A new traffic flow management computer network developed for FAA by Computer Sciences Corp. entered operational service June 18 and is expected to provide flow control specialists with a better view of traffic, choke points and weather.

The new system has been installed at FAA's William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City, N.J., in the past few years to replace one that was located at the Volpe Center in Cambridge, Mass., a Transportation Department research site. Traffic Flow Management-Modernization (TFM-M) tracks, anticipates and manages the flow of air traffic in the U.S., integrating real-time weather and flight data from many sources. The system is used by flow control specialists at the FAA Command Center in Herndon, Va., and by flow control personnel stationed at ATC en route and terminal control centers.

The advanced computer platform designed by CSC uses air traffic data from across the U.S. to predict when the number of flights exceeds available routes and capacity. FAA uses the data to set up programs to reduce delays caused by weather and congestion. Airlines and other ATC system users should be able provide more accurate flight departure and arrival information to passengers as a result of TFM-M.

Computer processing will continue with the legacy flow control system (the Enhanced Traffic Management System or ETMS) until the third phase of TFM-M is completed in August 2009. This final phase will fully replace ETMS processing with modern capability.

ETMS has reached its maximum processing capability and lacks flexibility for automated interaction with other National Airspace System tools. By providing a Service-Oriented Architecture, a type of information technology structure, the flow control system modernized by CSC will provide a "plug and play" environment to simplify networking with other systems. It also will be easier to add new software than it is with ETMS. As programmers add new software, the capability of the new flow control system will grow. The system also will make it easier for air traffic controllers to communicate and collaborate with a variety of partners, such as airlines, while improving the system's performance and capacity.