FAA Keeps Graphical TFR Promise

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New System Online Today…

A year after promising them, FAA Administrator Marion Blakey will announce that real-time graphical depictions of current TFRs will be available on the FAA Web site starting today. Blakey is expected to make the announcement at AOPA’s annual meeting in Philadelphia. She made the promise at last year’s AOPA Expo in Palm Springs. Agency spokesman William Shumann said the new system will give pilots complete, up-to-the-minute information on TFRs as they are created. Michael Cirillo, the FAA’s program director for air traffic planning and procedures, told a media briefing Wednesday that the new system is fully automated and will be refreshed every 15 minutes. Graphical depictions have been available for some TFRs under a test program since June. But Cirillo said the graphics were created manually using commercial charts and proved time-consuming for FAA staff. He said the automated system will “provide better service to pilots” and cut the workload for staff. Shumann told AVweb that staff will be assigned to ensure the information on the site is current and accurate. He said there has been a problem with outdated and expired information remaining on the current site.

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