AIRCOM new

geneRAtIOn seRvICes
From ACARs to ICAO and IP services

Positioning Paper

Specialists in air transport communications and IT solutions

Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
ACARS Data Link system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
ACARs Data Link standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
ACARs Application Addressing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
ACARs vHF air-ground Link . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
ACARs Inmarsat satellite air-ground link . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
ACARs Iridium satellite air-ground link . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
AIRCOM New Generation Service Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
ACARs trafc growth and capacity constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Air trafc services use of data link . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Aircraft equipage with eFB/eLB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
AIRCOM new generation services overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
AIRCOM VDL/ATN implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
ICAO vHF air-ground digital link (vDL) Mode 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
Avionics transition from ACARs to vDL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
ACARs over vDL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
ACARs over vDL user benets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
AIRCOM implementation of vDL Mode 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
sItA/AnsP vDL Mode 2 partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Atn end-to-end Protocols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
ICAO Atn air-ground protocols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
sItA Atn service implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
AIRCOM IP Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
Industry implementation of IP communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Aircraft use of tCP/IP protocol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
AIRCOM IP Portal and vPAn Management service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
AIRCOM AirportLink Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
In-ight AIRCOM swiftBroadband Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
About sItA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 3

Introduction
AIRCOM is implementing new generation services that will initially complement
and over the next 10 to 15 years progressively replace ACARs. the AIRCOM
next generation services will follow two parallel paths: ICAO-dened vDL and
Atn links for Air trafc services (Ats), and IP links for Aircraft Operator
Communications (AOC).
the AIRCOM data link service currently provides air-ground communications via vHF radio stations and satellites to the
airline industry using standard Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting system (ACARs) cockpit data link
avionics.
ACARs was originally developed to support AOC communications and was expanded from reporting aircraft movements to
also transport aircraft system performance data and Ats communications. As more complex and critical applications were
implemented over ACARs, it became clear that an alternative to the ACARs data link service would eventually be needed.
the rst industry denition of such an alternative was produced by the worlds Air navigation service Providers (AnsPs)
through the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), in the standard for the Aeronautical telecommunication network
(Atn) adopted by the ICAO member states in 1998.
the ICAO development of the Atn standard took place in parallel with the ICAO production of other standards dening the
protocols to be used in radio sub-networks: vHF Digital Link (vDL), Aeronautical Mobile satellite service (AMss), and HF
data link.
the ICAO Atn standard is based on IsO standards for Open systems Interconnection (OsI) that provide the same function
as the un-ofcial Internet Protocol (IP) standards, which have become the de facto standards in telecommunications
products and services.
the AnsPs writing the ICAO Atn standard in the 1990s intended their ground data networks to use Atn routers, but they
are in practice using IP routers. the AnsPs now plan to use Atn only for aircraft communications, primarily for Controller
Pilot Data Link Communications (CPDLC).
the eU single european sky process is mandating all aircraft ying in europe to be equipped with CDPLC by around 2015.
the mandate will allow long haul aircraft with FAns CPDLC using ACARs to retain that version but it requires all short haul
aircraft to use Atn/vDL for CPDLC.
sItA has implemented AIRCOM Atn service and deployed vDL Mode 2 ground stations across europe to enable customer
airlines to use the eurocontrol initial CDPLC service and will keep expanding that capability to support the full
implementation in europe and later by the Us FAA.
Airline AOC are also evolving beyond the capability of ACARs as aircraft are being equipped with electronic Flight Bags
(eFBs) and other advanced onboard applications (such as electronic Log Books and electronic manuals). Aircraft and
avionics manufacturers are designing these new generation of AOC systems to use IP air-ground links.
sItA is developing AIRCOM IP service via generic wireless links at airports and broadband satellite links for aircraft in-ight.
the rst users will include the AIRBUs A380 and Boeing 787 whose standard equipment includes electronic Flight Bags
using IP.
this aircraft system divergence means that in future aircraft will have systems making parallel use of the AIRCOM ACARs,
Atn and IP services. this document describes how the AIRCOM ACARs communications service will be complemented by
a new AIRCOM IP service for AOC, running in parallel with the Atn service for Ats to support both ICAO Atn and
IP services.

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ACARs Data Link system

ACARs cockpit data link avionics are installed on approximately 10,000 air transport aircraft and approximately 4,000
business and government aircraft. ACARs systems are included by default in most newly delivered turbofan-powered
aircraft.
standard ACARs avionics are sold by companies such as Rockwell Collins and Honeywell, while the ACARs function is
integrated by AIRBUs in their modern aircraft systems using software from Rockwell Collins. similarly this function was also
integrated by Boeing into the 777 using software from Honeywell.
ACARs is used by ight operations applications that are hosted in the ACARs avionics unit and is connected to a MultiFunction Control and Display Unit and a cockpit printer that provides input/output to pilots.
the ACARs unit is also used as an air-ground router by other airborne systems including the Flight Management system
and aircraft system monitoring systems called Digital Flight Data Acquisition Units or Central Maintenance Computers.
the ACARs unit communicates with ground networks via various radio systems, always including a vHF radio, and
optionally also satellite avionics and/or an HF data radio. Passenger and Cabin application systems can share the use of
the satellite avionics if they are installed.

