Green Light for NextGen Satellites

FAA Acting Administrator Robert Sturgell has approved nationwide deployment of the Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) satellite system. Sturgell said “ADS-B is the backbone of the future of air traffic control. NextGen is real and, as of today, NextGen is now.” An executive order signed by U.S. President Bush on Nov. 18 accelerated the implementation of NextGen. Commissioning of essential services for ADS-B in Florida clears the way for nationwide deployment of the system by 2013. The installation of 11 ground stations in Florida gives pilots viewing ADS-B cockpit displays the same live traffic seen by controllers. Pilots also receive free, real-time weather updates from the National Weather Service, as well as critical flight information such as temporary flight restrictions and special-use airspace. By 2013, 794 ground stations will provide ADS-B services everywhere there is radar coverage today — with further coverage in places that currently lack radar coverage, including the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska. Work at the sites of the next key milestones for ADS-B services — Juneau, AK, Louisville, KY, the Gulf of Mexico and Philadelphia — are scheduled for completion by the end of 2010. This will allow controllers to begin using ADS-B for aircraft surveillance or separation services.