AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2014 - 4

PRESIDENT'S POSITION

Too expensive

MARK BAKER
AOPA President and CEO

Cutting the cost of ADS-B

AOPA PRESIDENT

Mark Baker is an
active general
aviation pilot who
flies for business
or pleasure nearly
every day of the
year.

WE ARE ALMOST EXACTLY five years away from a big
deadline set by the FAA. On January 1, 2020, all aircraft
will have to be equipped for ADS-B Out if they want to
fly inside airspace that requires a Mode C transponder
today. If you live or fly near a large city or major airport,
that means you. Here's the problem: The mandate as
written is just way too expensive for many general aviation pilots and owners.
In late October, AOPA did a study. We took a good
hard look at the FAA's aircraft registry to see what general aviation airplanes are really worth. Looking only at
fixed-wing, piston-powered, certified GA aircraft from
the eight most prolific manufacturers, we found 81,654
aircraft valued at $40,000 or less. That's 43 percent of
all the registered fixed-wing, piston-powered certified
aircraft on the registry. Keep in mind that we didn't
look at other makes and models, nor did we include
Experimental aircraft. If we had, I feel confident the
number would have soared to 100,000, or more, registered aircraft that are worth $40,000 or less.
What that means when it comes to ADS-B equipage
is that there are tens of thousands of pilots and aircraft
owners out there who are unable or understandably
hesitant to invest a minimum of $5,000 to $6,000 to
install the required ADS-B Out equipment.
We've been telling the FAA since 2008 that the mandate is too costly, and although prices have come down
somewhat, they just aren't where they need to be. The
good news is that there is some exciting new equipment
that might make a dent in the price tag for ADS-B Out.
The bad news is that it's not yet widely available. In the
meantime, I routinely hear from members who tell me
that-unless some alternatives are found-they will have
to ground their airplanes come 2020 because they just
can't afford the needed equipment.
The mandate is unworkable without some meaningful changes-and that's what we've told the FAA.
The agency recently hosted a "call to action" summit
to begin addressing the barriers that have prevented the
GA community from equipping well in advance of the
deadline. AOPA was part of that summit, and we made
it very clear that cost is a huge factor.
We're asking the FAA to take a fresh look at the
mandate and the assumptions behind it. After all, five
years have passed since the mandate was put in place,
and some of the assumptions underpinning its specific
requirements may no longer be valid.

4 | AOPA PILOT December 2014

I have personally asked FAA Administrator Michael
Huerta to address the economic impact of the mandate
on the general aviation community, consider the average value of GA aircraft today, and review the changes
that have taken place since the mandate was finalized in
2010-including the rise of increasingly advanced portable in-cockpit technology such as iPads. I've also asked
him to look at the very real logistical challenges of meeting the timeline, including the availability of equipment,
qualified technicians, and shop time needed to install it.
From the very beginning, AOPA has argued that
pilots should be allowed to take advantage of handheld
equipment to meet the mandate. These kinds of solutions tend to be more flexible and less costly than more
traditional, panel-mounted technology.
Cost is perhaps the single biggest reason GA pilots
haven't rushed to equip for ADS-B Out. But there are
plenty of problems with the implementation process itself that have created confusion and frustration
for aircraft owners trying to decide what to do about
the mandate and when to do it. The recent U.S. DOT
Inspector General's report pointed out cost overruns,
coverage gaps, and uncertainty about ADS-B In requirements, technical problems, and questions about the
integrity of data collection. These are serious issues and
they need serious responses from the FAA. They can't
be glossed over in the rush to meet an artificial deadline.
This is a time when GA desperately needs to grow,
and it's irresponsible for the FAA to push forward with
a mandate that could do serious harm to GA right now.
The GA industry has had an especially tough time in
the recent recession. And the pilot community has been
shrinking for years. We need all the support we can get.
At AOPA, we're working hard to welcome newcomers to aviation, improve the training experience, lower
the cost of ownership, increase access to aircraft, and
find ways to make flying more affordable for many more
people. But costly mandates like this one are making
that job even tougher.
I feel strongly there are steps the FAA can take that
will make it possible for the GA community to fully
participate in the move to a satellite-based air traffic
management system that includes ADS-B. And the first
step is for the FAA to consider alternative and far less
expensive ways to meet the 2020 mandate.
AOPA
EMAIL mark@aopa.org

AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2014

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