ACARS Data Link Standards

Airlines, avionics vendors and ACARs service providers had standardized the ACARs system through the former Airlines
electronic engineering Committee now called just AeeC. this committee is organized by the ARInC Industry Affairs
department but its voting members are airlines and its standard groups are open to any interested party including sItA.
the very rst implementation of ACARs avionics was in 1978 and at that time AeeC developed a Characteristics 597
dening the rst very basic ACARs avionics. that was followed in the mid 1980s by an AeeC Characteristic 724 specifying
ACARs avionics with a digital interface to other aircraft systems.
the AeeC avionics standards included a minimal denition of ACARs message formats. the airlines in 1988 recognized the
need to dene proper ACARs protocol standards. the following AeeC documents were produced, primarily by the service
providers and avionics vendors:
n

AeeC specication 62;0 Data Link ground system standard and Interface specication

AeeC specication 618 Air/ground Character Oriented air-ground Protocol

AeeC specication 619 ACARs avionics interfaces with other avionics

AeeC 620 applies primarily to the ACARs Data Link service Processor, but implicitly species the ACARs Messaging
Protocol between ACARs avionics and airline ground systems. AeeC 618 species the lower layer protocol used between
ACARs Data Link service Processor and ACARs avionics.
AeeC 618 and 620 specify message formats and content in the form of characters encoded as 7-bit binary codes using
the AsCII or IsO no. 5 alphabet. the ACARs protocol user data is restricted to the AsCII codes that represent printable
characters.
while the ACARs protocol can only transport printable text characters, application developers have found ways to encode
computer data very efciently in characters so that a lot of information can be transported in the messages that have an
average length of 125 characters.
AeeC 620 species the use on the Data Link service Processor interface to ground systems of the IAtA Messaging format
with its 7-letter addresses. It species a message header containing the aircraft registration mark that is used for message
routing by the Data Link service Processor.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 5

ACARS management unit

User ground system

AOC/ATS applications

Data link service processor

AEEC 620 AC ARS protocol
Label/SMI conversion

AEEC 620 ACARS Protocol

Air/Ground routing function
VHF 618

AMSS 618

Air/Ground routing function

VHF 618

AEEC 618

AMSS Data 2

AMSS Data 2

Satellite data unit

AMESS GES

VHF radio

AOC/ATS applications
AEEC 620 ACARS protocol

TEI Processing

AEEC 620 TEI Processing

SMT over X.25

ATA SMT over X.25

VHF ground station

ACARS Architecture

ACARS Application Addressing

the ACARs data link protocol was dened before the use of layered architectures for data telecommunications so it does
not cleanly separate application addressing from aircraft addressing and link layer addressing.
ACARs applications are addressed by a 2-character ACARs labels over air-ground radio links and 3-letter standard
Message Identiers (sMI) over ground networks. AeeC 620 species for each application the ACARs label and the sMI.
ACARs service Processors which interconnect ground networks and air-ground radio networks need to carry out the
mapping between the AeeC 620 sMIs and ACARs labels. this mapping is invisible to the ACARs avionics that use just the
labels and to the ground systems that use just the sMIs.
the use of a 2-character label allows for a maximum of 676 application identiers but in practice ACARs uses about 200
identiers. this includes user dened labels which allow the airline to dene any formats they want inside the user data.
the ACARs sMIs and labels include a special subset for the applications hosted outside the ACARs avionics which use a
label H1 followed by a sub-label which indicates the source or destination avionics.
the AeeC specications 622 and 623 were produced to dene Ats use of ACARs, and they include special labels that are
used for Ats messages as well as checksums to provide message integrity checking.
ACARs application addressing does not follow current models for specications of data communications systems but it has
never proved to be an issue in practice.

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ACARS VHF air-ground Link

the original ACARs data link service uses vHF radio channels. ARInC implemented the rst ACARs service using vHF
stations around 1978. sItA implemented AIRCOM in 1984, deploying the rst vHF stations in Australia and Asia, followed
by europe, Latin America and Africa, and since 2000 by the UsA and Canada.
the vHF ground stations coverage is line-of-sight, meaning a station at an airport provides coverage to all the aircraft at
the airport and above the airport within a cone limited by the curvature of the earth. the vHF ground stations coverage
stops about 200 miles away for aircraft at an altitude of 30,000 feet.
ACARs shares the vHF band with voice communications. when ACARs was implemented, most channels had been
assigned to voice so there were not enough to assign a dedicated frequency to each ACARs ground station. this required
the ACARs vHF design to allow service providers to have all their ground stations across a region use the same base
frequency.
vHF ACARs was invented before vHF digital radios, so ACARs avionics and ground station computers uses vHF radios
implemented to support voice communications. this imposed the use of the same signal as in vHF voice, i.e. Amplitude
Modulation in a 25 kHz wide channel.
the ACARs system is limited, due to its use of vHF voice radios, to using a data rate of 2.4 kilobits per second. At a higher
data rate, the rate of errors in decoding the received signal would rise and communications would become impossible.
the ACARs channel access method is a Carrier sense Multiple Access (CsMA) algorithm that requires a station to verify
that the vHF channel is free before transmitting. this took account of the need for ground stations with common coverage
to use the same vHF frequency.
the performance of the ACARs CsMA algorithm is limited by the use of vHF voice radios, which prevent the ACARs
avionics and ground station computers from judging accurately whether the channel is free. the vHF analog radios
introduce a delay of up to 50 milliseconds between the time the computer decides to transmit and the time its signal can
be detected by other users of the channel.
the proportion on the raw data rate of 2.4 kilobits per second on a channel made available to users by the ACARs CsMA
algorithm diminishes as the number of users and the number of messages sent rises. It has been calculated that, in areas
of high vHF data link usage, the ACARs CsMA algorithm provides a user data capacity of 300 bits per second.
ACARs avionics have begun transitioning to the use of vHF digital radios using higher speed ICAO standard vDL link,
which is described later in this document.

