TCAS - the term Enhanced?

[DavidSmith]

My first post on PPRuNe.

In the course of my military engineering position, a Military Pilot sent me a brief e-mail asking when we plan to implement Enhanced Traffic Collison Avoidance System (TCAS) on our military fleet.

After a couple of hours googling and speaking to our RMO staff I'm really confused, not so much by a lack of information but perhaps too much.

What does the term Enhanced mean when referring to TCAS?

Dave

[Daysleeper]

On the top of the email look for a button marked reply or with a sort of return arrow, then cut and paste this

Sorry old man, we don't understand your banter.

you could follow up with Bunch of monkeys on your ceiling, sir! Grab your egg and fours and let's get the bacon delivered.

but simply asking him/her to define "Enhanced" would probably be a sufficient.

[Pontius Navigator]

You could Google what is enhanced TCAS, or, if you are really lazy:

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CCUQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.icao.int%2Fanb%2Fpanels%2Fscrsp%2FMeeti ngs%2F0104%2FWPA1-24.doc&ei=VuLGTf3aINGKhQew1KXzAw&usg=AFQjCNE0DeKeMOFhVphB7uKfOaQO_FDtZw

[BEagle]

Ignore Daysleeper's childish comments above. Regrettably you'll find that PPRuNe has been contaminated with spotters and geeks over the past few years....

Basically, in addition to the standard TCAS functions of limited situational awareness, traffic alert and resolution advisories, ETCAS provides a so-called 'formation' mode. This mode allows aircraft operators to locate, identify and rendezvous with aircraft equpped with IFF Modes 1, 2, 3 and 4, Mode A, Mode C and Modes S transponder systems. In formation mode, ETCAS performs interrogation surveillance to a range of 40 nautical miles with azimuth coverage of 360° and up to 12,700 feet above and below the aircraft. The system can mark and identify formation members and rendezvous aircraft by displaying the aircraft's IFF code next to its symbol, clearly distinguishing it from other traffic within ETCAS range.

It is however, absolutely NOT an equivalent system to Link 16. The USAF are using ETCAS for purposes for which it was never designed, for example.

Azimuth resolution of ETCAS is inadequate for traffic avoidance; really all ETCAS does is to allow the crew to 'tag' friendly targets to avoid them triggering RAs.

Your people need to push for Link 16, not ETCAS!

[Daysleeper]

Ignore Daysleeper's childish comments above. Regrettably you'll find that PPRuNe has been contaminated with spotters and geeks over the past few years....


So which are you??

... the term "Enhanced" when applied to TCAS might refer to the formation mode, however it is also being used currently to advertise/describe

1/The Airbus autoflight enabled TCAS as certified on the A380 and coming to other models.
2/By ICAO to describe Mode S Extended Squitter operations when linked to TCAS
3/ Civil long range TCAS displays of over 100NM for oceanic use
4/Honeywell’s CAS 67A TCAS II Enhanced/ACAS II for corporate and regional aviation
5/ Some sort of radar augmented TCAS patented in the USA.

I could go on (see I fit the geek description)

The point I'm making, perhaps a little childishly is this; without more information from the originator of the question

When do we plan to implement Enhanced Traffic Collison Avoidance System (TCAS) on our military fleet.

you don't know which technology they mean. The tendency to assume that they mean X instead of checking is, I suspect, why we waste millions if not billions on military kit that doesn't do what people actually wanted it for.

[Willard Whyte]

DS, tell the questioner to contact the PT (formerly known as IPT).

[Oops Lajes]

Elementary TCAS has 6 parameters that it also provides to the other users, part of what the aircaft system transmits

Enhanced TCAS has 13 parameters that it has to transmit to meet the "Enhanced" tag

Plus also as Beagle informed us there is the military Enhanced for formation work.
What I have briefly described is the civil requirements.

[Wensleydale]

Your people need to push for Link 16, not ETCAS!


Oh Joy.... Yet more time slots that will not be available for the users who really need them! (Unless CAA etc finally relent and allow stacknet/multinet).