SCanada expands Sensis ADS-B contract to include east coast deployment

SCanada expands Sensis ADS-B contract to include east coast deployment

Article Type: Safety notes From: Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology: An International Journal, Volume 80, Issue 4

Sensis Corporation recently announced that Nav Canada has expanded its contract for Sensis automatic dependent surveillance – broadcast (ADS-B) ground-based transceivers to include deployment along the Labrador and Baffin Island coasts of Canada for enhanced surveillance of trans-Atlantic air traffic. This deployment is in addition to the current deployment of Sensis ADS-B and multistatic dependent surveillance (MDS) at Vancouver Harbour, Fort St John and Hudson Bay.

“Providing ADS-B coverage in these areas is the next step in our nation-wide deployment of the next generation of air traffic surveillance”, said John Crichton, President and CEO, Nav Canada. “Based on our experiences with Sensis ADS-B, we believe the Sensis solution provides us with the best available accuracy, reliability and flexibility.”

Along the northeast coast of Canada, Sensis ADS-B 1090 ground-based transceivers will generate aircraft position information with sufficient accuracy and reliability to enable reduced lateral separation.

“Nav Canada’s selection of Sensis ADS-B transceivers for the next phase of their nation-wide ADS-B deployment further demonstrates that our ADS-B technology meets current and future surveillance demands of leading ANSPs”, said Tony Lo Brutto, Vice President and General Manager of Sensis Air Traffic Systems. “With a high accuracy and update rate, Sensis ADS-B transceivers allow the ANSPs to increase safety, reduce fuel costs and emissions as a result of more flexible and efficient flight routes.”

Sensis Corporation have also announced that its certified multilateration surveillance system, MDS, is being deployed for precision runway monitoring (PRM) at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. Sensis MDS will provide surveillance for simultaneous parallel approaches to runways four and 22, enabling Detroit Metro to increase its capacity.

In 2005, Sensis successfully demonstrated to the FAA that multilateration is a technologically sound solution for PRM based on a testing at Lambert – St Louis International Airport. The multilateration system met the defined coverage volume, positional accuracy, and modes 3/A and C code accuracy requirement. Following this testing, the FAA conducted a cost/benefit analysis which indicated that in addition to its technical strength, based on the minimal maintenance it requires, multilateration is more cost-effective than electronic-scan PRM. As a result, the FAA contracted with Sensis to deploy MDS for PRM at Detroit Metro Airport, in addition to the Airport Surface Detection Equipment, Model X system already scheduled to be installed.

Sensis MDS uses multiple sensors to triangulate aircraft positions based on transponder signals to provide a one-second update rate for positive identification in all weather conditions. In addition, it is compatible with ADS-B. Sensis is also deploying its MDS for PRM at Sydney Airport in Australia.

The company also recently introduced the next generation of its vehicle locator unit, VeeLo NextGen, for detecting, tracking and positively identifying vehicles on the ground at airports. VeeLo NextGen incorporates an improved WAAS enabled GPS receiver and broadcasts its location and identity using the mode S extended squitter ADS-B message format.

VeeLo NextGen features a rugged, weather-resistant enclosure that can be easily mounted on the exterior of a vehicle and moved from vehicle to vehicle. Its low-power consumption allows VeeLo NextGen to be connected to a vehicle’s accessory power outlet. Further, VeeLo NextGen can be field-configured using a PC serial interface and VeeLo NextGen software.

Since 2003, over 400 VeeLo vehicle locators have been deployed at airports around the world. Sensis is currently on schedule to deliver over 200 VeeLo NextGen units to customers world-wide starting in the Spring of 2008.