ADS-B Requirement by 2020

In a bid to decrease separation standards without compromising safety, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking requiring all aircraft using controlled airspace to have satellite-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) by 2020, enabling air traffic...

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In a bid to decrease separation standards without compromising safety, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking requiring all aircraft using controlled airspace to have satellite-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) by 2020, enabling air traffic controllers to track aircraft by satellites. Fortunately, most VLJs are ahead of the curve having already opted to equip their aircraft for the NextGen system.
Considered the cornerstone of NextGen, ADS-B will replace radar and enable further safety, capacity, efficiency and environmental benefits. Aircraft not flying in controlled airspace will not be required to have ADS-B avionics, but may choose to do so in order to realize the safety benefits.
Rolled out and tested in Alaska under FAA’s Capstone project, the technology has more than proved itself in the additional situational awareness it gives pilots. At the beginning of Capstone, it was hoped ADS-B would have a dramatic impact on the state’s accident rate, the highest in the nation. In Southwest Alaska, the fatal accident rate for ADS-B-equipped aircraft dropped by 47 percent.
“Aviation must take the big step into the next generation of technology,” said Acting FAA Administrator Bobby Sturgell. “It's safer and more accurate. Satellite technology is here to stay.”
The 10-fold increase in the accuracy of satellite signals will allow air traffic controllers to reduce separation standards between aircraft, significantly increasing the number of aircraft that can be safely managed in the nation’s skies. Traffic is projected to grow from 740 million passengers last year to one billion in 2015, and double today’s levels by 2025.
Under a contract awarded to ITT Corporation last month, ground stations for the new system will be brought online across the country, starting in the East Coast, portions of the Midwest, Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico. Nationwide coverage is expected by 2013. Pilots viewing ADS-B cockpit displays are able to see, in real time, their location in relation to other aircraft, bad weather and terrain. The proposed rule is open to public comment for 90 days, and is scheduled to become final by late 2009. The proposed compliance date of 2020 will give the industry more than 10 years to equip aircraft.
The airline, corporate aviation and GA sectors are bracing for what, ultimately, will be required by FAA to participate in an ADS-B flight regime, according to Avionics Editor Bill Carey, who contributed to this report. Estimates of the cost of avionics equipage through 2025 run as high as $20 billion. New-production Airbus and Boeing airliners are capable of ADS-B “Out,” the broadcast of their GPS-derived position and intent via 1090 MHz Mode S transponder, with Extended Squitter (ES) data streams. ADS-B “In,” is the ability to receive and display information from other aircraft in the vicinity, as well as Traffic Information Services Broadcast (TIS-B) and Flight Information Services Broadcast (FIS-B) messages uplinked from the ground is further down the road.
The ITT contact award specifies a “dual-link” solution, meaning that ground stations will receive and process 1090 MHz Mode S ES broadcasts from airliners and corporate jets, and Universal Access Transceiver (UAT) broadcasts from GA aircraft. Whether GA operators will pay the cost of ADS-B is in question.
UPS is a pioneering adopter of ADS-B through use of the “SafeRoute” system at its Louisville cargo hub. FAA is piggybacking on the work they’ve done already by designating Louisville and Philadelphia as first deployment areas, along with Alaska (already using ADS-B through Capstone) and the Gulf of Mexico where ADS-B ground stations are being installed on oil platforms for offshore helicopter operators.