Struggling with ADS-B decisions?
Get equipment suggestions at AOPA Fly-Ins
Are you starting to get concerned about the FAA’s coming deadline for Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast Out? ADS-B uses satellites instead of ground-based radar to determine aircraft location, and is a key technology behind the FAA’s Next Generation Air Transportation System. The FAA has mandated ADS-B Out for flight after Jan. 1, 2020, in airspace where a Mode C transponder is required today.
Equipage options for ADS-B Out can be confusing. There are two different datalink options, and there is not a one-size-fits-all solution—the best choice often depends on what’s already installed in your aircraft.
To submit your aircraft:
1) Take a photograph of your panel. It doesn’t have to be fancy; a good-quality cellphone photo is fine.
2) Email the photo, along with your answers to the questions below, to Mike Collins. That’s all it takes!
Case study questions
1) Do you have a WAAS GPS?
2) If not, do you have a non-WAAS GPS that can be upgraded to WAAS?
3) If not, do you ever want to have a WAAS GPS?
4) What kind of transponder do you have?
5) Are you interested in ASD-B In (FIS-B weather and TIS-B traffic)?
6) If so, do you want to display the data on your panel?
7) Do you want to display ADS-B In data on a tablet?
8) If so, iPad or Android? What app do you prefer? Are you willing to change apps?
9) Which AOPA Fly-In(s) will you be attending?
If you cannot attend one of the fly-ins, read this article from the November 2016 AOPA Pilot to see how these questions—which Todd Adams, president of Lancaster Avionics in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, asks all his ADS-B customers—can help bring structure to your ADS-B decision process. In addition, AOPA has helpful ADS-B resources available online.
