FAA Proposes Amendments to VOR Federal Airways V-16, V-184 and Revocation of V-284, V-577 Due to Cedar Lake VOR/DME Decommissioning
Why It MattersAs legacy VOR infrastructure is retired, IFR airway networks are being redrawn around RNAV capability, pushing operators toward GPS-based routing while ground-based backups shrink.
What happened
The Federal Aviation Administration has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing to amend VOR Federal Airways V-16 and V-184 and to revoke airways V-284 and V-577, all located in the eastern United States. The changes stem from the planned decommissioning of the Cedar Lake, NJ (VCN) VOR/DME on June 10, 2027, which the FAA attributed to land lease issues.
For V-16, the FAA proposes removing the segment between the Smyrna VOR/DME and the Cedar Lake VOR/DME. As amended, the airway would extend between the Los Angeles VORTAC and the Holly Springs VORTAC; between the Shelbyville VOR/DME and the Pulaski VORTAC; between the Lynchburg VOR/DME and the Richmond VORTAC; and between the Coyle, NJ (CYN) VORTAC and the CREAM Fix. For V-184, currently extending between the Philipsburg, PA (PSB) VORTAC and the intersection of the Kennedy, NY (JFK) VOR/DME 198° radial and Robbinsville, NJ (RBV) VORTAC 112° radial, the FAA proposes removing the Cedar Lake segment.
The FAA said IFR traffic displaced by the changes could use adjacent VOR Federal Airways V-1, V-16, V-29, V-123, V-166, V-213, V-229, V-268, V-469, and V-479, or receive ATC radar vectors, while RNAV-equipped aircraft could use adjacent RNAV routes T-224, T-303, T-307, T-315, T-358, T-416, and T-457. The amendments are described in FAA Order JO 7400.11M, dated July 30, 2026, effective September 15, 2026. The FAA determined the proposal is not a significant regulatory action and expects at most de minimis costs. Public comments are due on or before November 19, 2026, under Docket No. 26-AEA-5.
Industry impact & what to watch
This proposal belongs to a broader, ongoing federal effort to consolidate the VOR network as the FAA shifts navigation reliance toward satellite-based RNAV routes, retiring ground stations where lease costs or land access make continued operation impractical. Each such decommissioning forces a redrawn set of airways around the affected facility, with the agency routinely pointing operators toward adjacent VOR airways or RNAV alternatives rather than leaving a navigational gap.
For operators still flying VOR-equipped aircraft without RNAV capability, each of these actions narrows the set of ground-based routes available in a given region, reinforcing the practical case for RNAV equipage over time. The FAA's own classification of the action as non-significant, with de minimis costs, signals that the agency views the affected traffic volume and complexity as manageable through the listed alternates and radar vectoring.
The open period now is the comment window, which closes November 19, 2026, after which the FAA would finalize the amendments ahead of the September 15, 2026 effective date already set in Order JO 7400.11M and the June 10, 2027 decommissioning of the Cedar Lake VOR/DME itself.
