On Mon, 03 Oct 2005 01:56:45 GMT, john smith wrote in
::
Anyone have any experiences with the new provider?
It looks like LocMart is not able to meet it's cost savings estimates
nor its schedule:
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AVwebFlash Volume 12, Number 16a -- April 17, 2006
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MODERNIZATION TAKES TIME
(
http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192030)
A massive effort to replace communications and data lines that stitch
together the air traffic control system is (surprise, surprise) behind
schedule and not achieving its financial goals, according to the New
York Times
(
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/09/us...=1&oref=slogin).
The contract to replace the system was issued in 2002, awarded to
the Harris Corporation, was supposed to be completed by now, but
the scheduled was extended in December, 2005. Marion C. Blakey,
the administrator of the F.A.A., acknowledged in a recent
interview that it would be "a climb" to stick to the revised
schedule, which calls for completion in December 2007. And the
initial estimate that the new system could save $800 million over
10 years has been revised, with savings now estimated at $600
million over 15 years.
The Times story also says the program has caused three failures that
resulted in flight delays.
The failures have come from a variety of causes. On March 6, the
system lost contact with a radar near Chicago, leading controllers
to hold scores of planes on the ground. The problem was that a new
line had failed and that the old one had been prematurely
disconnected by the F.A.A., the agency acknowledged.
However, Harris Corp., which won the contract to do the conversion,
said in a news release
(
http://www.harris.com/view_pressrele...kup&pr_id=1832)
last week that the work is on schedule and will reduce the FAA's
costs. The program, called the FAA Telecommunications Infrastructure,
was awarded to Harris Corp. three years ago, and will replace all the
lines linking 4,400 installations, including remote mountain radio and
radar sites. It's supposed to be done by the end of the year but
likely won't be finished until the end of 2007, according to the Times
story.
http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192030