The Department of Transportation’s Inspector General, Calvin Scovel III, last week delivered an 18-page letter to House Transportation leaders Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA), Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ), Chairman Subcommittee on Aviation, following a six-month deep dive into the FAA’s business case and assumptions about NextGen.
DOT’s Inspector General Questions FAA’s Assumptions on Next Gen
Key Takeaways:
- The Department of Transportation's Inspector General (IG) concluded that the FAA's projected $161 billion in NextGen benefits by 2030 are "overly optimistic," lacking transparency on uncertainties and complex factors.
- The IG criticized the FAA for not presenting alternative outcomes or adjusting for risks, and questioned the valuation of passenger time saved and how combined benefits are reported, which concerned airlines.
- The report has implications for the debate on severing air traffic control from the FAA, with proponents seeing it as supportive, while the FAA maintains its benefit calculations are conservative.
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