Publications

Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) hybrid surveillance is a technique that makes use of both active surveillance data from the interrogation reply sequence and passive position estimates received from Mode S extended squitters. This technique allows TCAS to use passive surveillance once the data have been validated by comparison with active data. The maximum allowable range difference for validation specified by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is 200 meters. Data from twenty encounters recorded during flight tests conducted in the Los Angeles Basin in June 1999 were analyzed. The results show that the ICAO specified limits were never exceeded and serve to validate the 200 meter limit.

The Los Angeles Basin ADS-B Measurement Trials provided a quantitative assessment of the existing interference environment at 1090 MHz and the surveillance performance of Mode S Extended Squitter in that environment. Redundancy in the measurement equipment and in the flight configurations chosen during the trials provided extensive cross checking capability, and greatly increased the integrity of the results. ATCRBS reply rates as high as 40,000/second above -90 dBm were measured. The corresponding aircraft distribution and 1030 MHz interrogation rates correlated well with these measurements. A wide range of scenarios were captured to measure the airborne and ground-based reception of ADS-B Extended Squitters emitted by airborne sources. Air-to-air ranges of greater than 100 nmi were routinely observed, and comparison with ADS-B MASPS requirements showed that all airborne requirements were met in the scenarios flown. Air-to-ground reception rates were routinely better than the update rates provided by either en route or terminal radars at ranges beyond 150 nmi. Ground-to-air (uplink) performance was adequate to support transmission of ADS-B or other information in broadcast formats within approximately 60 nmi of the ground station. Finally, these measurements are a valuable source of validation and refinement data for the various models used to predict Extended Squitter performance in current and future scenarios.

This paper gives an overview and summary of the separation requirements for air traffic control in the U.S. National Airspace System with emphasis on those relevant to terminal landing operations. These requirements are documented in the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA's) Air Traffic Control Order 7110.65J, as ammended, and various national and local Orders. These requirements are also addressed in the Aeronautical Information Manual, the International Civil Aviation Organization's Standards and Recommended Practices, and the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs). The purpose of this paper is to assist those people involved with the introduction of new technologies and procedures in the terminal airspace by providing them with an understanding of the separation requirements, the need for those requirements, and the processes used to change the requirements.

This document gives a high level functional overview of an automated flight strip management system. The current manual flight strip system at Boston's Logan Airport is reviewed and described in detail for both the Tower Cab and TRACON with emphasis on the information flow as an aircraft progresses through the system. The interfaces between the ATC elements, as they related to flight data, are explained. Finally, the system requirements are described including specific requirements for Tower Cab positions.