ACARS Inmarsat satellite air-ground link

the ACARs system was expanded to use the Inmarsat Aeronautical Mobile satellite system (AMss) on its introduction in
1990. the aircraft that use the AMss ACARs service generally also use the vHF ACARs service and can send messages
via either system.
to use the Inmarsat AMss service an aircraft must be equipped with a satellite Data Unit (sDU). In aircraft equipped with
an sDU, the ACARs Management Unit (MU) has parallel connections to the sDU and a vHF transceiver, and routes
messages via each connection as appropriate.
the AeeC Characteristic 741 for the satellite Data Unit species the use of an X.25 based protocol, which Inmarsat
originally intended to be used for packet data communications across the AMss network. this complies with the protocol
specied in the ICAO AMss standard described later in this document.
the ACARs avionics were programmed to use a simple link protocol over vHF channels so they did not have the software
needed to request the sDU to establish a Data 3 X.25 connection to the ACARs Data Link service Processor.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 7

the ACARs MU uses the same AeeC 618 block format on AMss links as on vHF links. the only modication to the AeeC
specication 618 to take account of AMss usage was to specify the use of longer acknowledgment protocol timers for the
AMss connection than for a vHF connection.
to enable ACARs use of AMss, Inmarsat dened initial AMss services known as Data 1 and Data 2 and named the
service provided by the X.25 based protocol the Data 3 service.
the AMss Data 1 service was an initial implementation, which has been phased out and replaced by the Data 2 service. In
the Data 1/2 services, the sDU resolves the ACARs avionics limitation, by automatically establishing a permanent X.25
connection via a ground earth station to an ACARs Data Link service Processor. the sDU subsequently switches ACARs
blocks transparently between this air-ground connection and its AeeC 429 digital interface to the ACARs MU.
the AMss data link service is the same using the AeRO-H (High) gain 12 dB antenna and the AeRO-I (Intermediate) gain
6dB antenna. the AeRO-I avionics use a spot beam for voice service but for data link service they use the same global
beam as AeRO-H avionics.

ACARS Iridium satellite air-ground link

ACARs avionics have since 2007 begun to be linked to avionics that use the Iridium satellites which y in low earth orbit
and allow avionics to be lighter and less costly. these ACARs messages are being sent in Iridium short Burst Data (sBD)
transmissions. sItA has implemented a gateway between the ACARs service Processor and the Iridium sBD server to
provide the service via Iridium.

Iridium LEO Constellation

Inmarsat
GEO Satellite

ADLT:
DHP:
GEO/LEO:
GES:
IRD:
MSW:
VGS/RGS:

AIRCOM Data Link Processor

Direct Host Processor
Geostationary/Low Earth Orbit
Ground Earth Station
Iridium Gateway & Message Processor
MegaSwitch
VHF/Remote Ground Station

SIT
D-ATIS
AMET GATEWAY
GES

Airline users
and applications

IRD

MSW/DHP
VGS

SITA global
network
RGS

AIRCOM
Internetworking
and FANS Partners

AIRCOM Data Link

System Architecture
Real-time data exchange with
aircraft and crew worldwide

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AIRCOM new generation service Drivers

AIRCOM implementation of new generation services to complement ACARs is driven by a combination of application
requirements to send more data in more complex data formats and emerging technology that can assist in meeting those
needs.
the key challenge to aircraft transition from ACARs to new generation communications systems is the cost of modifying
aircraft systems. this practically means that aircraft will continue to use ACARs until at least 2020 but will begin to
increasingly use other data communications links in parallel.
the three main drivers to AIRCOM new generation services are ACARs trafc growth and capacity constraints, Air trafc
services use of data link, and aircraft equipage with eFB/eLB.

ACARS traffic growth and capacity constraints

the ACARs system was rst introduced to enable aircraft to send their take-off and landing reports automatically to airline
computers. today the system is installed in almost all commercial aircraft and is being used for applications that require a
very reliable service.
there are two main drivers for the increase in ACARs trafc:
n

the increase in the number and frequency of ights, which forces airlines to increase the level of automation in their
ground system and requires a direct data link to aircraft to maximize efciency.
the increase in the automation of aircraft systems, which generates more trafc than in older aircraft types.

the primary ACARs capacity constraint is on the vHF link, which uses an analog radio and a protocol that can only
transport text. the Inmarsat and Iridium satellite data link systems already use digital technology providing the maximum
available capacity, but the Inmarsat satellite network has also been facing capacity issues.
the ItU has assigned to Aeronautical communications the vHF sub-band 118 - 137 MHz. Of this 19 MHz approximately
99% is assigned to voice channels with up to 8 channels of 25 kHz assigned to ACARs service.
the vHF ACARs service was originally provided using a single frequency per region. so long as aircraft are only equipped
with the classic vHF ACARs systems, the sole means to increase the capacity in an area of heavy usage is through the use
of multiple frequencies. this increase in capacity is optimized by segregating the communications with aircraft on the
ground from the communications with aircraft in the air on different frequencies.
As the usage has increased, in order to maintain an acceptable level of performance, secondary frequencies have been
assigned dedicated to serving aircraft either en-route or at airports. In western europe, where the ACARs trafc is very
dense, four channels have been assigned to ACARs service; three of these have been allocated to sItA.
It has become increasingly difcult to have additional vHF channels allocated to ACARs service, because the regions where
the use of vHF data link is highest are the same regions where the number of channels available in the vHF Aeronautical
Band is lowest.
In europe, there are already no vHF frequency channels available for allocation to new vHF ACARs services. this will soon
be true in certain parts of the UsA. to increase vHF data link capacity further, it will be essential to implement a system
providing more capacity per channel.
At a xed level of network capacity, the increase in trafc on the air-ground network reduces the quality of service,
measured in terms of average transit delay. In view of the increasing criticality of the airline data link applications, the
network capacity must be constantly increased to maintain and improve performance, requiring a transition to a higher
capacity vHF link protocol.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 9

