Sensis Wins FAA Contract for Capstone Program
Program Deploys Technology for Improving Aviation Safety and Efficiency
in Alaska and Lower 48 States
DEWITT, NY - October 28, 2003 - Sensis Corporation announced today that the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA)
Alaskan Region awarded a contract to produce 90 Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast (ADS-B) next-generation
ground-based transceivers for the FAA's Capstone Program. Capstone, a joint industry and FAA initiative, uses current
and emerging technologies to accelerate improvement of aviation safety and efficiency. During the past 10 years, Alaska
has experienced an average of one general aviation aircraft accident every other day. Sensis ADS-B transceivers will
be deployed to help reduce mid-air collisions, weather-related accidents, and controlled flight into terrain events in
this environmentally challenging state. The transceivers will improve safety and search and rescue activities by
providing enhanced air traffic surveillance coverage and weather data to the cockpit.
ADS-B enables aircraft to share position, velocity and other information, leveraging the global positioning system (GPS).
The FAA has contracted with Sensis for 75 ground-based transceivers supporting Universal Access Transceiver (UAT) data
link and 15 transceivers supporting 1090 Extended Squitter (ES). These two data links were decided upon by the FAA in
June 2002. UAT is intended for general aviation aircraft; 1090ES is intended for air carrier and private/commercial
operators. To ensure high performance, Sensis ground-based transceivers were designed to be compliant with the Radio
Technical Commission for Aeronautics (RTCA) Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS) developed for both data
links.
"ADS-B is widely recognized as the future of air traffic control," said Marc Viggiano, president of Sensis Corporation's
Air Traffic Systems Division. "Sensis has supported 1090 ADS-B for years and has now added UAT ADS-B to its product
family to improve situational awareness and address the critical safety needs of general aviation."
Phase I of the Capstone Program deployed UAT ADS-B ground-based transceivers for radar- like services in the
Bethel/Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska, providing surveillance as well as weather observation and data link
communications. Phase II, in the Juneau/Southeast area of the state, builds on technologies matured in Phase I and
explores the development of a useable Instrument Flight Rule (IFR) infrastructure to optimize routes through airspace
not accessible with conventional navigational aids and avionics. While the area around the Yukon-Kuskokwim River Delta
is fairly flat, Southeast Alaska is mountainous. There is no radar coverage below 10,000 feet. With no highway structure
connecting communities, airplanes are the primary form of transportation.
Sensis UAT ADS-B ground-based transceivers will improve situational awareness by supporting satellite navigation, Traffic
Information Service - Broadcast (TIS-B) for cockpit display of aircraft traffic, and Flight Information Services - Broadcast
(FIS-B) for cockpit display of graphical weather maps and textual aeronautical data. Further, the Sensis UAT ADS-B
ground-based transceivers will expand the functionality of the ground-based transceiver deployed in Phase I by featuring
enhanced receiver sensitivity and higher transmit power to provide surveillance of traffic data at farther ranges from a
ground-based transceiver; remote operation and maintenance; and a flexible software architecture to incorporate future
growth.
In addition to the introduction of current and emerging concepts and technologies, Capstone links multiple initiatives
under a common umbrella for planning, coordination, focus and direction. In addition to the Alaska deployment, UAT ADS-B
ground-based transceivers will be deployed at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona and Daytona Beach,
Florida under the FAA's Safe Flight 21 Program. Safe Flight 21 is a joint FAA and industry cooperative effort in the lower
48 states to explore the use of ADS-B and other related enabling technologies for improving the safety, efficiency and
capacity of the National Airspace System. The ground-based transceivers will enable the use of ADS-B to track training
flights and provide weather and traffic information to the cockpit.
Sensis' ADS-B technology extends beyond its UAT and 1090ES ADS-B ground-based transceivers. Sensis multilateration
ground-based transceivers - an integral component of the FAA's Airport Surface Detection Equipment Model X (ASDE-X)
system - contain built-in 1090ES ADS-B capability in compliance with the RTCA MOPS.
