In September 2008, the FAA passed a key milestone in its transition from a ground-based navigation infrastructure to an infrastructure based on satellites. The FAA has now published 1,333 Localizer Performance with Vertical guidance (LPV) approach procedures which are based on the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), a space-based navigation system commissioned in 2003. This is significant as the number of approach procedures based on WAAS has now surpassed the number of approach procedures based on its ground-based predecessor, the Category-I Instrument Landing System (ILS). This is clearly a turning point for aviation and the way pilots navigate.
For the past 60 years, Category-I ILS has been used at airports throughout the National Airspace System (NAS) to guide aircraft to as low as 200 feet above the runway surface. WAAS, commissioned just five years ago, now provides this same capability, but at more runway ends. Today, WAAS LPVs can currently be found at 833 airports.
The number of WAAS LPVs will continue to grow. The FAA’s goal is to produce 500 new WAAS procedures each year until every qualified runway in the NAS has one. Additionally, WAAS has enabled a new approach capability which will be introduced in 2009.
The WAAS signal is provided from space so there is no need for the FAA to install and maintain navigation equipment at an airport, such as that needed for an ILS. Additionally, safety is improved as more aircraft are provided with vertically-guided approaches and improved flight planning options enabled by WAAS.
Background
The Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) is a navigational system representing an enormous leap forward in air navigation. By virtue of its extensive coverage area, WAAS provides vertically-guided approach capability at thousands of airports and airstrips where this capability had previously not been affordable. It is a core element in transitioning to the satellite-based air traffic control system of the future.
WAAS is designed to improve the accuracy and ensure the integrity of positioning and timing information from Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites.
GPS alone does not meet FAA’s navigation requirements for accuracy, integrity and availability for all operations; nor does GPS provide the necessary guarantees that its signal will be accurate, available, and safe to use at all times.
WAAS corrects for the GPS satellite position errors, ionosphere delays, and other disturbances in the GPS signals, improving the accuracy and reliability of the users’ position solution.
More importantly, WAAS warns the pilot when the satellites are not functioning correctly and should not be used for navigation.
Although the WAAS was designed for aviation users, it supports a wide variety of non-aviation uses including agriculture, surveying, recreation, and surface transportation–just to name a few.
The WAAS signal has been available for non safety-of-life applications since August 2000, and numerous manufacturers have developed WAAS-enabled GPS receivers for the consumer market. Today, there are millions of non-aviation WAAS-enabled GPS receivers in use.
WAAS was developed for the FAA by Raytheon Corporation.
How WAAS Works
WAAS uses a network of precisely-located ground reference stations that monitor GPS satellite signals. These stations are located throughout the continental U.S., Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Alaska, Canada and Mexico. The stations collect and process GPS information and send the information to WAAS master stations. The WAAS master stations develop a WAAS correction message that is sent to user receivers via navigation transponders on geostationary satellites. The WAAS message improves the accuracy, availability, and safety of GPS-derived position information.
Using WAAS, GPS signal accuracy is improved from 20 meters to approximately 1.5 – 2 meters in both the horizontal and vertical dimensions. WAAS hardware consists of: 38 ground reference stations, 2 master stations, 2 geosynchronous satellites, 4 uplink stations, 2 operational control centers, and the WAAS terrestrial communications network.
Benefits
Two of the FAA’s top goals are increased safety and greater capacity. WAAS provides for both, along with additional significant benefits:
More vertically-guided approach procedures, which are proven to be safer than those without vertical-guidance.
More flexible approach and departure routings, which will cut arrival times as well as enhance safety and noise abatement.
More direct, fuel efficient and timely routings through the air traffic control system.
Navigation source for Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B). Using WAAS, ADS-B can report a more accurate position to controllers and other aircraft flying in the area than can be provided by GPS alone.
Navigation source for Terrain Avoidance Warning Systems, which warn pilots and controllers of proximity to the ground.
Significant government cost savings due to the elimination of maintenance costs associated with older, more expensive ground-based navigation aids.
WAAS is a pioneering technology. Currently, no other navigation technologies exist to meet FAA requirements and user needs for the expansion of vertically-guided landing capabilities at thousands of additional airports.
Milestones
July 2003 — WAAS is commissioned by the FAA for instrument flight use supporting minimums as low as 250’.
September 2003 — The first WAAS LPVs are published.