FANS Aircraft
Non-FANS
& ATN Aircraft FANS Aircraft Aircraft
Departure
Airport
Destination
Airport

D-ATIS
Req

DCL
Req
D-ATIS
Rept

CPDLC

ADS
(FANS
only)

FMC
WPR

ADS

D-ATIS
Req

DCL

D-ATIS
Rept

AIRCOM CFRS
Service
AIRCOMevatis
at Departure
Airport

AIRCOMclever
at Departure
Airport

AIRCOM
ADS/CPDLC
Gateway &
Workstation

AIRCOM
CADS Service
for ANSP without
FANS ADS end
System

SITA Network Services

SITA ATC Services
SITA ATC Systems
Solutions

AIRCOMevatis
at Destination
Airport

ATC AIRCOM Service and System Solutions

ADs
AtC
Atn
CADs
CFRs

Automatic Dependents surveillance

Air trafc Control
Aeronautical telecommunication network
Centralized ADs Reporting system
Centralized Flight Management Computer (FMC)
waypoint Reporting system

CPDLC
D-AtIs
DCL
FAns

Controller-Pilot Data Link Communications

Digital-Automatic terminal Information service
Departure CLearance
Future Air navigation system 1 (boeing)/A (Airbus)

Air Traffic Services use of data link

the ICAO Air navigation Commission in the 1980s created a Future Air navigation systems (FAns) committee that issued
its main report in 1988 recommending AtC use of data links with aircraft and the use of satellites for communications,
navigation and surveillance.
AnsPs have identied that using CPDLC to complement the traditional voice radio communications can improve their
service and enable controllers to handle more aircraft.
the AnsPs implemented initial services using ACARs in advance of implementing services using the ICAO standards data
links described later in this document. these initial implementations fall into two categories:
n

Pre-FAns: Ats use of basic ACARs text messaging

FAns-1/A: ICAO dened applications using ACARs

the pre-FAns applications are primarily airport Departure Clearance and Automatic terminal Information services (AtIs).
these implementations in major airports have added to the ACARs trafc and increased the need to implement the ICAO
standard vDL services.

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the Boeing FAns-1 and AIRBUs FAns-A packages installed on their long haul aircraft implement the ICAO dened CPDLC
and Automatic Dependent surveillance (ADs) applications. the AnsPs have implemented use of these FAns-1/A
applications in oceanic and remote airspace outside vHF coverage so they use satellite links.
the expansion of CPDLC to short haul aircraft ying in the densely occupied airspace of europe and the UsA will require
use of vHF data link but with higher capacity than the classic vHF ACARs service.
the Air trafc Control community has through ICAO produced a series of standards for the Aeronautical
telecommunications network (Atn), the vHF Digital Link (vDL), the Aeronautical Mobile-satellite service (AMss) and HF
data link.
the AtC communitys ofcial denition of the communications networks they use is the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) convention Annex 10 Aeronautical telecommunications and this has been amended to include these
standards.
AnsP implementation of CDPLC using Atn has been led by eurocontrol and the eU single european sky program will
mandate its installation by about 2015 on all jet aircraft ying in europe (except long haul aircraft with FAns CPDLC). the
Us FAA is also planning to implement CPDLC using Atn.
the focus of Atn CPDLC implementation is on short haul aircraft so the link being used is vDL and avionics have also
been adapted to send ACARs data over vDL. this ACARs usage is driving the installation of vDL avionics in advance of
Atns implementation of Atn CPDLC.
the AtC need for Atn over vDL has driven AIRCOM to implement rst vHF ground stations with vDL capability and also
Atn routing capability. the eU single sky mandate of aircraft use of vDL will ensure the continued need for this service.

Aircraft equipage with EFB/ELB

Aircraft are being equipped with electronic Flight Bags (eFBs) hosting advanced applications such as electronic Log Books,
which are sometimes connected to network File servers (nFs) that use the IP protocol over broadband aircraft-ground
links.
the installations of eFB in aircraft are being accomplished through aircraft manufacturer forwardt, as is the case of Boeing
with the eFB in the 777s, or AIRBUs installation of the electronic Flight Folder in the A380.
Also, airlines may retrot their aircraft with post-delivery eFB and Air-ground IP systems directly from avionics
manufacturers such as teledyne, Astronautics and CMC.
the cockpit systems that aircraft and avionics manufacturers are developing include eFBs and other systems that do not
just exchange text messages. Aircraft will continue to be equipped with units using the ACARs protocol for many years but
will also increasingly be equipped with eFBs and other systems needing an IP air-ground communication service.
the development of eFBs for air transport aircraft is being led by Boeing and AIRBUs supported by avionics manufacturers
including Rockwell Collins, Honeywell and CMC. It is also being driven by the Flight Operations application providers
including the Boeing Jeppesen division and Lufthansa systems, implementing new applications that cannot work over
ACARs.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 11

