SPC Meeting Scheduled

The NextGen Senior Policy Committee Meeting has been scheduled for September 14, 2009, and the agenda is under development.  A special meeting of the JPDO Board will be held August 31 to review the SPC agenda items and prepare any issues in advance of the SPC Meeting.

Bob Pearce
JPDO Deputy Director

Another Successful JPDO Board Meeting

The JPDO Board met on Wednesday, July 29 in the JPDO Board Room.  A very full agenda and a lot of discussion led to a meeting that went 30 minutes past its planned conclusion.  The meeting started on an upnote as the National Aviation Safety Strategic Plan (NASSP), which has been delayed in interagency coordination, has finally been fully approved across all of the JPDO partner departments and agencies.  Progress toward the Integrated Surveillance Concept of Operations and Enterprise Architecture was then reviewed by Col. Doug Wreath.  DoD briefings continued with discussions of near-term net-centric graphical TFR and range scheduling applications.  Both of these applications should lead to improved information coordination across agencies.

The meeting then progressed through a series of briefings on JPDO products and progress.  First, Ed Waggoner detailed the good progress that is being made in validating Integrated Work Plan (IWP) Operational Improvements (OIs) with the partner departments and agencies.  While significant work remains to complete that validation process, the IWP update that will be made this fall will benefit from what has been completed thus far.

Next, Yuri Gawdiak provided highlights on the progress in building the NextGen Business Case, and led a productive discussion on how the business case can provide feedback on feasible paths within the IWP.  This is especially true with regard to the far-term OIs, where decision trees will provide greater definition as to the level of performance and timeframes for NextGen capabilities.

JPDO’s Risk Management Process was detailed, including the Board’s role in validating multi-agency and far-term risk and approving mitigation strategies, especially where substantial policy or investment issues are in play.

The final briefing was by NASA’s Dr. Amy Pritchett, Director of the NASA Aviation Safety Program.  Dr. Pritchett reviewed NASA’s progress in planning a Complex Systems Validation and Verification research project.  This project is in response to the top multi-agency, far-term risk identified by the JPDO.

The Executive Session of the JPDO was focused on moving forward collaboratively on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) planning.

Bob Pearce
JPDO Deputy Director

Upcoming JPDO Board Meeting

The next meeting of the JPDO Board of Directors (look here for a list of Board members) is scheduled for July 29, 2009.  A very full agenda will cover multi-agency agency programs, JPDO Working Group products, and progress in NextGen planning and analysis.  Highlights from the draft agenda include discussion of specific DoD initiatives with NextGen relevance such as Center Scheduling Enterprise and Command and Control (C2) Gap Filler Joint Concept Technology Demonstration (JCTD); the status of aligning agency ownership of the Offices of Primary Responsibility and Offices of Collateral Responsibility for the Operational Improvements and Enablers within the Integrated Work Plan (IWP); the status of building and utilizing the NextGen Business Case; and, NASA’s evolving approach to research to advanced Verification and Validation of Complex Systems.

Bob Pearce
JPDO Deputy Directory

New Details on Upcoming Board Meeting

We had another good discussion around the upcoming JPDO Board Meeting, which takes place on May 5. Board Agenda items are being confirmed as we speak, but–based on yesterday’s meeting–we have a packed schedule, which will include briefings on a variety of subjects, such as: Interagency Initiatives (specifically Net-Centric Operations Coordination and Environmental Challenges), next steps regarding the Space Weather System Interference Issue, Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT), and much more. Board materials are scheduled to go out to Board members at the end of the month. We look forward to a great meeting!

David Kerr
JPDO Director, Partnership Development Division

JPDO Board Meeting Held on Tuesday

The JPDO Board (to see who is on the Board, go here) met on Tuesday this week.  Meeting topics included an overview of interagency initiative “stoplight charts” that status progress, as well as more in-depth discussions on specific initiatives, including National Aviation Safety Management, Integrated Surveillance, and Net-Centric Operations.  An overview of the Joint Planning Environment (JPE) and a status of JPDO Working Group planning was provided, too. The potential impacts of Space Weather (solar activity) on the NextGen system was highlighted and led to further action to understand the potential magnitude of this problem.

Bob Pearce
JPDO Deputy Director