Satellite Systems : a Basic Component of the Future Aeronautical Safety Communications Infrastructure
- Paper number
IAC-07-B2.1.06
- Author
Mr. Hugo Gonzalez Perez, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), France
- Coauthor
Mr. Jean-Paul Aguttes, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), France
- Coauthor
Mr. Luc Deneufchâtel, France
- Coauthor
Ms. Nathalie Ricard, European Space Agency (ESA)/ESTEC, The Netherlands
- Year
2007
- Abstract
The widely-used acronym CNS/ATM (Communications, Navigation and Surveillance for Air Traffic Management) underlines the fact that communications, navigation and surveillance are the three basic functions in support of air traffic management (ATM). Air Traffic Control history starts many decades before the space one : therefore, most of the current infrastructures providing communication, navigation and surveillance services are based on terrestrial systems. However, new satellite navigation systems, such as GPS, Glonnas or Galileo, have already prove that satellite can provide efficient and high performances navigation services in support of the ATM at world wide level. In the air/ground mobile communications domain, the current services are today limited to voice exchanges and uses VHF terrestrial radio systems. Satellite systems have been introduced to address the potential market of passengers communications but are also used for safety communications in remote and oceanic areas. The predicted increase of the air traffic leads to the need for an improvement of the current ATM in order to increase the airspace traffic capacity while reducing costs and increasing safety. New ATM concepts are based on strategic management of traffic. This will require more air/ground communications. On top of the increase volume of information exchanges, those exchanges will occur without manned participation. Therefore, QoS parameters (such as latency, availability and integrity) will be critical for these communications because voice communications could not be used if the data communication system fails. Current satellite technologies providing aeronautical communications services were not designed to fulfil these high QoS requirements in dense areas : they can not achieve these levels of performances This paper aims to highlight how geostationary based satellite system can become one of the basic components of the future aeronautical safety communications infrastructure. Based on the results of a joint ESA, CNES and French Civil Aviation Authority ongoing study, the paper focuses on technical and economical aspects associated with the use of satcom as a basic component of communications infrastructure for ATM. It underlines how satellite solutions can be efficient on a technical point of view and can be competitive on the economical domain. Starting from the mission requirements, this paper describes the benefits brought by satellite systems and it proves that a well designed solution can cope with capacity, quality, delay and availability requirements. This system provides relevant services that should comply with the future ATM concept as defined by aeronautical stakeholders within the SESAR European ATM initiative.
- Abstract document