teledyne is the leading provider of ight data acquisition systems and has expanded their Quick Access Recorder product
to download Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) data using generic cellular mobile data networks while on the
ground at airports.
these systems can use a variety of radio links. However, the in-ight links will include the Inmarsat satellite swift
Broadband, while the terminal links used at airports will include gPRs, the Ieee 802.11 wiFi and in the future 802.16
wiMAX and Lte.
AIRBUs and Boeing are developing software packages that ground systems have to use to communicate with the airborne
communications managers. AIRBUs call their software package Open world Aircraft ground/ground Asynchronous
Messaging service (OwAg/gAMs) and Boeing call their Boeing e-Plane enabled ground support system (Begss). the
airlines have to use these packages to exchange messages via terminal wireless and satellite broadband links with their
aircraft.
while the ACARs application message formats have mostly been dened by each airline with the support of their avionics
vendors, in new aircraft models, beginning with the A380 and followed by the 787, it is the aircraft manufacturers that are
dening the applications.
the AeeC has established an AOC standardization subcommittee led by Lufthansa to dene application messages
encoded in the eXtended Markup Language (XML) that require the use of IP air-ground networks. the AeeC AOC
subcommittee is responsible for specication 633 AOC Air-ground Data and Message exchange Format dening the
industry standard for application data formats to be implemented by AIRBUs in the A380 and Boeing in their new aircraft.
these aircraft systems developments make it clear that the provisions for airline communications use in the ICAO Atn
standards will never be used for AOC communications, which have begun to migrate from ACARs to air-ground IP
networks.

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AIRCOM new generation services Overview

the previous sections have described the drivers for AIRCOM to implement new generation services to support the
changing needs of airlines, air navigation service providers and aircraft manufacturers.
the following sections describe in detail the AIRCOM implementation of the ICAO standard vDL/Atn services and the
airline industry standard IP services being implemented in new generation aircraft systems.
sItA will continue to be at the forefront of the provision of technology and service to support the aircraft communication
needs of airlines by providing ongoing support of AIRCOMs ACARs communications, while implementing in parallel the
Atn/vDL services enabling the migration of Ats communications and air-ground IP communications enabling the new
generation AOC systems such as eFBs. this new network providing parallel multi-technology services is shown in the
diagram below.

Classic
Satcom

Broadband
Satcom

Generic
Wireless

VHF

ACARS
ATN
CPDLC

IP

AIRLINE OPS CENTER

AIRCOM ACARS ATN and
IP Services

sItA 2010

AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 13

AIRCOM vDL/Atn implementation

AIRCOM is addressing the ACARs capacity issues and the Ats use of data link by implementing ICAO-dened standards
for vDL and Atn services.

ICAO VHF air-ground digital link (VDL) Mode 2

the ICAO vHF Digital Link (vDL) Mode 2 standard was developed following the 1990 ICAO Communications Divisional
meeting that recognized the value of specifying the use of the Aeronautical vHF channels for data communications.
the 1990 ICAO Communications Divisional meeting also reserved the 4 channels 136.900, 136.925, 136.950 and 136.975
MHz for data communications worldwide. Following that meeting, the ICAO Air navigation Commission created the
Aeronautical Mobile Communications Panel (AMCP) to develop the vDL standard.
the validated vDL Mode 2 standard was presented to the AMCP at its fourth meeting in March 1996, which recommended
that it be included in Annex 10. the ICAO member states accepted this recommendation by agreeing to its inclusion in
Amendment 72 to Annex 10.
the ICAO vDL Mode 2 standard species the use over the vHF link of a D8PsK (Differentially encoded 8-Phase shift
Keying) modulation scheme providing a data rate of 31.5 kbits/ second compared to the vHF ACARs rate of 2.4
kbits/second in the same channel width of 25 kHz.
the vDL Link Layer protocol species for media access control to the vHF channel the same Carrier sense Multiple Access
(CsMA) algorithm as for classic vHF ACARs. However, the vDL CsMA will provide better performance than the vHF
ACARs CsMA by using a vHF Data Radio to process the CsMA function.
the combination of the vDL D8PsK scheme and its CsMA algorithm makes the link reach saturation at a data load of 10
kilobits per second, compared to the classic vHF ACARs maximum effective link capacity of 300 bits per second.
the Aviation vHF Link Control (AvLC) protocol provides a link for the transport of binary data between an aircraft and a
ground station. AvLC is a variation of the IsO High Level Data Link Control (HDLC) protocol, designed specically to handle
the use of vHF channels.

Avionics transition from ACARS to VDL

Aircraft will need to be equipped with new avionics to use Atn/vDL services. Rockwell Collins and Honeywell are upgrading
their ACARs avionics to Communications Management Units (CMU) that will continue to process the airline applications
and progressively incorporate vDL and Atn capability. they are providing the same capability to AIRBUs and Boeing.
the ACARs Management Unit has a modem with an analog connection to a vHF transceiver, which cannot support vDL
communications. the CMU has a digital connection to a vHF data radio (vDR) that can handle the high capacity vDL link.
AIRBUs equips their aircraft with an Air trafc services Unit (AtsU) that incorporates the CMU function and has a digital
interface to a vDR.
the replacement of the ACARs MU/vHF equipment with a CMU/vDR combination requires very labor-intensive aircraft
rewiring. to minimize the barrier to vDL/Atn equipage, airlines should switch to the CMU/vDR combination for new aircraft
as early as possible. to advance the installation of the CMU/vDR combination, the avionics vendors offer CMU hardware
that can get software upgrades to handle vDL and Atn.
the CMU/AtsU use of a vDR providing vHF ACARs modulation is called vDR Mode A. this vDR Mode A capability
enables aircraft equipped with a CMU and a vDR to continue to use the vHF ACARs protocol and communicate with the
existing vHF ACARs ground networks.

