WWW.WINGSMAGAZINE.COM March/April 2015 | WINGS 29
including NAV CANADA, ENAV, the
IAA, Naviair and NATS of the U.K.
Crichton says that Aireon is currently in
positive discussions with at least 10 other
interested ANSPs.
Aireon anticipates the performance of
the space-based system to be at about the
same level as terrestrial ADS-B. How-
ever, the rollout will involve extensive
operational readiness testing. “We will
launch two satellites that will validate
the technical performance of the system,”
says Thoma. This, in turn, will lead the
way for a steady train of seven launches.
It is expected that the entire constella-
tion will be in orbit by the end of 2017.
NAV CANADA has slated the North
Atlantic to be the first deployment for
space-based ADS-B. According to Crich-
ton, 96 per cent of aircraft operating on
the North Atlantic Tracks are already
equipped for the service.
The plan is to start by reducing the
longitudinal separation standards on the
North Atlantic Tracks from 80 nautical
miles (10 minutes) to 15 nautical miles.
Conservative estimates predict that, in
the first year, airlines will save at least
$125 million in fuel costs over the North
Atlantic alone. This will also cut roughly
328,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions
every year simply as a result of more air-
craft being allowed to climb to their opti-
mum cruising altitudes. From there, the
service will expand to providing global
coverage. Separation standards will be
reduced, and radar-like surveillance will
be available worldwide. Areas that were
once hidden from land-based systems
will be subjected to comprehensive, real-
time coverage. So, too, will the aircraft
flying in the airspace above them.
“The Holy Grail,” says Thoma, “is user-
preferred routes, direct point-to-point
flights.” He highlights the fact that areas
without surveillance necessitate that air-
craft file on the track system or over navi-
gational aids. These rarely provide a pilot
with the most efficient path through the
air. “By providing full surveillance, it’s an
enabler to move towards user-preferred
routes or direct routes over time.”
Once the full benefits of Aireon are re-
alized worldwide, initial projections are
that airlines will save $500 million to $1
billion in fuel costs annually. “There are
no implementations either in process, or
planned, that could do what Iridium does
and what Aireon will do on top of that,”
says Thoma.While global tracking has been gar-
nering much of the media’s attention in
recent times, there is a significant dif-
ference and corresponding safety ben-
efit between tracking and surveillance.
Tracking makes aircraft easier to locate,
but there are innumerable safety benefits
that come with radar-like surveillance.
These include flexibility in routing, de-
viations, altitude and speed adjustments,
as well as situational awareness in refer-
ence to other aircraft.
If there is one constant in the world
of aviation, it is technological change.
The range and carrying capacity of mod-
ern passenger aircraft has dramatically
increased, with the daily growth of the
demand for air travel. So too has the
pressure placed upon ANSPs to manage
increasingly congested airspace. Space-
based ADS-B could be a game changer.
“Aireon literally solves the problem in
the most effective way,” says Crichton,
highlighting the benefits of radar-like
coverage from pole-to-pole. With oceans
and remote areas of the world no longer
blind spots to air traffic surveillance,
Aireon could make lost aircraft a thing
of another era, removing the thorn once
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