The FAA has mandated that by 2020, all commercial aircraft — and small aircraft flying near most airports — must be equipped with a new tracking system, ADS-B, that broadcasts GPS data, providing more accurate location information than ground-based radar. In anticipation of the deadline, the FAA has also charged MIT researchers with leading an investigation of the system’s limits and capacities. In October, at the 30th Digital Avionics Systems Conference in Seattle, MIT researchers will present an early result of that investigation, a new algorithm that uses data from the tracking system to predict and prevent collisions between small aircraft. In the last 10 years alone, 112 small planes have been involved in midair collisions, and thousands more have reported close calls. Continue Reading »

===> Posted on July 5th, 2011 by Janice Wood. No comments. © GAN 2011.