October 2004 — FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey announces that U.S. avionics manufacturers are building new WAAS receivers or upgrading existing GPS receivers to WAAS capability and urges aviation users to equip.
December 2004 — The FAA installs four additional WAAS reference stations in Barrow, Bethel, Fairbanks, and Kotzebue, AK as initial steps in a planned WAAS expansion.
March 2005 — The FAA finalizes a Geostationary Satellite Communications Control Segment contract with Lockheed Martin for WAAS geostationary satellite leased services through 2016.
June 2005 — The first international WAAS reference station is installed in Canada.
March 2006–Due to outstanding system performance, WAAS is approved to support lower minimums, as low as 200’.
August 2006 — WAAS service is expanded to cover all of Alaska.
November 2006 — A new WAAS GEO, the PanAmSat Galaxy XV, is integrated into WAAS, increasing WAAS availability throughout the U.S.
July 2007 — A second new WAAS GEO, the Telesat ANIK-F1R, is integrated into WAAS,
completing the implementation of enhanced WAAS GEO coverage. Later in the same year, the original WAAS Inmarsat GEOs are phased out.
September 2007 — WAAS service is expanded to cover large portions of Canada and Mexico.
June 2008 — The number of WAAS LPV-capable avionics passes the 35,000 mark and continues to climb steadily each month.
September 2008 — The number of runways served by WAAS LPVs surpasses the numbers of runways served by ILS.
Fonte: FAA 07/11/2008.
sexta-feira, 7 de novembro de 2008
Rise in Collision Hazards for Planes Spurs Changes
By ANDY PASZTOR
Concerned about a rise in midair-collision hazards facing jetliners on both sides of the Atlantic, regulators, air-traffic controllers and aviation-parts suppliers are devising new procedures and systems to reduce such dangers.
Midair conflicts between planes in the U.S. have been most frequent in California and the Northeast, with the number of serious incidents in some of those areas nearly doubling since 2007, according to controllers. Just this week, a controller mistake put a Southwest Airlines jet and an Alaska Airlines jet on a collision course while both planes were maneuvering to land in San Diego. Onboard collision warning devices ordered the pilots to take evasive action, and both aircraft landed safely.
Safety experts believe that growth in air traffic is a major cause in the rise of midair hazards, but mistakes by air traffic controllers and other factors also contribute. The FAA doesn't keep detailed statistics on midair conflicts averted by onboard warnings. But an agency spokeswoman said Thursday that the overall number of serious controller errors nationwide rose to 357 in fiscal 2008 from 289 the previous year. In Southern California, controllers said there have been six serious midair incidents in the past year
An FAA spokeswoman said the agency takes midair-collision hazards "very seriously and is doing everything in its power to eliminate the risk."
To reduce midair threats in busy U.S. airspace, controllers at many of the largest air-traffic centers nationwide now routinely keep certain aircraft farther apart than they did barely a year ago. The goal, according to controllers, is to provide an extra cushion of separation between planes -- particularly jetliners relying on instruments and pilots of smaller private aircraft using visual flight rules.
"We have reacted to the increased number" of onboard collision-avoidance warnings in recent months "by increasing the vertical separation between aircraft," said Melvin Davis, a spokesman for the controller's union.
As part of broader U.S. air-traffic control improvements, the Federal Aviation Administration is in the process of upgrading software at more than a dozen existing radar facilities so the agency will be able to better identify and analyze close calls when they occur. And aircraft suppliers such as Honeywell International Inc. are voluntarily developing new software to enhance the performance of the onboard collision warning devices they manufacture.
In Europe, where some safety experts believe as many as eight serious midair near-collisions have occurred over the past five years, politicians and regulators are looking to mandate such software changes. Plane-maker Airbus has agreed to preliminary plans to start installing them on aircraft coming out of the factory by mid-2009. It's not clear how soon Boeing Co. would incorporate the changes in its production lines.
Most hazards associated with midair collisions were supposed to have been resolved years ago, after the latest-generation warning devices were installed on all commercial jets and smaller planes flying in controlled airspace. But the issue flared up publicly at an international safety conference in Florida in June, when a representative of European airlines said preliminary data indicated dramatic spikes in anti-collision warnings around international airports in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Newark and elsewhere. The complaints prompted regulators and industry to take a closer look, but an FAA-sponsored study is still under way. The agency declined to comment.
