Feb. 3, 2021
Implementation of the Las Vegas Metroplex initiative, including 45 new or changed procedures, will begin later this month, creating efficiencies and deconflicting airspace around McCarran International Airport (LAS), Henderson Executive Airport (HND) and North Las Vegas Airport (VGT).
“The Las Vegas Metroplex project is the best example of a metroplex initiative NBAA has ever been engaged in,” said Heidi Williams, NBAA’s director of air traffic services and infrastructure. “This project accounts not only for the needs of McCarran International Airport, but also the criticality of nearby satellite airports, which are heavily used by business aviation, especially in an area that frequently hosts large-scale events.”
Metroplex projects traditionally have had one air carrier as the “lead operator.” The early stages of the Las Vegas Metroplex project, however, had dual leads: Southwest Airlines and NBAA.
Forty-five new procedures are part of the Metroplex initiative, including:
- 11 SIDs – seven LAS RNAV, two HND RNAV, two LAS Conventional
- 14 STARs – five LAS RNAV, three HND RNAV, two VGT RNAV, four LAS Conventional
- 12 SIAPS – five LAS RNP, three LAS GPS, one VGT GPS, three LAS ILS/LOC
- Five T-Routes – five new
- Three Q-Routes – one new, two amended
The local FAAST Team will hold a Zoom meeting on Monday, Feb. 22, starting at 1:30 p.m. (EST) to help pilots prepare for the widescale changes, including entirely new procedure names.
The FAA will implement the new procedures during times of lower demand and is expecting to cycle through these procedures Thursday, Feb. 25 – Saturday, Feb. 27.
Pilots should be prepared for arrival reroutes, fix balancing and possible departure delays at HND and VGT. These delays are not expected to exceed 30 minutes. Departure delays are possible at LAS too, depending on the configurations in use.
Keith Gordon, local subject matter expert and business aviation operator, said pilots will find most flight tracks to be familiar yet streamlined where possible.
“The 2011 vintage Henderson procedures are square pegs trying to fit into a round hole,” said Gordon. “They were developed during former Valley-wide projects that were never completed. At the urging of NBAA, they were implemented as standalone SIDs and STARS to serve this important satellite airport.
“Under the metroplex project, these procedures were reconfigured to be deconflicted and better harmonized with other procedures in the airspace,” he explained.
The FAA is managing the changes internally through frequent communication between participating ATC facilities.
Industry representatives will be updated as necessary and NBAA will share information as it becomes available.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.