Collectively, these systems, in  combination with others, will transform air traffic control to air traffic  management. These different  governing structures contribute to differing management structures for  NextGen and SESAR. U.S. companies are participating in SESAR’s  development phase, either as a member organization or as an associate  partner. FAA and the European Commission Are Working Collaboratively on Components Common to NextGen and SESAR

		FAA and the European Commission Agreed to Collaborate on NextGen and SESAR and to Continue Existing Collaborative Research

In 2006, FAA and the European Commission signed a Memorandum of  Understanding (MOU) to ensure coordination between the aviation  modernization programs in the United States and the EU. FAA was allowed to  participate as an observer at bimonthly meetings of the EU’s Industry  Consultation Body. FAA and the European Commission Have Established a Structure and Governance Process for Collaboration

In March 2011, FAA and the European Commission signed a new MOC  that replaced the 2006 MOU (updated in 2009) and provides more  specific direction on collaboration and governance as NextGen and  SESAR move forward. 2). RTCA and EUROCAE have formed jointly led and staffed special  committees to develop standards for the new technology that NextGen  and SESAR will employ and help ensure interoperability in technologies  that may differ in some ways between the two systems. In  2011, FAA and the EU reaffirmed their agreement that interoperability is  essential by establishing the MOC. Both parties recognize that it is in their  mutual interest that aircraft be able to operate seamlessly as they fly from  one system to the other. To FAA’s credit, its NextGen  Implementation Plan, issued in March 2011, does state that the United  States and EU have agreed to enter into a new MOC to advance the  interoperability of NextGen and SESAR technologies and that FAA and  SJU are collaborating on air traffic management research, development,  and validation for global interoperability. Mitigating Stakeholder Skepticism Is a Challenge

			Lack of Details on Collaborative Efforts Contributes to Stakeholder Skepticism about NextGen and SESAR Benefits

Some stakeholders we interviewed on both sides of the Atlantic  expressed skepticism about whether or when the future benefits of  NextGen and SESAR will be realized, echoing concerns that have been  raised in the past. Appendix I: Scope and Methodology

To identify and understand the efforts that the Federal Aviation  Administration (FAA) has taken to ensure the interoperability of the Next  Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) with the Single  European Sky Air Traffic Management Research (SESAR) programme,  we reviewed key documents and conducted semistructured interviews  with FAA officials and aviation stakeholders. Specifically, we reviewed  agreements between FAA and the European Union (EU) concerning  collaborative research on air traffic management and other documents  such as the NextGen Implementation Plan and the European Air Traffic  Management Master Plan, which provide details on NextGen and SESAR  programs, and reports comparing NextGen and SESAR concepts and  avionics road maps. To determine how FAA’s collaborative efforts with the EU compare with  effective interagency collaborative practices, we compared FAA’s  collaborative efforts, as documented in status reports of action plan teams  and in the 2011 Memorandum of Cooperation, with key practices that we  have previously identified in effective interagency collaborations.
Why GAO Did This Study

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is leading development of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), which will transform the current radar-based air traffic control system into a satellite-based system. At the same time, the European Union (EU) is developing a similar transformation effort, known as the Single European Sky Air Traffic Management Research (SESAR) programme. Interoperable NextGen and SESAR systems and procedures will be important for aircraft to seamlessly transition from one system to the other.
As requested, this report discusses (1) the efforts that FAA has taken to ensure the interoperability of NextGen with SESAR and (2) how those efforts compare with effective interagency collaboration practices. To address these issues, GAO reviewed agreements between the U.S. and the EU concerning collaborative research on air traffic management and documents related to NextGen and SESAR; reviewed the literature on effective collaboration; and interviewed FAA and EU officials.

What GAO Found

FAA and the EU are working collaboratively toward ensuring interoperability as they modernize their air traffic control systems (NextGen and SESAR) and are generally using effective collaborative practices, but mitigating stakeholder skepticism about realizing NextGen/SESAR benefits will be a challenge.
FAA-EU collaborative efforts predate NextGen and SESAR and helped establish some of these systems central concepts.
In March 2011, FAA and the EU signed a new agreement that established a formal collaborative structure for NextGen and SESAR.
FAA is generally following collaborative practices that we have observed in successful interagency collaborations, but some U.S. and EU stakeholders expressed skepticism about whether NextGens and SESARs benefits will ever be realized.
FAA could reduce stakeholder skepticism by providing, in its public documents, details on the new structure for collaboration and governance with the EU.
FAA and the EU are working collaboratively toward Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) and Single European Sky Air Traffic Management Research (SESAR) interoperability. In 2006, FAA and the European Commission established a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that allowed reciprocal participation in meetings, which provided each with an awareness of the others plans. The MOU also continued a long-standing agreement that fostered collaborative research and helped develop some of the central concepts of NextGen and SESAR, such as data communications and satellite-based surveillance. Additionally, FAA and the EU conducted demonstrations of NextGen/SESAR procedures and technologies that produced useful results at the airports involved in the demonstrations. In March 2011, FAA and the EU signed a separate Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) that established a formal collaborative structure for NextGen and SESAR. Outside of formal agreements, U.S. and EU standards bodies have formed joint committees to develop common standards for NextGen and SESAR systems. Additionally, FAA and the EU are working with an international standards organization to facilitate global interoperability.