Self Loading Freight
10th Nov 2000, 04:10
You probably all know this already, but the FAA is looking at a pure digital system, Nexcom, for the future of aviation radio. I found these couple of articles interesting, as they describe something of the system and the FAA's thinking.
""The demand for new air traffic control frequency assignments is expected to grow about 3 percent per year for more than 20 years, said Marc Narkus-Kramer, a team leader from the Center for Advanced Aviation System Development, a federally funded research and development corporation that is operated by The Mitre Corp.
The FAA issued a solicitation last week for the Nexcom radio, which will use VHF Digital Link Mode 3. VDL-3 will provide multiple channels to operate on one 25 KHz frequency assignment and will accommodate both voice and data. It will also have the flexibility to determine how the channel resources are applied for voice and data. An award for the radio is expected in July 2001.
FAA hopes to select a final Nexcom system developer by March 2005."
http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2000/1002/web-nexcom-10-06-00.asp
---and---
"The FAA would like to introduce by 2009 an all-digital VHF system, called Nexcom, which would quadruple the available channels, and handle both voice and data communications. Nexcom and its associated VHF Digital Link-3 (VDL-3), both of which are now under development, are regarded by many as being costly and having technical risk.
At RTCA’s Symposium in Tysons Corner, Va., last month, Mark Narkus-Kramer of the Mitre Corp. reviewed the FAA/industry debate on this issue. Industry representatives had urged other alternatives, one of which was the adoption of Eurocontrol’s mandated use of 8.33-kHz channel spacing, which effectively tripled availability. It was also proposed that this could be coupled with the currently approved VDL-2 system, which, while being a less capable datalink medium than VDL-3, had also been adopted by Eurocontrol.
VDL-2 equipment will be used by American Airlines in trials in Miami and Europe next year, an United Airlines is planning to install the system in its Airbus A319/320 fleet."
http://www.ainonline.com/oct_2000_nexcom.html
R
""The demand for new air traffic control frequency assignments is expected to grow about 3 percent per year for more than 20 years, said Marc Narkus-Kramer, a team leader from the Center for Advanced Aviation System Development, a federally funded research and development corporation that is operated by The Mitre Corp.
The FAA issued a solicitation last week for the Nexcom radio, which will use VHF Digital Link Mode 3. VDL-3 will provide multiple channels to operate on one 25 KHz frequency assignment and will accommodate both voice and data. It will also have the flexibility to determine how the channel resources are applied for voice and data. An award for the radio is expected in July 2001.
FAA hopes to select a final Nexcom system developer by March 2005."
http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2000/1002/web-nexcom-10-06-00.asp
---and---
"The FAA would like to introduce by 2009 an all-digital VHF system, called Nexcom, which would quadruple the available channels, and handle both voice and data communications. Nexcom and its associated VHF Digital Link-3 (VDL-3), both of which are now under development, are regarded by many as being costly and having technical risk.
At RTCA’s Symposium in Tysons Corner, Va., last month, Mark Narkus-Kramer of the Mitre Corp. reviewed the FAA/industry debate on this issue. Industry representatives had urged other alternatives, one of which was the adoption of Eurocontrol’s mandated use of 8.33-kHz channel spacing, which effectively tripled availability. It was also proposed that this could be coupled with the currently approved VDL-2 system, which, while being a less capable datalink medium than VDL-3, had also been adopted by Eurocontrol.
VDL-2 equipment will be used by American Airlines in trials in Miami and Europe next year, an United Airlines is planning to install the system in its Airbus A319/320 fleet."
http://www.ainonline.com/oct_2000_nexcom.html
R