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ACARS over VDL

the Air trafc Control community dened the ICAO vDL standard to transport Atn air-ground communications but ACARs
communications can also use the vDL link. Following discussion of the options for ACARs use of vDL, the AeeC Data Link
Users Forum in January 1999 adopted as the standard interim architecture ACARs over AvLC (AOA).
In the vDL AOA architecture, aircraft use the AeeC 618 protocol over the ICAO vDL standard AvLC link providing 31.5kilobit per second capacity. Aircraft using vDL AOA obtain increased capacity over the vHF link but can only exchange
messages in the same ACARs AeeC 618 formats used over the existing vHF analog link.
sItA has implemented a service called vDL AIRCOM for aircraft equipped with AOA avionics and recommends that
AIRCOM customers requiring increased ACARs capacity equip with vDL AOA avionics.
ACARS management unit
AOC/ATS applications

Data link service processor

AEEC 620 ACARS protocol

AEEC 620 AC ARS protocol

Label/SMI conversion

Air/Ground routing function

Air/Ground routing function TEI Processing

VHF 618

AMSS 618

AMSS 618

AEEC 618

SMT over X.25

AVLC
AMSS Data 2

AMSS Data 2

Satellite data unit

AMSS GES

MS

MSK

D8PSK

D8PSK/AVL

VHF data radio

VHF ground station

ACARS over AVLC

ACARS over VDL user benefits

Aircraft operators using the vDL AIRCOM service will benet from the increased capacity and reduced network transit time.
the Ats data link applications implemented using ACARs will benet from this improvement.
Access to vDL AIRCOM service will also enable aircraft operators to justify the early installation of avionics platforms
designed to support future Ats data link applications and Atn communications.
the ACARs applications do not need modication to use the AOA but aircraft operators may decide to have certain
applications transmit more data, taking advantage of the increased capacity.
the benet of ACARs over vDL service to the community is that its simplicity relative to Atn will accelerate aircraft
equipage with vDL and has enabled sItA to justify early investment in vDL AIRCOM ground stations.
the sItA implementation of vDL AIRCOM guarantees that sufcient vHF capacity will be available for CPDLC to be
implemented in high density airspace.
Frequency managers are unlikely to allocate additional channels for ACARs services since the vDL service is far more
efcient in utilizing scarce channel capacity. the ACARs over vDL implementation is enabling sItA to identify and resolve
any issues with the implementation of vDL D8PsK communications in the vHF aeronautical frequency band.
the data link community is working to evaluate the effect of vDL emissions on the other users of the band to establish vDL
frequency assignment rules. the ACARs over vDL implementation will ensure these issues can be resolved before vDL
needs to support operational Atn CPDLC.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 15

AIRCOM implementation of VDL Mode 2

AIRCOM is deploying new ground stations providing vDL Mode 2 service to provide increased air-ground link capacity for
the growing amount of ACARs communications and to be ready to support Atn service when the necessary avionics are
installed in customer aircraft.

VGS site infrastructure

Interface (8) - X1

Wide band
antenna
Interface (8) - X2

Spare multi-mode
TX/RX

Multi-mode TX/RX

Multi-mode TX/RX

Multi-mode TX/RX

Multi-mode TX/RX

Multi-mode TX/RX

Optional
Interface (2)
- X3

Antenna relay
switches
Interface (1) - X8

UPS

Narrow band
antenna

Optional backup
Interface (1) - X9

Interface (1) - X10

Split site
multi-mode TX/RX

GPS source
Power supply

Split site
multi-mode TX/RX

UPS

Transceiver (7)
VGC/Transceivers Internal Interfaces(s)

Dual power supply

Optional Interface (1) - X4
Optional Interface (1) - X5

Interface (1) - X7

VGC (1)
Laptop computer

Dummy terminal
with keyboard

sItA in 1999 contracted the Harris Corporation to develop a new vHF ground station (vgs), providing vDL service and
vHF analog service simultaneously on separate vHF frequencies. the sItA vDL ground station manages use of a vDL link
by an aircraft for both ACARs AOA and Atn trafc.
the rst vgs hardware platform was delivered by Harris to sItA in september 2000, initially with software supporting the
vHF analog service. the initial vDL AOA software was delivered for testing in October 2000 and sItA soon after started
deploying vgss at key locations.
sItA is deploying vDL ground stations rst where the vHF frequency channels are most heavily loaded. sItA has deployed
vgss providing operational vDL/AOA service across western europe (49+), singapore (1), Australia (2), Dubai and the UsA
(2). sItA has also deployed a large number of vgs without vDL radios to which vDL capability could be added at low cost.
Aircraft using AOA or vHF analog links to the sItA vgs connect to the same AIRCOM Data Link service Processor,
ensuring that the AOA introduction in aircraft does not change the interface to user ground systems. Aircraft can switch
between AOA and vHF analog links as they move in and out of vDL ground station coverage.

SITA/ANSP VDL Mode 2 partnerships

the sItA deployment of vDL stations has included a number deployed in partnership with the local Air navigation service
Provider motivated by the need for vDL coverage to support their implementation of CPDLC.
sItA partnered with the AenA spain to deploy over 20 stations providing service in all the main airports in spain and the
german DFs to deploy stations across germany.

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the AnsPs own the vgs and connect them via their national data networks to centralized redundant sItA gateways. the
AnsP is responsible for ensuring the availability of the vgs and monitors it using a sItA-supplied network management
application.
All ACARs communications via classic vHF ACARs or vDL/AOA through these vgs stations is routed via the network
gateway to the sItA ACARs processor for onward transmission to the airline application systems.
the AnsP can then add Atn Routers that directly exchange CPDLC messages via the vgs with aircraft under their
control. the AnsP will be the owner of all infrastructure through which they provide Atn-compliant CPDLC services.
sItA encourages these types of partnerships with AsnPs, as they will accelerate the deployment of the vDL Mode 2
infrastructure, this being a key pre-requisite for the introduction of CPDLC services over the Atn.