In a letter to Canadian air-safety officials in late August, Vincent de Vroey, a top official with the Association of European Airlines, said "senior FAA management has now acknowledged potential safety concerns related to" escalating anti-collision warnings. The letter also said FAA and industry experts launched "a comprehensive study" to "analyze the problems and to propose recommendations to mitigate" safety concerns.
The safety debate comes at a time when FAA critics in Congress and elsewhere argue that the overall number of operational errors by U.S. controllers is climbing dramatically. In Southern and Northern California alone, according to unofficial figures provided by controllers, the total number of mistakes by controllers has doubled over the past year. The Southern California total rose to nearly 40 errors, though annual comparisons are difficult because the FAA earlier this year changed the way it categorizes controller slipups.
For example, in March, an American Airlines Boeing 757 arriving into Southern California from Mexico and a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 taking off from John Wayne International Airport in Orange County were mistakenly put on a collision course by controllers over the Pacific Ocean. Three months later a wide-body jetliner flown by Air Tahiti, climbing past 10,000 feet after departing Los Angeles, had a close call with a twin-propeller aircraft following visual flight rules. In both instances, onboard warnings alerted pilots to take evasive action before controllers discovered the errors.
Other parts of the country have shown year-over year increases of roughly 30%, according to controllers. The totals include midair close calls as well as close calls between planes moving on the ground.
With the FAA and the controller's union locked in a bitter labor-management battle over wages and working conditions, controversy over controller fatigue and staffing levels is bound to confront the incoming Administration.
Despite the heightened focus on midair hazards, no big U.S. passenger jet has been involved in a midair collision since 1978. And no major midair collision has occurred in U.S. airspace since the late 1980s. But foreign carriers have had at least three major midair crashes since then, including a July 2002 collision over Germany between a DHL cargo aircraft and a Bashkirian Airlines jet, which killed dozens of children aboard the passenger plane.
Investigators determined that the pilots of the Russian-built Tupolev 154 failed to properly follow warnings from onboard collision-avoidance systems. The crash over Germany sparked controversy over how to improve the safety of air-traffic control management in Europe, and also prompted efforts to improve onboard warning devices.
In September 2006, a Boeing 737 passenger jet operated by the Brazilian carrier, Gol Transportes Aereos, crashed after colliding with a business jet over the Amazon, killing all 154 people aboard. Investigators determined that the collision-avoidance system of the smaller jet wasn't operating.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122600460761406097.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
Concerned about a rise in midair-collision hazards facing jetliners on both sides of the Atlantic, regulators, air-traffic controllers and aviation-parts suppliers are devising new procedures and systems to reduce such dangers.
Midair conflicts between planes in the U.S. have been most frequent in California and the Northeast, with the number of serious incidents in some of those areas nearly doubling since 2007, according to controllers. Just this week, a controller mistake put a Southwest Airlines jet and an Alaska Airlines jet on a collision course while both planes were maneuvering to land in San Diego. Onboard collision warning devices ordered the pilots to take evasive action, and both aircraft landed safely.
Safety experts believe that growth in air traffic is a major cause in the rise of midair hazards, but mistakes by air traffic controllers and other factors also contribute. The FAA doesn't keep detailed statistics on midair conflicts averted by onboard warnings. But an agency spokeswoman said Thursday that the overall number of serious controller errors nationwide rose to 357 in fiscal 2008 from 289 the previous year. In Southern California, controllers said there have been six serious midair incidents in the past year
An FAA spokeswoman said the agency takes midair-collision hazards "very seriously and is doing everything in its power to eliminate the risk."
To reduce midair threats in busy U.S. airspace, controllers at many of the largest air-traffic centers nationwide now routinely keep certain aircraft farther apart than they did barely a year ago. The goal, according to controllers, is to provide an extra cushion of separation between planes -- particularly jetliners relying on instruments and pilots of smaller private aircraft using visual flight rules.
"We have reacted to the increased number" of onboard collision-avoidance warnings in recent months "by increasing the vertical separation between aircraft," said Melvin Davis, a spokesman for the controller's union.
As part of broader U.S. air-traffic control improvements, the Federal Aviation Administration is in the process of upgrading software at more than a dozen existing radar facilities so the agency will be able to better identify and analyze close calls when they occur. And aircraft suppliers such as Honeywell International Inc. are voluntarily developing new software to enhance the performance of the onboard collision warning devices they manufacture.
