To: Assignment Editors and Morning News Producers From: Laura Lewis 650/604-2162, pager 650/317-0551 NASA Ames Research Center A.M. Live Shots December 21, 1999 NASA VIRTUAL AIRPORT TOWER TO BENEFIT AIR PASSENGERS Airline passengers will soon benefit from NASA FutureFlight Central, the world's first full-scale virtual airport-control tower located at NASA Ames Research Center. Opened for business on December 13, NASA FutureFlight Central is a world-class research facility dedicated to addressing the future needs of the nation's airports. It is designed to test - under realistic airport conditions and configurations - ways to solve potential air and ground traffic problems at commercial airports. The new facility will benefit airline passengers by providing safer air travel with fewer airport delays and greater cost efficiencies. NASA FutureFlight Central uses supercomputers and twelve rear-projections video screens to provide a seamless, 360-degree high-resolution view of an airport from the control tower. The facility can be configured to provide realistic views of any airport in the world - either existing or under construction - under all weather and seasonal conditions. Real people interact during live-action simulations to test new technologies, fine-tune airport operations, and evaluate airport improvements under risk-free conditions. For more information about how this exciting new NASA technology will benefit your viewers, interview Yuri Gawdiak, a NASA Systems Manager, or Nancy Dorighi, NASA FutureFlight Central facility manager. Yuri will be available from 5-8 a.m. EST (2-5 a.m. PST) and Nancy will be available from 8-10 a.m. EST (5-7 a.m. PST) December 21. Interviews will be live from NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA Ask Yuri or Nancy: o What is NASA FutureFlight Central? o How will the new facility benefit air travelers? o In what ways can airports and airlines benefit from the new facility? o What are the other uses for the facility? Contact Laura Lewis at 650/604-2162 to book a window on December 21. Further information about the facility can be found at: http://ffc.arc.nasa.gov NASA TV is broadcast on GE-2 (C-Band satellite), transponder 9C at 85 degrees west longitude, vertical polarization with a downlink frequency of 3880 Mhz and audio of 6.8 Mhz. In case of trouble during the interview, call Ames master control at 650/604-1296.