This Traffic Situational Display screen shows some of the reroutes—red, yellow, and light blue lines on the map—that are part of the reroute monitor function.

On June 6, the Volpe Center completed operational deployment of ETMS 8.0. The Enhanced Traffic Management System (ETMS) is a mission-essential system used by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to support its Traffic Flow Management (TFM) system. ETMS is used to track, predict, and plan air traffic flow, analyze effects of ground delays, and evaluate alternative routing strategies. The Volpe Center is responsible for development and daily operation of ETMS.

The ETMS deployment included a significant infrastructure modernization component whereby computers and telecommunications equipment at the Volpe Center’s ETMS hub site and over 75 FAA field sites were successfully upgraded, resulting in a considerable increase in processing speed and capacity for handling air traffic information. ETMS 8.0 contains new traffic flow management decision support tools that enhance the ability of traffic managers to reroute air traffic around severe weather. In addition, this release provided several enhancements to the ETMS Traffic Situation Display—a tool that monitors the position of air traffic and helps to determine the traffic demand on airports and sectors. A common air traffic situational awareness makes possible collaborative decision-making between FAA, air carriers, and military operations. This leads to improved aviation efficiency and safety.