The 2012 Act included several  provisions that address some of the issues that we have identified in our  work, including incentivizing aircraft operators to equip with NextGen  technologies, developing performance measures, and involving  stakeholders in NextGen development.progress in implementing NextGen has highlighted ongoing challenges in   Our recent work on FAA’s  three areas: improving leadership, demonstrating near-term benefits, and  balancing the needs of the current system while implementing NextGen  systems. Improving NextGen Leadership

Our work has found that complex organizational transformations, such as  NextGen, involving technology, systems, and retraining key personnel  require substantial leadership commitment over a sustained period, and  that leaders must be empowered to make critical decisions and held  accountable for results. In June 2013, FAA appointed a new Deputy Administrator  and designated a Chief NextGen Officer, in response to Section 204 of  the 2012 Act. With these positions now  filled, FAA should be in a better position to resolve its NextGen leadership  challenges. Demonstrating Near-Term Benefits

To convince operators to make investments in NextGen equipment, FAA  must continue to deliver systems, procedures, and capabilities that  demonstrate near-term benefits and a return on an operator’s  investments. In particular, a large percentage of the current U.S. air  carrier fleet is equipped to fly more precise performance-based navigation  (PBN) procedures, such as following precise routes that use the Global  Positioning System or glide descent paths, which can save airlines and  other aircraft operators money through reduced fuel burn and flight time. The 2012 Act included a number of provisions aimed at accelerating the  creation of PBN procedures. As of  January 2014, PBN procedures had been implemented at two of the five  selected airports. The 2012 Act contained a number of provisions aimed at accelerating the  implementation of NextGen systems. However, we found in August  2013 that FAA’s budget planning does not fully account for the potential  impact of NextGen systems that will be deployed and the need for  continued operations and maintenance of existing systems and  facilities. These, and other cost estimates for maintaining  existing systems and facilities, along with implementing NextGen exceed  anticipated funding levels. In addition, section 804 of the 2012 Act directed FAA  to complete a study on the consolidation and realignment of FAA services  and facilities to support the transition to NextGen. Improved budget planning and accurate and  reliable data on infrastructure condition could help Congress better  understand the funding requirements of existing systems and facilities  and facilitate FAA’s efforts to support the agency’s mission of continuing  to safely operate the NAS along with the longer-term goal of transitioning  to NextGen. FAA Is Continuously Working to Improve Safety and Has Made Progress in Improving Its Certification Processes

The U.S. air transportation system remains one of the safest in the world. 2). Subsequently, the 2012 Act required FAA to work with  industry to assess the certification process, including reviewing our  previous work and developing recommendations to address the concerns  that we and others have raised. In July 2013, FAA released its plan to implement these recommendations. III for an update of all the 2012 Act’s  requirements with respect to UAS). While progress has been made implementing some of the key milestones  established in the 2012 Act, integrating UAS into the NAS continues to  challenge FAA leading to uncertainty about when UAS integration will be  achieved. Although FAA has had efforts under way since  2008 supporting a rulemaking on small UAS, it is unlikely that FAA will  meet the August 2014 final rule deadline required by the 2012 Act. For  example, FAA has not yet issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for  small UAS, and recently estimated that one will not be released until  November 2014. Next Generation Air Transportation System: FAA Faces Implementation  Challenges. Appendix III: Status of Requirements for UAS Integration under the 2012 Act as of January 2014

Appendix III: Status of Requirements for UAS  Integration under the 2012 Act as of January  2014 Deadline  05/14/2012   Enter into agreements with appropriate government agencies to simplify the  FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 requirement   process for issuing Certificates of waiver or authorizations (COAs) or waivers for  public UAS. 08/12/2012   Establish a program to integrate UAS into the national airspace at six test  ranges. 09/30/2015   Achieve safe integration of civil UAS into the national airspace.
Why GAO Did This Study

The U.S. air transportation system is the busiest and among the safest in the world. Even so, maintaining and improving the extraordinary level of connectivity and mobility the system affords us, and the safety record that has been achieved to date requires continued attention and effort. In the 2012 Act, Congress directed FAA to take various actions to improve the safety and efficiency of the current NAS while transitioning to NextGen. In addition, given the potential and opportunities afforded by new UAS technologies, the 2012 Act included several provisions with respect to FAA safely integrating UAS into the NAS.
Based on work GAO has conducted for this Committee since the passage of the 2012 Act, this testimony discusses FAA's challenges and progress in
1) implementing NextGen,
2) improving aviation safety, and
3) integrating UAS into the national airspace system.
This statement is drawn from several GAO reports completed since the 2012 Act, as well as additional reports from prior to the 2012 Act on these topics. To update information in those reports, GAO conducted interviews with officials from FAA and industry, and reviewed agency documents.

What GAO Found

The FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (the 2012 Act) contained several provisions related to implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen)—a complex, long-term initiative to incrementally modernize and transform the national airspace system (NAS). GAO's recent work on NextGen has highlighted three key implementation issues:
Improving NextGen Leadership: Complex transformations, such as NextGen, require substantial leadership commitment over a sustained period, and leaders must both be empowered to make critical decisions and be held accountable for results. The 2012 Act created a Chief NextGen Officer that FAA appointed in June 2013, and FAA has recently filled other key NextGen leadership positions. With these positions filled, FAA should be in a better position to resolve its NextGen leadership challenges.
Demonstrating Near-Term Benefits: The 2012 Act included a number of provisions aimed at accelerating the creation of performance-based navigation (PBN) procedures, such as following precise routes that use the Global Positioning System, which can save airlines and other aircraft operators money through reduced fuel burn and flight time. FAA must continue to deliver PBN capabilities and begin to demonstrate a return on operator's investments. As of January 2014, FAA has implemented PBN procedures at two of the five airports selected for early deployment.
Balancing the Needs of the Current Air–Traffic Control System and NextGen: While the 2012 Act contained a number of provisions aimed at accelerating NextGen implementation, GAO found that FAA's budget planning does not fully account for the impact on the agency's operating costs of the NextGen systems that will be deployed in future years, along with the need for continued operation and maintenance of existing systems and facilities. Cost estimates for maintaining existing systems and facilities coupled with implementing NextGen exceed anticipated funding levels. GAO recommended improvements to FAA's budget–planning and infrastructure-condition data, which FAA is working to implement.
Safety in the aviation industry is achieved in part through adherence to various certification standards. The 2012 Act required FAA to work with industry to assess the certification process. GAO's work has found that while FAA has made progress developing its plan to implement these recommendations, FAA continues to lack performance measures to track its progress.
For unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), FAA has implemented 7 of the 17 requirements established in the 2012 Act, representing progress since GAO's last update in January 2013. However, FAA continues to experience challenges implementing the provisions in the 2012 Act and integrating UAS into the NAS. For example, although FAA has had efforts under way since 2008 supporting a rulemaking on small UAS, it is unlikely that FAA will meet the August 2014 final rule deadline required by the 2012 Act since it has not yet issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. In addition, while FAA created the UAS Integration Office in 2013 to lead UAS integration, as of January 2014, the program lacks an operations budget.