U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration
Advisory Circular
Subject: NORTH AMERICAN ROUTE
PROGRAM Date: 12/11/08 Initiated by: AJR-133 AC No:
90-91K
1. PURPOSE . This advisory circular offers guidance to users of the airspace system that take part in the North American Route Program (NRP). The NRP is a tool for route planning purposes and aircraft participating in the NRP remain limited to a route of flight that can be conducted in accordance with the communication and navigation equipment on board the aircraft. (See 14 CFR §91.205 and §121.349.)
2. CANCELLATION . Advisory Circular 90-91J, dated July 30, 2005, North American Route Program, and Advisory Circular 90-103, dated June 20, 2008, North American Route Program, are canceled.
3. BACKGROUND . The North American Route Program is a joint venture between the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and NAV CANADA. The aim of the NRP is to harmonize and adopt common procedures, to the extent possible, applicable to random route flight operations at and above flight level 290 within the conterminous United States and Canada. The NRP has been carried out through various phases with the end result of allowing all international and domestic flight operations to take part in the NRP throughout the conterminous United States, Alaska, and Canada. This program allows aircraft operators to select beneficial routings. These route selections may be based on factors such as minimum time, cost, fuel, weather avoidance, aircraft limitations, and/or other factors.
4. PARTICIPATION . Flights may take part in the NRP within the conterminous United States and Canada, and for North Atlantic international flights. NRP aircraft are not subject to route limiting restrictions (e.g., published preferred instrument flight rules (IFR) routes) beyond a 200 nautical mile (NM) radius of their point of egress or outside a 200NM radius of their ingress. Operators should refer to the Canadian Flight Supplement for specific requirements while operating within Canadian airspace.
5. PROCEDURES .
a. Flights should be filed and flown via published Departure Procedures (DP), Standard Terminal Arrival Routes (STAR), or published preferred IFR routes for at least that portion of flight which is within 200NM from the point of egress or ingress, (except as stated in paragraph 5b below). If the procedure(s) above are less than 200NM, published airways may be used for the remainder of the 200NM. If published procedures do not exist, published airways may be used for the entire 200NM.
b. Flights may be filed and flown on the complete transition of all published DPs and/or STARs. DP/STARs can be flown instead of the 200NM ingress/egress filing requirements described in paragraph 5a above.
c. Flights should not be filed via DP/NRP/STAR transitions within offshore transition areas (12NM or more off the United States shoreline).
d. Operators should make certain that the route of flight contains no less than one navigational aid (NAVAID), or waypoint (in the fix radial distance format) in each delegated area of airspace jurisdiction for each FAA air route traffic control center (ARTCC) in which a direct route segment traverses. These NAVAIDs or waypoints must be located within 200NM of the preceding FAA ARTCC’s boundary. Additional route description fixes for each turn point should be defined. Within Canadian airspace, a significant point should be filed for each area control centre in which a direct route segment traverses.
e. For routes that cross the United States/Canadian border, a significant point within 30NM of either side of the border should be filed.
f. Operators within the United States should make certain that the route avoids active restricted areas and prohibited areas by at least 3NM unless permission has been obtained from the using agency to operate in that airspace and the proper air traffic control facility has been advised.
g. Operators should make sure that “NRP” is entered in the remarks section of each flight plan.
NOTE- “NRP” will be kept in the remarks section of the flight plan if the aircraft is moved due to weather, traffic, or other tactical reasons. In these cases, every effort will be made to return the aircraft to the original filed flight plan/altitude as soon as conditions permit. If the route of flight is altered due to pilot requested or controller initiated direct route, “NRP” will be removed from the remarks section of the flight plan, and the flight will be considered as a nonparticipant of the NRP.
h. Flight plans should be filed at least 1 hour prior to departure.
i. Operators should not file a NRP route that conforms to published preferred IFR route(s).
j. Flights that do not meet FAA guidelines specified in this advisory circular are to be requested through the FAA nonpreferred route program. Those requests will be approved or disapproved on a workload-permitting basis.
Nancy B. Kalinowski Vice President, System Operations Services Air Traffic Organization