Denver’s Blue Skies Turn Green with New Departure and Arrival Procedures

DENVER, CO — June 20, 2013 — Denver International Airport (DEN) in collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Rocky Mountain and Centennial Airports, major airline partners and Jeppesen designed and implemented new arrival and departure procedures. The collaboration brings the benefits of Performance Based Navigation – increased runway throughput; reductions in aircraft fuel burn, greenhouse gas emissions and minimized noise footprints to the Denver metro area. This is another example of how Denver International Airport is committed to becoming the industry leader in environmental stewardship.

Denver International Airport is the first commercial airport to design a truly comprehensive plan of Area Navigation (RNAV) from the beginning that permits each procedure to reach its full potential. Denver’s RNAV and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedures are comprehensive. The flight procedures include all arrivals and departures, not only for Denver International Airport, but also for two general aviation reliever airports (Centennial and Rocky Mountain), and have incorporated vertical navigation (VNAV). These procedures are part of NextGen, which is an umbrella term for the ongoing, wide-ranging transformation of the National Airspace System. At the most basic level, NextGen represents an evolution from a ground-based system of air traffic control to a satellite-based system of air traffic management.

“These procedures have transformed Denver’s skies, and we are now open to continued growth and increased performance,” Kim Day, Manager of Aviation said. “As a result of RNAV and RNP, Denver International Airport is now one of the least delayed, most efficient airports in the national Airspace System, and these new flight procedures enable us to meet increased demand in the future while minimizing aviation’s environmental impacts.”

What does this mean for the public?

• Smoother approaches. The Optimized Profile Descent technique allows descending aircraft to reduce power and maintain a constant glide path during descent, instead of a “stair step approach.”
• The new approaches and departures eliminate the “stair stepping” descent and departure pattern, and when combined with controlled pathways, there is a significant reduction in residential noise.
• Satellite-based air traffic management will improve situational awareness in all weather conditions and allows aircraft to safely fly closer together on more direct routes, reducing delays.

United Airlines, which has a hub in Denver, estimates uninterrupted idle descent from cruise to final approach will result in savings of 200-800 lbs. of fuel per flight, depending on the size of the aircraft.

Reductions in fuel burn save money for the airlines, and this helps keep costs competitive for airlines to operate at DEN. As there are more flights in the future, DEN will continue to be one of the least delayed, most efficient airports.

Denver International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world. DEN is the primary economic engine for the state of Colorado, generating more than $36 billion for the region annually. For more information visit www.FlyDenver.com, check us out on YouTube and Instagram, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. Sign up for DEN’s monthly newsletter Nonstop News.

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