Bing
I
did go for the night as promised. Why did you think I had not?
Me a sciolist - freely admitted, that's why I keep researching to increase my meagre knowledge. The day I know it all, I'll petition to sit at Dick's feet, although realising that like all religions aviation can only have one true deity
But whoa there
Remember we will still need the current transponders as a back up to the inevitable GPS failures - and if you doubt a terrorism event; think sunspots ... we are currently between major sun 'storms' so there is no current GPS interference from the sun (probably why the worlds cooling at the moment) though wait untill the sun turns on again
1. We do not need the current transponders, the new (replacement) ones do the job.
2. Sunspots - I'm impressed, you farm lads must study New Scientist of an evening as well as the Weekly Times? The cycle is from memory about 7 to 9 years and how long has GPS been going?
But, overnight I have reflected on your GPS 'Big Bang' theory and I think I am moving toward your thinking.
That case of the false radio call indicates we have become too reliant on radio (which as you know is affected by sunspots, aurora, etc) and can be JAMMED. Oh, oh, a GPS guided Bing Whizzy UAV bomb with all the aviation radios jammed.
We must stop the reliance on radio; this scenario could happen.
OK, an alternative? Got it, light signals. Darn, cannot use them because the laser lights needed for clarity and range, have already been used against aircraft.
Looks like our only safe move is out with the tin snips, back to the open cockpit, on with the helmet and goggles, and back to the good old days, no?
If this scenario seems another leg pull - you got me. But, I'm just thinking of where we would have been had the "anti" ADS-B lobby been debating the introduction of
radio. "No defined safety benefit", "Terrorist twistable", "Being introduced by people who won't take their daily dickmite", and so on. And what will they want to introduce next - radar - no way, "it'll make us sterile", "they'll use it to charge VFR in E and G", "it will increase global warming and make the sky fall in".
Removes Troglodyte Tin Top and returns to JM sciolist mode.
Others have covered the RFDS scenario but to reinforce it once the ADS-B IN interface to TCAS is operational the RFDS would get full TA/RA options.
Ants
Flightwatch - totally different matter. If you examine the hourly traffic on the FW
VHF frequencies, very difficult to justify dedicated staff and more radio spectrum. Plus - think safety - FW on the en route frequencies means you do not have to leave the en route frequency to communicate.
You can still keep your radio situational awareness and get your mayday out if the fan stops, without having the extra step during crisis of having to change back to the en route (that's if you could even get FW on thrie discrete VHF frequencies, my success rate was about half).