Avionics News October 2015 - 20

ADS-B IN 2015

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hazard-avoidance gear does fall more on the FAA's side; but it's
not fully honest to ignore the higher level of precision available
to controllers via ADS-B for surveillance compared to the control precision and accuracy possible with primary and secondary
surveillance radar. Reduced horizontal separation standards
and higher airspace throughput are honestly more beneficial to
airlines and GA operators who frequent high-traffic airports.
But even past critics are getting on board with the free
in-cockpit weather and traffic-awareness benefits of ADS-B
In - many of them recognize they can cover the cost of some
ADS-B In receivers for the same money it costs for a year-long
subscription to in-cockpit weather, and for far less in hardware
than the satellite-weather receiver.
So what's behind this swing toward popularity for this oncemaligned move to a different form of air traffic surveillance?
Most of all, the things predicted: greater availability, lower
prices, and a rock.
A rock? Yes, the rock inside 800 Independence Avenue in
the District of Columbia that's holding fast against hope that
the FAA will slide the date. But signs of improved progress
emerged all over the landscape at EAA AirVenture 2015.
Barriers lower thanks to industry efforts
The general aviation community's representatives invested
significant time and effort convincing the FAA that the significant costs of complying served as a barrier to many pilots. Who
wants to put $20,000 in new ADS-B-compliant electronics into
aircraft worth less - or even double?
Initially, there was considerable disagreement between FAA
staff and industry groups concerning whether the price point of
rule-compliant avionics presented an impediment. The FAA and
industry officials heard a planeload about this last year.
Between the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the
Experimental Aircraft Association and other representatives of
pilots and aircraft owners, the barrier position prevailed - convincing both the aviation industry and the FAA of the need to
develop lower-cost solutions.
The result was a number of innovative approaches by manufacturers to minimize technology, leverage mass production,
and align with each other in efforts that significantly reduced the
cost of ADS-B compliance, bringing what an EAA representative labeled a nearly 50 percent drop in the base cost of rulecompliant ADS-B Out solutions. And this impacts all operators.
Builders and owners of amateur-built experimental aircraft
faced a different challenge: Ensuring that the historic basis for
avionics approval in experimental aircraft continued to apply to
ADS-B equipment.
The EAA challenged initial findings that E-AB aircraft had
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avionics news

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2015

to use only approved hardware to comply, fighting to retain the
premise that avionics installed on amateur-built aircraft do not
have to be approved under a technical standard order.
Ultimately, that argument prevailed, with the FAA finally
acknowledging that ADS-B equipment in experimental aircraft
must meet the performance requirement set forth in the rules
(Federal Aviation Regulations 91.225 and 91.227) - but that the
equipment itself need not be certified.
This same premise has long been applied to the use of noncertified IFR equipment, instruments and transponders installed
in the E-AB fleet. The EAA always contended that ensuring
adequate performance of the equipment within the air traffic
system is the key need, not meeting a design specification or
production requirement.
While this only guarantees lower-cost solutions for the
experimental aircraft fleet, it helps avionics manufacturers leverage capacity further to lower costs of TSO'd equipment required
in production aircraft. Results of this approach appeared at
Oshkosh.
Dynon, for example, called its new SV-GPS-2020, a
2020-compliant ADS-B GPS position source for its SkyView
and Advanced AF-5000 series of glass panelware, a "major
product unveiling." Members of the E-AB community concurred. Priced at $590, Dynon called the new GPS receiver/antenna "the industry's most affordable" solution for compliance
with the FAA's mandate.
And this was just one product geared toward glass-cockpit
equipped experimental aircraft.
Plenty more emerged from avionics makers targeting both
E-AB and factory-made aircraft operators.
AirVenture 2015:
Multiple cost-reducing options emerge
Avidyne generated significant booth traffic and showgrounds chatter with its "Genius Counter," a nod to Apple
Computer's "Genius Bar" at its retail stores. Instead of
advising Macintosh users about their iOS issues, however,
Avidyne's Genius Counter provided attendees with equipage
advice - a personalized ADS-B recommendation - based on
their aircraft, its panel equipment and configuration, and the
aircraft's use.
Aspen Avionics and L-3 Aviation Products partnered to
offer prepackaged solutions pairing an Aspen display with
L-3's Lynx NGT-2500 ADS-B unit. Among the package options are an Evolution VFR PFD, Evolution Pro 1000 PFD,
or the Evolution 1500 system with the Pro 1000 PFD Evolution MFD 500 multifunction display. All packages include an
antenna (if required) and a $2,000 installation labor credit.
Through this program, aircraft owners can achieve ADS-B
for less than $300 per month, according to Aspen. Aspen
and L-3 also offer a package that combines an Aspen display

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News October 2015