For those of you using your iFly with a Skyradar or Navworx ADS-B unit, or those contemplating buying one, the FAA just issued the following notice:
New ADS-B Terminal Services Are Available Now
Notice Number: NOTC3486
Attention Pilots
New ADS-B Terminal Services Are Available Now
Pilots who use the terminal airspace listed below can now receive free traffic and weather information in the cockpit. To receive these services, aircraft must be equipped with an Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast (ADS-B) transmitter/receiver or transceiver and a cockpit display of traffic information (CDTI).
Service Volume Name - Airport ID
Atlanta - ATL
Atwater-Castle - MER
Bakersfield - BFL
Barksdale AFB - BAD
Baton Rouge - BTR
Beaumont - BPT
Bradley-Windsor Locks - BDL
Burbank - BUR
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood - FLL
Fresno - FAT
Ft Myers - RSW
Gainesville - GNV
Gwinn (KI Sawyer) - SAW
Houston-Hobby - HOU
Houston-Intercontinental - IAH
Jacksonville - JAX
Kansas City - MCI
Lafayette - LFT
Lake Charles - LCH
Los Angeles - LAX
Marysville-Beale AFB - BAB
Merced - MCE
Miami - MIA
Minneapolis-St. Paul - MSP
Mobile - MOB
Monroe - MLU
Monterey/Fort Ord Marina - MRY
NAS Whiting Field (Milton) - NSE
New Orleans - MSY
Oakland - OAK
Ontario - ONT
Orlando - MCO
Palm Springs - PSP
Patrick AFB - COF
Pensacola - PNS
Pensacola NAS -- NPA
Pittsburgh - PIT
Richmond - RIC
Sacramento-McClellan - MCC
San Francisco - SFO
San Jose - SJC
Sanford - SFB
Santa Barbara - SBA
Santa Maria - SMX
Sarasota-Bradenton - SRQ
Savannah - SAV
Seattle-Tacoma - SEA
Shreveport - SHV
Stockton - SCK
Tampa - TPA
West Palm Beach - PBI
The new services include:
Flight Information Service - Broadcast (FIS-B), which provides pilots and flight crews with a cockpit display of aviation weather and aeronautical information via Universal Access Transceiver (UAT) equipment on 978 MHz. Note: FIS-B is not compatible with 1090ES avionics.
The following FIS-B weather products are for advisory use only. The information provided by FIS-B can not be used in compliance of any regulatory requirement. Pre-flight weather briefings and in-flight weather updates must be obtained through FAA approved sources only.
o Aviation Routine Weather Reports (METARs).
o Special Aviation Reports (SPECIs).
o Terminal Area Forecasts (TAFs) and their amendments.
o NEXRAD (regional and CONUS) precipitation maps.
o Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) Distant and Flight Data Center.
o Airmen’s Meteorological Conditions (AIRMET).
o Significant Meteorological Conditions (SIGMET) and Convective SIGMET.
o Status of Special Use Airspace (SUA).
o Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs).
o Winds and Temperatures Aloft.
o Pilot Reports (PIREPS).
o TIS-B service status.
Traffic Information Service - Broadcast (TIS-B), which enhances a pilot's visual acquisition of other traffic on 978 UAT and 1090 MHz Extended Squitter (1090 ES).
TIS-B is an advisory only service. Pilots must continue to exercise vigilance to “see and avoid” other aircraft in accordance with Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations Section 91.113b.
The following table lists which type of data link is required to receive TIS-B and FIS-B services:
If the aircraft is equipped with the following data link…
Then the pilot can receive the following services…
978 MHz Universal Access Transceiver (UAT)
TIS-B and FIS-B
1090 MHz Extended Squitter (1090 ES)
TIS-B
The FAA encourages users of TIS-B and FIS-B to report any irregularities observed while using the services. Reports should contain the following information:
1. Time of observation.
2. Location.
3. Type and identity of the aircraft.
4. Description of the condition observed.
5. Type of avionics system and software version used.
You can report issues by contacting the nearest Air Traffic Control (ATC) facility, Flight Service Station (FSS) facility, or by submitting FAA Form 8740-5, Safety Improvement Report, available from FSSs, Flight Standards District Offices, or general aviation fixed-based operators.
When the service is not available, as result of a service volume network being out of service, the service condition will be NOTAMed as NOT AVBL.
EXAMPLE - !PHL PHL SVC TRAFFIC INFORMATION SERVICE BROADCAST NOT AVBL
Additional information about ADS-B services can be found in the Aeronautical Information Manual at the following link: http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/ATpubs/AIM/
For more information about the FAA’s ADS-B program, visit http://www.ads-b.gov.
Questions?
Contact the FAA Flight Standards ADS-B Office at 9-AWA-AVS-ADS-Programs-AFS@faa.gov.
Contact the FAA Aircraft Certification ADS-B Office at 9-AWA-AVS-ADS-Programs-AIR@faa.gov.