The FarAway project, co-ordinated by Italy's Alenia Difesa, represents another step in the development of the future air traffic management concepts that Europe will have to adopt if growth is to continue in its overcrowded airspace.
The project, financed by the European Commission, aims to validate the benefits of Automatic Dependent Surveillance- Broadcast (ADS-B), seen as a fundamental technology in any future navigation system.
Aircraft equipped with global positioning system (GPS) receivers, broadcast their position, speed and heading data to each other and to ground control stations via a two way digital datalink, based on the VHF STDMA technology developed by Swedavia.
A cockpit display presents the pilot with a picture of the surrounding traffic, while ground stations can also monitor aircraft without the use of radar.
FarAway has taken the technology into a live trial, completing installations of ADS-B equipment and cockpit displays on three Alitalia Boeing MD-80 aircraft in September 1997.
A ground station has been set up at the Rome en route control centre. These ground systems also display traditional radar information, so allowing for a direct comparison and evaluation of the ADS-B data. The new systems will shadow the existing operational procedures used by the in-service aircraft.
The judging panel was encouraged by the work, but noted that it was still at an early stage.
Source: Flight International
