Avionics News July 2019 - 23

here's no such thing as a "free lunch." At least
wider early acceptance than ADS-B Out - and a recent
according to an old saying.
study showing the safety benefits of ADS-B In stands to
The line parallels a similarly aged saw: "We
draw more users to its services.
get what we pay for."
Its products and services are, after all, wholly targeted
But sometimes we get what we need, to paraphrase a
at improving pilots' situational, weather and traffic
lyric from the Rolling Stones song, "You can't always
awareness - and part of an effort to further improve
get what you want."
general aviation safety.
Pilots today enjoy access to something very close to
So what constitutes ADS-B In?
that free lunch, something many aviators need, because
Let's examine the basic services available via ADS-B
they already pay for something else they use.
In, how it works, and a glimpse into the range of
The generic label is ADS-B
hardware available to deliver the In
In, a byproduct of the NextGen
products to cockpits.
air-traffic system improvements
MORE POPULAR
providing - almost for free -
ADS-B In defined:
packages of in-cockpit weather
traffic, weather radar,
THAN EXPECTED,
data and graphics and another
and much more
ADS-B IN GARNERED
package serving up almost-live
Services provided to properly
WIDER EARLY
traffic graphics covering the
equipped aircraft - those hosting an
ACCEPTANCE THAN
airspace they occupy.
ADS-B In receiver - proved highly
ADS-B OUT - AND
ADS-B In has won a coterie of
useful and valued in the FAA's
fans similar to how many pilots
Capstone Project test in Alaska
A RECENT STUDY
once considered the sprawling
starting in the year 2000. Capstone
SHOWING
THE
network of flight service stations
served as the long-term test that led
SAFETY BENEFITS OF
in a similar warm light.
the FAA to announce expansion of
ADS-B IN STANDS TO
At their peak, nearly 500 flight
ADS-B to the continental United
service stations operated at an
States in 2006. That marked the start
DRAW MORE USERS
equal number of airports. A staff
of establishing ADS-B Out and In
TO ITS SERVICES.
of specialists manned each station,
as the agency built up its network of
each taking and reporting weather
nearly 800 ground-based repeaters
readings while serving as a de
connecting ADS-B Out-equipped
facto flight following system and the facilities mostaircraft to the nation's air traffic control screens.
often the ones to start a search for overdue pilots.
ADS-B In was part and parcel to the Capstone Project,
That network went away decades ago amid a
to help the agency weigh the value of in-cockpit weather
combination austerity drive and network modernization.
and traffic. Today, many in aviation consider ADS-B In
Today, the company Leidos operates three regional
to be the sugar offered to help sweeten the pill of having
automated flight service stations, and the services they
to swallow the expense of the ADS-B Out mandate -
provide now come from multiple sources.
with its deadline of Jan. 1, 2020.
But we still enjoy the benefits of a package of services
But unlike ADS-B Out, ADS-B In is totally optional -
rooted in the job once exclusively performed by Federal
as in, not mandated by regulatory fiat.
Aviation Administration staff. In the case of aviation,
The FAA included ADS-B In services developed
the closest we get to a free lunch could arguably be
during both Capstone for general-aviation operators in
the products and services the FAA delivers under the
Alaska and the Ohio Valley venture in conjunction with
umbrella of ADS-B In.
UPS' air-region operation in Louisville, Kentucky.
The delivery system for ADS-B In is the ADS-B
Despite the lack of an ADS-B In mandate, however,
network's near-800 ground stations.
More popular than expected, ADS-B In garnered
Continued on following page
avionics news

july

2019

Avionics News July 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News July 2019