Washington, DC - A new Federal Aviation Administration rule that will enable the airlines to make better use of the upper airspace could save U.S. airlines as much as $4.8 billion in fuel costs over 10 years, experts at CSSI, Inc., said today. Total economic benefits were estimated at $5.3 billion.

CSSI analysts said the benefits from the new domestic reduced vertical separation minimum (DRVSM) rule that will take effect in January 2005 will exceed total costs by a ratio of approximately six to one. They placed those costs at $869.2 million. The change also will produce a variety of non-economic, or “qualitative” benefits, including reduced travel delays, CSSI’s team of experts said.

A transportation technology and engineering firm based in the District of Columbia, CSSI, Inc., has provided the FAA with extensive technical and analytical support as the agency has gone through the DRVSM rulemaking process, and helped prepare the regulatory impact analysis that outlines the benefits and costs associated with the rule.

The new DRVSM rule will reduce the required vertical separation of aircraft flying between 29,000 and 41,000 feet from 2,000 to 1,000 feet, enabling the United States to add six additional layers of usable airspace.

“Although the U.S. aviation industry, including many of the major, regional, charter and cargo carriers, will need to upgrade avionics equipment and provide pilots and crews with additional training over the next several years, the benefits far outweigh the costs,” said Ross Burton, a Program Manager at CSSI, Inc. To date, just over 30 percent of the total U.S. Turbojet aircraft population have received DRVSM approval.

“Besides, it’s important to note that RVSM is a global program and much of the rest of the world has already adopted the new standard,” said Burton, who oversaw CSSI’s work on the economic analysis. RVSM programs already have been implemented over the Atlantic, the Pacific, Europe, northern Canada, Southeast Asia and Australia, and are in the process of being implemented in the Middle East.

In supporting the FAA’s regulatory impact analysis, CSSI, Inc. experts found that DRVSM would produce the following benefits:

• A 1 percent to 2 percent reduction in the amount spent annually on fuel to operate in U.S. domestic airspace.
  
• Decreased travel delays equating to over 450 million dollars in savings from 2005 and 2016. (According to Eurocontrol, Europe’s version of the FAA, “with traffic levels down by less than 2% from 2001, en-route delays [in Europe] have decreased by 40%.”)
  
• Decreased air traffic controller workload and increased controller flexibility.

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• Improved access to desired flight levels, including an increased likelihood of receiving a clearance to change courses during adverse weather.
• Decreased emissions from aircraft due to the reduction in fuel usage. (According to Eurocontrol, RVSM implementation in Europe has lead to a 1 percent to 2 percent reduction in nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide emissions.)

“When all is said and done, going forward with DRVSM appears to provide the greatest net benefit to all involved while maintaining the United States’ superior level of aviation safety,” said Burton.

BREAKDOWN OF BENEFITS AND COSTS OF DRVSM

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Founded in 1990, CSSI, Inc., is an engineering and technical services company specializing in systems analysis and engineering, airspace initiatives, and information and program management. Clients include the international and U.S. aviation industry, the Federal Aviation Administration, NASA, and the Department of Defense.