A decision by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is likely to complicate and delay implementation of the planned overhaul of the nation’s airspace known as the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), the Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) says.
The AEA, which represents the U.S. avionics industry, says an Aug. 30, 2010, FAA memo outlining the policy for approval of “ADS–B Out” systems — automatic dependent surveillance–broadcast avionics systems that transmit data, including aircraft identity, position and speed, from an aircraft to ground stations and to other aircraft that are equipped with ADS–B equipment — creates “severe turbulence” in the procedures for installing ADS–B equipment.1
“Without your immediate intervention, this communication will stall early equipage, delay early implementation and, at the extreme, cause the failure of ADS–B altogether,” the AEA said in an Oct…
