Originally Posted by
Softpayman
And those cause a flight to be 20 mins late. Pilots don’t time out, customers still make a connection.
VS
3 hr EDCTs. Pilots time out, people miss connections, etc.
Both cause a flight to be >14 mins late (Late in the eyes of the FAA). One is far more disruptive in terms of the operation...
So why do we have 3 hr EDCTs? Let's assume the weather in Omaha and JFK is CAVU. No EDCTs in Omaha and JFK is 3 hrs delayed. Same computer systems. Same controllers. Same ATC system. So why is it?
Traffic volume disparity. Each airline trying to eek out another penny by maximizing capacity. So - and I'd really love to know this - how does a privatized ATC system magically increase flow to a finite geographical piece of concrete?
Wake recat has increased capacity a little. Time based separation (like at Heathrow) has increased it. Well, provided pilots don't screw it up by adjusting separation distances on their own because they're not used to following 2.5 miles behind a heavy.
So exactly what sort of upgrade will get rid of the EDCTs? Better computers? It's a time, rate, distance problem that can be solved on an E6B. Better radar? It's a simple scrience. We already have RVSM and ADS-B so what's the answer? What specifically eliminates EDCTs on a CAVU day in JFK. Because if I slice the JFK landings slots in half, the EDCTs go away. And controllers can manage that with a whiteboard and set of binoculars.