2020 VISION There are less than 18 months to go until the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration’s Jan. 1, 2020, deadline for installation of ADS-B Out capabilities — but with time running out, the majority of operators are still to make the change. 84 VERTICAL magazine BY NORM MATHEIS Midnight on Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2019, is a time and date that has been ham- mered home to any user of U.S. airspace on a frequent basis over the past few years. But, for those unaware of its significance, it’s the deadline for com- pliance with the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast Out, or ADS-B Out, mandate. This calls for all aircraft — including part 27 and part 29 rotorcraft — currently required to have a transponder to be equipped with DO-260B ADS-B Out-compliant extend- ed-squitter Mode S transponders and associated GPS receivers. This means those required to comply now have less than 18 months to do so — and at current install rates, not all aircraft will make the deadline. ADS-B Out is an avionics technology that transmits GPS-based position and other data via extended squitter Mode S transponders to a ground station network that is linked to air traffic control. Information “squits” like identification, GPS position, altitude, velocity, and quality and integrity data are made available for an air traffic controller’s situational awareness. The FAA’s successor to tracking aircraft and separating them by radar, ADS-B Out is just one part of the regulator’s multi-faceted NextGen effort to modernize the U.S. air transportation system. The aim with ADS-B Out is to increase the efficiency, capacity and safety of air traffic management. According to Federal Aviation Regulations (91.227) published in August 2010, ADS-B Out equipment must be approved to either TSO-C154c (universal access transceivers, or UAT) or TSO-C166b (1090 MHz extend- ed-squitter transponder). Somewhat confusingly, even though the former is called a universal access transceiver, the 978 MHz UAT is actually less universal than the 1090 MHz ES transponder in terms of where it can fly and what airspace it can use. Extended-squitter Mode S transponder equipment compliant with TSO-C166b will be required in order to operate In Class A airspace (above 18,000 feet) in accordance with Federal Aviation Regulation 91.225. Rotorcraft that never fly in Class A airspace can be upgraded to a 1090 extended-squitter transponder, or can be equipped to comply by installing a 978 MHz UAT, which is meant for the lower altitude operations of most rotorcraft. The avionics modifications for required for medium and heavy helicopters can be comprehensive. Typically, this can include replacing a flight man- agement system with a wide area augmentation system (WAAS)-capable unit, replacing both legacy transponders with Mode S extended-squitter versions, adding wiring and a failure annunciation somewhere, testing, and, of course, gaining the all-important approved data. Some operators in this class will opt for cheap and cheerful “bolt-on” solutions, meeting the mandate but not doing anything for the navigation solution presented to the crew. Some avionics mod shops and integrators still have capacity to do the mandatory avionics equipment installations prior to the deadline, but oper- ators who haven’t begun the process of booking slots may be setting the