Summary: Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO evaluated the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) computer systems capability to minimize the possibility of near mid-air collisions, focusing on: (1) how FAA managed computer capacity in existing terminal systems; and (2) whether FAA assessed capacity limitation in terminal systems that could preclude effective implementation of planned safety enhancements intended to reduce near mid-air collisions.
GAO found that: (1) there were widespread computer shortfalls at terminal area facilities that FAA did not recognize until controllers began experiencing lost, flickering, or delayed data on their displays; (2) the shortfalls occurred because FAA lacked a computer capacity and performance management program to monitor Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) system performance and to determine future requirements; (3) FAA concluded that it did not need the program because it believed that the existing systems would meet requirements until an advanced system would replace it in the next decade; (4) FAA could not predict computer shortfalls, since it did not measure computer utilization or test software enhancements under the heaviest work loads; (5) FAA improved software and postponed some less critical functions in an attempt to alleviate capacity shortfalls at some terminals; (6) FAA did not adequately assess the resources necessary to accommodate future traffic growth, the Mode C Intruder function, and additional Mode C-equipped aircraft; and (7) the current sole-source contract to increase computer capacity was not an ideal solution, since it included purchasing equipment that was no longer manufactured and might not meet FAA needs.