In Europe, where some safety experts believe as many as eight serious midair near-collisions have occurred over the past five years, politicians and regulators are looking to mandate such software changes. Plane-maker Airbus has agreed to preliminary plans to start installing them on aircraft coming out of the factory by mid-2009. It's not clear how soon Boeing Co. would incorporate the changes in its production lines.
Most hazards associated with midair collisions were supposed to have been resolved years ago, after the latest-generation warning devices were installed on all commercial jets and smaller planes flying in controlled airspace. But the issue flared up publicly at an international safety conference in Florida in June, when a representative of European airlines said preliminary data indicated dramatic spikes in anti-collision warnings around international airports in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Newark and elsewhere. The complaints prompted regulators and industry to take a closer look, but an FAA-sponsored study is still under way. The agency declined to comment.
In a letter to Canadian air-safety officials in late August, Vincent de Vroey, a top official with the Association of European Airlines, said "senior FAA management has now acknowledged potential safety concerns related to" escalating anti-collision warnings. The letter also said FAA and industry experts launched "a comprehensive study" to "analyze the problems and to propose recommendations to mitigate" safety concerns.
The safety debate comes at a time when FAA critics in Congress and elsewhere argue that the overall number of operational errors by U.S. controllers is climbing dramatically. In Southern and Northern California alone, according to unofficial figures provided by controllers, the total number of mistakes by controllers has doubled over the past year. The Southern California total rose to nearly 40 errors, though annual comparisons are difficult because the FAA earlier this year changed the way it categorizes controller slipups.
For example, in March, an American Airlines Boeing 757 arriving into Southern California from Mexico and a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 taking off from John Wayne International Airport in Orange County were mistakenly put on a collision course by controllers over the Pacific Ocean. Three months later a wide-body jetliner flown by Air Tahiti, climbing past 10,000 feet after departing Los Angeles, had a close call with a twin-propeller aircraft following visual flight rules. In both instances, onboard warnings alerted pilots to take evasive action before controllers discovered the errors.
Other parts of the country have shown year-over year increases of roughly 30%, according to controllers. The totals include midair close calls as well as close calls between planes moving on the ground.
With the FAA and the controller's union locked in a bitter labor-management battle over wages and working conditions, controversy over controller fatigue and staffing levels is bound to confront the incoming Administration.
Despite the heightened focus on midair hazards, no big U.S. passenger jet has been involved in a midair collision since 1978. And no major midair collision has occurred in U.S. airspace since the late 1980s. But foreign carriers have had at least three major midair crashes since then, including a July 2002 collision over Germany between a DHL cargo aircraft and a Bashkirian Airlines jet, which killed dozens of children aboard the passenger plane.
Investigators determined that the pilots of the Russian-built Tupolev 154 failed to properly follow warnings from onboard collision-avoidance systems. The crash over Germany sparked controversy over how to improve the safety of air-traffic control management in Europe, and also prompted efforts to improve onboard warning devices.
In September 2006, a Boeing 737 passenger jet operated by the Brazilian carrier, Gol Transportes Aereos, crashed after colliding with a business jet over the Amazon, killing all 154 people aboard. Investigators determined that the collision-avoidance system of the smaller jet wasn't operating.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122600460761406097.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
Recorders Found in Mexico Jet Crash
MEXICO CITY - Two in-flight recorders retrieved from the wreckage of a small jet that crashed this week, killing Mexico’s interior minister, were being examined Thursday by specialists in a Washington lab, Mexican officials said.
The black boxes have voice recordings and data from the final minutes before the jet crashed Tuesday in a busy area of Mexico City.
The crash killed all nine people on board — including Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mouriño, Mexico’s top security official — and five more on the ground.
The government has gone to unusual lengths to open its investigation to the news media, as it tries to play down speculation of sabotage.
A transportation official said information from the recordings should be available in a week.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/07/world/americas/07mexico.html?ref=world
The black boxes have voice recordings and data from the final minutes before the jet crashed Tuesday in a busy area of Mexico City.
The crash killed all nine people on board — including Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mouriño, Mexico’s top security official — and five more on the ground.
The government has gone to unusual lengths to open its investigation to the news media, as it tries to play down speculation of sabotage.
