input on the needed capabilities of a new system from the various groups who will use that system.

"ERAM will provide valuable connectivity within the system," said Hayhurst. "We're looking at integrating the airspace system to a greater degree than ever contemplated before, and ERAM can serve as a key element of this integrated system."