ATN End-to-End Protocols

the Atn and data link standards specify protocols using the logic and terminology of the International Organization for
standardization (IsO) model for Open systems Interconnection (OsI). the Atn standard covers Upper Layer protocols used
in end systems but this document focuses only on the Atn transport and network Layer Protocols.
the Atn standard species Atn applications use of IsO 8073 Connection Oriented transport Protocol (COtP) over the IsO
8473 Connection Less network Protocol (CLnP). the COtP protocol provides a message delivery acknowledgement over
the CLnP protocol which handles the actual message exchange between the Atn users systems.
the ICAO Atn standard species a unique addressing scheme to be used in the CLnP protocol which has tow formats:
n

AnsP systems: IsO county code, city code, terminal identier

Airline systems: ICAO airline code, city code, terminal identier

the Atn CLnP messages are handled by routers that interconnect air-ground (mobile) sub-networks and terrestrial subnetworks. the routers establish a routing information base using Atn routing protocols, primarily the IsO 10747 Interdomain Routing Protocol (IDRP).
the Atn routing protocols establish a CLnP routing information base, which is updated as the system establishes subnetwork connections to other Atn systems. Airborne Atn routers maintain a routing information base indicating which
connections are available over air-ground data link sub-networks.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 17

ICAO ATN air-ground protocols

ICAO has dened the standards for the provision of Atn sub-network service by vDL, AMss and HF data link. these
standards specify the provision of the Atn mobile sub-network service using the IsO standard 8208 X.25 Packet Layer
Protocol, which is based on the International telecommunications Union Recommendation X.25.
when the Air trafc Control community dened the Atn protocol in the 1990s, it was intended to be used in ground data
networks routers inter-connected via X.25 networks. the AnsPs that have implemented Atn routers have interconnected
them via X.25. However they are phasing out X.25 and implementing IP; so they will connect ground Atn routers via IP
networks to air-ground Atn routers with links to airborne Atn routers.
the vDL standard species the airborne Atn router use of the IsO 8208/X.25 Packet Layer Protocol over an AvLC links to
a vDL sub-network entity in a ground station providing access via a terrestrial network to multiple Atn air-ground routers.
Airborne Dtes use the vDL sub-network protocol to request the ground stations vDL sub-network entity to establish
switched virtual Circuits (svC) to Atn air-ground routers. the X.25 svC is in OsI terms a sub-network connection.
the vDL standard species a sub-network Dependent Convergence Function allowing aircraft to insert in sub-network
connection establishment requests vDL sub-network specic addresses which identify the requested Atn air-ground router.
the ICAO AMss standard was adopted in 1994. this standard species protocols for the provision of voice services and
an X.25 based sub-network protocol for the provision of a data link service.
while the ICAO AMss standard does not apply to a specic implementation, the only systems currently supporting the use
of the ICAO standard protocols are the Inmarsat system and the Japan Civil Aviation Bureaus Multi-function transport
satellite (MtsAt).
Aircraft use the AMss X.25 sub-network service to access a ground earth station (ges) that uses the ItU X.75 protocol to
interconnect to terrestrial X.25 networks. each Inmarsat satellite is assigned an X.121 Data network Identication Code
(DnIC) and the ges prexes that to aircraft address in call request relayed to destination ground terminals.
the ICAO AMss standard assumes aircraft call requests include ground systems X.25 ground network addresses. this
might work if aircraft could always connect to the same router. But if aircraft are to connect to different air-ground Atn
routers, it would be necessary to implement a sub-network Dependent Convergence Function like for vDL.
the ICAO Atn standard species the method for Atn routers to prioritize the messages they send via vDL Mode 2 links.
As Atn routers will prioritize messages before they submit them to the vDL Mode 2 system, there is no need for a
prioritization mechanism inside the vDL Mode 2 protocol.
the vDL system does not provide positive prioritization at the radio link layer, because an aircraft or ground station with a
message to send has no way of knowing its priority relative to the messages that other aircraft and ground stations are
ready to send.
the vDL system does allow senders to use different CsMA parameters to optimize the probability of its messages getting
through. these parameters can be changed dynamically and will be optimized based on operational experience with the
system.

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SITA ATN service implementation

sItA has long experience in working on Atn routing, beginning with the development of an Atn router in 1990 in the
eURAtn project and continuing in the subsequent ProAtn project.
the ProAtn project, part funded by the eU Commission, was lead by sofreavia (now egis Avia), with the participation of
AIRsYs (now thales AtM), sextant (now thales Avionics), sItA and several national AtC agencies.
1

the ProAtn project terminated in 1999 and egis Avia took over marketing, developing and supporting the ProAtn Router .
sItA implemented Atn routing service using the Pro-Atn Router via the vDL and satellite AIRCOM networks.
eurocontrol decided in late 2003 to accelerate Atn CPDLC implementation by subsidizing aircraft operators that agreed to
add Atn CPDLC software in aircraft that the operator had already equipped to use vDL service.
eurocontrol initially committed to paying for up to around 20 aircraft per operator and up to around 150 aircraft in total. this
has expanded and the number of aircraft committed to equip has now reached approximately 450.
this eurocontrol Link 2000+ program has enabled sItA to justify the launch of operational Atn service via the AIRCOM
vDL networks. the airlines participating in Link 2000+ that are using the sItA Atn AIRCOM service include Federal
express, Hapag Lloyd, Air europa and Lufthansa.
sItA has installed an operational egis Avia ProAtn router in the AIRCOM Operations environment to enable 24/7
monitoring of the service. the router is connected via ground networks to the eurocontrol Atn CPDLC ground system and
to the ARInC router.
In addition to Maastricht UACC, which has been providing the Atn/CPDLC service since March 2004, the Ats providers of
spain, Italy, France, germany, Portugal and switzerland have advanced plans to introduced initial Atn/CPDLC application
services in their upper airspace in the 2009-12 timeframe.
the sItA Atn router will run in parallel with the ACARs processor, using the same vDL networks to provide service to
aircraft equipped with Atn routers. the AIRCOM links will transport in parallel an aircrafts ACARs and Atn
communications, ensuring that the ACARs applications are unaffected by the addition of Atn CPDLC in an aircraft.