A transportation official said information from the recordings should be available in a week.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/07/world/americas/07mexico.html?ref=world
AI plane tilts while landing on runway
MALAPPURAM (KERALA): Nearly 161 passengers and crew on board an Air India flight had a narrow escape on Friday when the aircraft's right wing grazed
the runway while landing at Karippur International Airport in Malapppuram.
According to airport sources, AI 962 from Jeddah to Karippur (Calicut), tilted while landing, resulting in the tip of its right wing rubbing the runway. However the pilot was able to stop the aircraft in time to avoid a major tragedy.
All passengers were safe and the aircraft did not suffer any damage except some paint on the wing getting scraped, the sources said.
A senior airport official said there was prima facie nothing wrong with landing parameters like weather, wind speed and visibility.
Only a detailed probe, including the examination of Flight Data Recorder, could bring out the reason for the aircraft tilting while landing, the official said.
The aircraft has been grounded and engineers from Mumbai were expected to arrive at the site for detailed check, he added.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/AI_plane_tilts_while_landing_on_runway/articleshow/3685363.cms
the runway while landing at Karippur International Airport in Malapppuram.
According to airport sources, AI 962 from Jeddah to Karippur (Calicut), tilted while landing, resulting in the tip of its right wing rubbing the runway. However the pilot was able to stop the aircraft in time to avoid a major tragedy.
All passengers were safe and the aircraft did not suffer any damage except some paint on the wing getting scraped, the sources said.
A senior airport official said there was prima facie nothing wrong with landing parameters like weather, wind speed and visibility.
Only a detailed probe, including the examination of Flight Data Recorder, could bring out the reason for the aircraft tilting while landing, the official said.
The aircraft has been grounded and engineers from Mumbai were expected to arrive at the site for detailed check, he added.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/AI_plane_tilts_while_landing_on_runway/articleshow/3685363.cms
Express Air plane crash-lands in Fakfak
An Express Air Dornier DO-328 slipped when touching down on the runway at Torea Airport in Fakfak, Papua, breaking its left wing and landing gears, a police officer said Thursday.
According to reports, the airplane touched down three meters from the runway's edge and collided with the tarmac, damaging the landing gears and breaking the left wing.
The twin-turbo aircraft then veered to the left before stopping on the right side of the runway.
The airplane, manned by pilot Josep and co-pilot Setia Darmawan, left from Domine Eduard Osok Airport in Sorong regency at 9:58 a.m. local time (7:58 a.m. Jakarta time) carrying four crew and 32 passengers. It landed in Fakfak at 10:27 a.m. local time.
There were no fatalities in the accident but authorities closed the airport because the plane was blocking the runway.
"The airline is coordinating with its head office and reporting the accident to the National Transportation Safety Committee in Jakarta," Papua Provincial Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Agus Rianto told The Jakarta Post.
Police secured the area and assisted with the evacuation of passengers.
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/11/07/express-air-plane-crashlands-fakfak.html
According to reports, the airplane touched down three meters from the runway's edge and collided with the tarmac, damaging the landing gears and breaking the left wing.
The twin-turbo aircraft then veered to the left before stopping on the right side of the runway.
The airplane, manned by pilot Josep and co-pilot Setia Darmawan, left from Domine Eduard Osok Airport in Sorong regency at 9:58 a.m. local time (7:58 a.m. Jakarta time) carrying four crew and 32 passengers. It landed in Fakfak at 10:27 a.m. local time.
There were no fatalities in the accident but authorities closed the airport because the plane was blocking the runway.
"The airline is coordinating with its head office and reporting the accident to the National Transportation Safety Committee in Jakarta," Papua Provincial Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Agus Rianto told The Jakarta Post.
Police secured the area and assisted with the evacuation of passengers.
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/11/07/express-air-plane-crashlands-fakfak.html
Lion Air plane skids off at Jalaluddin Airport
A Lion Air passenger aircraft carrying 167 passengers skidded off the runway before taking off at the Jalaluddin Airport, Gorontalo Province on Friday.
Nunung Triatmoko, Chief of the airport, confirmed of the accident while added that the aircraft, which was scheduled to depart for Makasar, South Sulawesi Province, was still being repaired following the accident.
"There is a team of mechanics provided to repair the aircraft. The aircraft is in a reasonably good condition." he said.
He also explained that all passengers had been evacuated safely from the plane and told to wait for the next departure for Makasar.
Nunung refuted accusations, which said that most accidents on the runway were because the runway was not long enough to accommodate more modern planes.
