Business aviation has long been an incubator for innovation, and a leader in adopting technologies that enhance the safety, security, efficiency and sustainability of operations.
Over many decades, our industry’s impressive list of equipage milestones has included investments in GPS, RVSM, winglets, the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), carbon airframe composites and other groundbreaking systems.
“NBAA is business aviation’s chief advocate for ensuring that safety comes first and always in any application of emerging technologies for our sector.”
Today, the pace of technological change confronting the aviation sector is faster than ever. In this rapidly evolving environment, NBAA is business aviation’s chief advocate for ensuring that safety comes first and always in any application of emerging technologies for our sector.
Consider, for example, a recent proposal regarding radio altimeters, which are essential to navigation and other core safety functions. Today’s altimeters are potentially vulnerable to interference from Upper C-band wireless frequencies that may be put up for auction by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
NBAA is sounding the alarm about the concern over potential interference, and also warning about the likely cost of an FAA mandate for industry to upgrade aircraft with altimeters that are hardened against the Upper C-band signals. Specifically, we are emphasizing with the FAA the need for equitable cost allocation, or reimbursement, resulting from any proposed mandate for equipping with new altimeters.
A second example highlighting the need for advocacy in the technology arena can be found in the FAA’s recent consideration of a requirement for aircraft to be equipped with 25-hour cockpit voice recorders (CVRs). The agency has noted that such a mandate would provide investigators with valuable accident data, and align its own CVR regulations more closely with those of other international bodies.
While these aims are commendable, NBAA noted that such a mandate would likely raise concerns over cost and data security. The FAA reflected these concerns in its final rule, which calls for CVRs in newly manufactured aircraft, but stops short of establishing a retrofit requirement for existing aircraft, pending further study on costs and other concerns raised by NBAA.
Of course, today’s technology advancements, and the potential concerns they bring, apply not just to business aircraft, but to the broader aviation landscape. We can see this in the form of the FAA’s review of a regulatory framework for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) conducting “BVLOS” missions, or those that take place beyond visual line of sight.
As these aircraft mature and are deployed in ever-greater numbers, NBAA has sent a clear message to the agency that the integration of UAS and other emerging technologies must prioritize safety and security while prohibiting disruptions to business aviation operations.
NBAA’s Emerging Technologies Committee has been a leading voice in the conversation over BVLOS regulations, ensuring that the final framework maintains the safety of all operations in the national airspace system, without compromising business aircraft access to airports and airspace.
NBAA will continue bringing together the expertise – operational, legislative, regulatory – to ensure business aviation’s voice is heard in regard to the technologies impacting operations, always with an eye toward the real-world implications for safety, cost and other considerations. While we cannot predict how the technology landscape will fully take shape, we know our advocacy work will be most effective with your continued support.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.