Eram Software Function Caused Automation Lapse, FAA Says
Prime contractor Lockheed Martin is investigating why the problem was not identified during testing of the system, according to the FAA.
The FAA announced on April 30 that Eram was operational at 20 enroute ATC centers nationwide. (Photo: Lockheed Martin)

The automation lapse at an ATC center that disrupted hundreds of flights in the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. this past weekend has been traced to a software issue with the center’s new enroute automation modernization (Eram) system. The problem was not revealed during testing of the Lockheed Martin system, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement released late on August 17.


A new function of the latest Eram software was the source of the August 15 outage at the Washington Air Route Traffic Control Center in Leesburg, Va., which handles high-altitude traffic, the FAA said. The function allows controllers to create a customized window of frequently referenced data. “This information was supposed to be completely removed from the system as controllers deleted it,” the agency explained. “However, as controllers adjusted their unique settings, those changes remained in memory until the storage limit was filled. This consumed processing power needed for the successful operation of the overall system.”


During the outage of several hours' duration, controllers relied on backup systems and procedures to manage scheduled arrivals and departures in the region, handling about 70 percent of the average Saturday traffic at Baltimore-Washington International Airport; 72 percent at Washington National Airport; and 88 percent at Washington Dulles International Airport, the FAA said.


The agency has temporarily suspended the software function in the Eram system, which it declared operational at 20 enroute centers just over three months ago. Prime contractor Lockheed Martin completed the nationwide installation four years late at a cost of $2.48 billion, $330 million more than originally budgeted.


In an earlier statement on August 16, the FAA said that it was focused on the software function and didn’t believe the issue “related to any inherent problems” with the Eram system. The agency attested that Eram’s availability rate has exceeded 99.99 percent since the system was completed earlier this year.


“By temporarily suspending the use of this (software) function, we have eliminated the possibility of this particular issue from occurring again,” the agency said in its latest statement. “The FAA is working with Lockheed on a permanent solution and the company is closely examining why the issue was not identified during testing.”