In the 2007, a Lion Air aircraft also experienced a similar accident at the airport. (anb)
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/11/07/lion-air-plane-skids-jalaluddin-airport.html
Nunung Triatmoko, Chief of the airport, confirmed of the accident while added that the aircraft, which was scheduled to depart for Makasar, South Sulawesi Province, was still being repaired following the accident.
"There is a team of mechanics provided to repair the aircraft. The aircraft is in a reasonably good condition." he said.
He also explained that all passengers had been evacuated safely from the plane and told to wait for the next departure for Makasar.
Nunung refuted accusations, which said that most accidents on the runway were because the runway was not long enough to accommodate more modern planes.
In the 2007, a Lion Air aircraft also experienced a similar accident at the airport. (anb)
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/11/07/lion-air-plane-skids-jalaluddin-airport.html
quinta-feira, 6 de novembro de 2008
Europe To Require ADS-B Avionics Five Years Sooner than FAA
With new mandate, Europeans press ahead with key aircraft surveillance tool
The European Commission is proposing that ADS-B “out” avionics be installed on airline aircraft and business jets five years earlier than the FAA’s plan. Full airborne coverage in Europe will let any nation there move ahead with ground infrastructure at will.
The directive on Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast—scheduled for release on Oct. 31—calls for aircraft to have the extended squitter feature on Mode S transponders for ADS‑B “out” transmission by 2015, says Alex Wandels, Eurocontrol’s manager of the Cascade program, which is leading the implementation of ADS-B.
This Thales ADS-B sensor is installed at the Diagoras Airport near Rhodes, Greece. Credit: EUROCONTROL
Europe already requires airliners to have Mode S, so most aircraft will need only a software upgrade. In contrast, the FAA’s proposed mandate for ADS-B “out” doesn’t require avionics until 2020.
In the U.S., an industry-government committee that reviewed the ADS-B mandate, and recommended 36 changes, did not take issue with the FAA’s 2020 target date (AW&ST Oct. 6, p. 62). The Air Transport Assn. says the U.S. requirement alone will cost its airline members nearly $700 million.
During the next three months, airlines and other operators will be able to comment on the proposed EC rule, says Wandels. The mandate is expected to call for all aircraft weighing more than 5,700 kg. (12,540 lb.) to have the extended squitter function so they can transmit ADS-B position data to ground controllers over 1090 MHz. The FAA’s mandate specifies that airliners and business jets use 1090 MHz., while general aviation aircraft would use the Universal Access Transceiver on 978 MHz. Ironically, U.S.-registered airliners and bizjets operating to Europe will have to have ADS-B “out” capability by 2015—a requirement that should accelerate the adoption rate in the U.S.
However, in terms of ADS-B ground infrastructure, the European ATC community has taken a less aggressive approach than the U.S., Canada or Australia. The FAA, for example, has set up in southern Florida the first prototype of a new nation-wide ground receiver network. Australia has rolled out ADS-B nationwide, while Canada is moving ahead with its ground-based network. Europe has no plan in effect yet to provide continental coverage with ADS-B systems on the ground, even by 2020, when the single-sky project to modernize ATC is due to be completed. But the EC wants the airborne equipment in place so construction of ground-based networks can proceed.
European nations have 13 ADS-B trials underway; several involve airports with no radar surveillance coverage. ADS-B ground networks have been built at these facilities to accommodate growing traffic from low-cost carriers. These include Trabzon Airport in Turkey, near the Black Sea, Alghero Airport in Sardinia, Italy’s Pescara International Airport and Kiruna Airport in northern Sweden. The Swedish project is using the VHF Mode 4 data link instead of 1090 MHz. as the ADS-B link.
In addition, an ADS-B network covers three Greek airfields close to one another: Diagoras, Karpathos Island National and Kos International airports.
As confidence grows with regard to using ADS-B at these airports that have no radar coverage, other air navigation service providers in Europe will likely start to look seriously at replacing radar with ADS-B, says Wandels. Other organizations involved in ADS-B projects include the U.K., German, Austrian, Spanish and French air navigation service providers.
Meanwhile, Eurocontrol is working with 18 aircraft operators and is providing seed money to help them install new avionics now, instead of waiting for the mandate to take effect. Three of these ADS-B “pioneers”—Air France, Air One and Volkswagen—have just received European Aviation Safety Agency approval to use ADS-B in airspace not covered by radar surveillance. Other carriers involved include SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Ryanair, Air Europa, British Airways, Lufthansa and United Airlines.
