FreeFlight Systems, Waco, Texas, said it will offer an affordable ADS-B “Out” system combining a 978 MHz data radio with a TSO-certified GPS Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) sensor by the third quarter of 2009. The system is targeted for helicopter and business aircraft fleets and GA pilots.

Under a proposed rulemaking, FAA will mandate that aircraft be equipped for Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) by 2020. The FreeFlight Systems solution will provide WAAS positional accuracy, using the company’s 1201 or 1203 GPS/WAAS sensors and antennas, along with the ability to broadcast aircraft position information over the 978 MHz frequency.

The solution does not replace the aircraft’s existing transponder and can be installed “with virtually no disruption to current aircraft avionics,” says FreeFlight Systems. The design provides an upgrade path for ADS-B “In” and its associated benefits, including Traffic Information Service and Flight Information Service broadcasts, known as TIS-B and FIS-B, respectively.

With a two-year warranty, the ADS-B Out system will be certified and installed under a supplemental type certificate.