The NextGen project, aimed at modernizing airspace infrastructure, is on track for initial operational capability, said Edward Bolton, the assistant administrator for NextGen at the Federal Aviation Administration, at ASC15. The fear, however, is that because the behemoth project is a series of programs, and issues such as sequester and the FAA’s reauthorization affecting it, it will not stay on track for long, said Paul Rinaldi, president of National Air Traffic Controllers Association. Bolton added that the “biggest challenge for NextGen is a stable funding system and a new structure.” The FAA is now in the second segment of its NextGen project, having just completed the first segment last year, said Bolton.
Amid a high-profile recruiting crisis, Air Force leaders and experts have increasingly noted the challenging long-term trends the service will face in enticing young Americans to sign up—decreasing eligibility to serve, less propensity to do so, and less familiarity with the military. But while those same leaders say there’s no “silver…