Air France has 50 A320 family aircraft in the program, according to Wandels. Air One has 20, and Volkswagen has two Falcon 2000s that it uses for executive transportation. Nav Canada also agreed to accept these EASA approvals as valid for aircraft flying over the Hudson Bay, where an ADS-B ground-based network will become operational this month.
http://www.aviationweek.com
The European Commission is proposing that ADS-B “out” avionics be installed on airline aircraft and business jets five years earlier than the FAA’s plan. Full airborne coverage in Europe will let any nation there move ahead with ground infrastructure at will.
The directive on Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast—scheduled for release on Oct. 31—calls for aircraft to have the extended squitter feature on Mode S transponders for ADS‑B “out” transmission by 2015, says Alex Wandels, Eurocontrol’s manager of the Cascade program, which is leading the implementation of ADS-B.
This Thales ADS-B sensor is installed at the Diagoras Airport near Rhodes, Greece. Credit: EUROCONTROL
Europe already requires airliners to have Mode S, so most aircraft will need only a software upgrade. In contrast, the FAA’s proposed mandate for ADS-B “out” doesn’t require avionics until 2020.
In the U.S., an industry-government committee that reviewed the ADS-B mandate, and recommended 36 changes, did not take issue with the FAA’s 2020 target date (AW&ST Oct. 6, p. 62). The Air Transport Assn. says the U.S. requirement alone will cost its airline members nearly $700 million.
During the next three months, airlines and other operators will be able to comment on the proposed EC rule, says Wandels. The mandate is expected to call for all aircraft weighing more than 5,700 kg. (12,540 lb.) to have the extended squitter function so they can transmit ADS-B position data to ground controllers over 1090 MHz. The FAA’s mandate specifies that airliners and business jets use 1090 MHz., while general aviation aircraft would use the Universal Access Transceiver on 978 MHz. Ironically, U.S.-registered airliners and bizjets operating to Europe will have to have ADS-B “out” capability by 2015—a requirement that should accelerate the adoption rate in the U.S.
However, in terms of ADS-B ground infrastructure, the European ATC community has taken a less aggressive approach than the U.S., Canada or Australia. The FAA, for example, has set up in southern Florida the first prototype of a new nation-wide ground receiver network. Australia has rolled out ADS-B nationwide, while Canada is moving ahead with its ground-based network. Europe has no plan in effect yet to provide continental coverage with ADS-B systems on the ground, even by 2020, when the single-sky project to modernize ATC is due to be completed. But the EC wants the airborne equipment in place so construction of ground-based networks can proceed.
European nations have 13 ADS-B trials underway; several involve airports with no radar surveillance coverage. ADS-B ground networks have been built at these facilities to accommodate growing traffic from low-cost carriers. These include Trabzon Airport in Turkey, near the Black Sea, Alghero Airport in Sardinia, Italy’s Pescara International Airport and Kiruna Airport in northern Sweden. The Swedish project is using the VHF Mode 4 data link instead of 1090 MHz. as the ADS-B link.
In addition, an ADS-B network covers three Greek airfields close to one another: Diagoras, Karpathos Island National and Kos International airports.
As confidence grows with regard to using ADS-B at these airports that have no radar coverage, other air navigation service providers in Europe will likely start to look seriously at replacing radar with ADS-B, says Wandels. Other organizations involved in ADS-B projects include the U.K., German, Austrian, Spanish and French air navigation service providers.
Meanwhile, Eurocontrol is working with 18 aircraft operators and is providing seed money to help them install new avionics now, instead of waiting for the mandate to take effect. Three of these ADS-B “pioneers”—Air France, Air One and Volkswagen—have just received European Aviation Safety Agency approval to use ADS-B in airspace not covered by radar surveillance. Other carriers involved include SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Ryanair, Air Europa, British Airways, Lufthansa and United Airlines.
Air France has 50 A320 family aircraft in the program, according to Wandels. Air One has 20, and Volkswagen has two Falcon 2000s that it uses for executive transportation. Nav Canada also agreed to accept these EASA approvals as valid for aircraft flying over the Hudson Bay, where an ADS-B ground-based network will become operational this month.
http://www.aviationweek.com
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