sItA 2010

AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 19

AIRCOM IP Implementation
sItA is responding to aircraft equipage with electronic Flight Bags, electronic Log Books and other airborne AOC systems
designed to use IP communications over air-ground links by implementing a new AIRCOM IP service.
the eFBs and others systems using the AIRCOM IP service will obtain transparent and secure connectivity to ground
systems across a variety of high capacity using satellite broadband links and generic wireless links in airports.
the AIRCOM IP will provide the same mission critical robustness as the ACARs service but using a highly distributed
network requiring central management rather than a central system interconnecting all the links to aircraft with the links to
ground systems.
Aircraft use of the generic IP protocol requires special proles so the aviation industry has dened standards for this through
the same Airlines electronic engineering Committee (AeeC) used to dene the standards for ACARs communications.
the main AIRCOM IP service elements (namely, the AIRCOM IP Portal, AIRCOM AirportLink and AIRCOM swiftBroadband)
are illustrated in the gure below and described in the following sections.

AIRCOM
SwiftBroadband
(in-flight)

AIRCOM
Airport Link
AIRBUS Boeing
Airline 1

AIRBUS Boeing
Airline 2

AIRBUS Boeing
Airline 2

Airline 2
VPAN

AIRCOM IP Portal:
- VPAN Management
- Virtually split network
- Integrate 3rd parties

Airline 1
VPAN

Airline 1
Applications

20 POsItIOnIng PAPeR

AIRBUS Boeing
Airline 1

Airline 2
Applications

Airframers

3rd Parties

sItA 2010

Industry implementation of IP communications

Boeing and AIRBUs have led the AeeC development of standards for aircraft IP communications, supported by their
suppliers Rockwell Collins and Honeywell. they have started to install systems that comply with these AeeC aircraft IP
standards in the 777, A380 and soon the 787.
Around 2000, the AeeC created an Aircraft network and File server (AnFs) subcommittee to develop the AeeC
Characteristic 763, network server system (nss). this document specied a number of systems including:
n

network server Unit (nsU)

server Interface Unit (sIU)

terminal Area wireless LAn Unit (twLU)

AeeC 763 was intended to dene these hardware interfaces, but AIRBUs and Boeing have full design control of the
hardware in the A380 and 787, which has made the traditional AeeC hardware specications no longer relevant.
the AeeC has gone on to extract from the AeeC 763 server hardware specication the denition of the functionality and
aircraft IP communications protocols that can be used in the A380 and 787 aircraft. these more recent AeeC specications
include:
n

AeeC 821 network server system (nss) Functional Denition

AeeC 822: Aircraft/ground IP Communication (covering Ieee 802.11 wiFi)

AeeC 821 describes a collection of nss functions and the relationship between those functions. the communication
manager function of the nss provides a gateway for IP communication on and off the airplane.
AeeC 822 denes a gatelink capability using the Ieee 802.11x family of wireless LAn products and services. It is
recognized that other wireless technologies may be utilized in the future to establish the aircraft-to-airport network
connection, such as emerging Ieee standards 802.16 and 802.21. As a consequence the AeeC has indicated that new
wireless technologies may be added to this document in the future.
An AeeC 822 update covering Certicate Design was recently provided by Boeing who proposed an X.509 Certicate
Design to be used with all types of networks. Aircraft will need to discriminate between certicates used for gatelink access
points, and other airport issued certicates. the airport will need to differentiate between airplanes, and other airline
devices/vehicles that may carry valid, airline issued certicates for other wireless purposes.
In early 2008 the AeeC began producing a new document to dene higher level communications over aircraft IP networks:
n

AeeC 830: Aircraft/ground Information exchange for IP Communication

AeeC 830 will describe a set of protocols for application-to-application information exchange between the aircraft and the
airline ground infrastructure. It is intended for all types of IP communications including ground-based, terrestrial and satellite.
AeeC 830 will dene an airborne client that will reside within the IP communications manager on the airplane. It will also
include a ground client for the local server equipment. this will enable store and forward process using local servers for
efcient data routing.
the aircraft systems using IP will function in parallel to ACARs avionics that continue to provide their traditional function.
the Aircraft IP network File server uses different radio links so it does not conict with the ACARs systems.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 21

Aircraft use of TCP/IP protocol

the IP protocol itself is much simpler than the ICAO Atn protocol with its unique addressing scheme and routing protocols
designed to facilitate aircraft computers switching connections between national Ats ground systems as they cross
borders.
the aircraft IP communications complexity comes from:
n
n

security: the need for data security to control access because IP is used by practically all computers
Application addressing: higher level protocols are needed to provide end-to-end addressing over IP connections with
addresses only having local signicance

the higher level protocols can include the hypertext transfer protocol (http) which is used over the terrestrial Internet, while
the addressing can be based on e-mail type addresses that can be mapped to IP network addresses by Domain name
servers.
Aircraft systems need to be congured with data to enable them to access the required ground application systems over
air-ground IP networks using IP addresses. these addresses need to be recognized across different air-ground wireless
networks, and aircraft IP service providers need to be able to route data via various wireless links to the aircraft. therefore
they need addressing schemes that identify aircraft over satellite links that use a different IP addressing schemes from those
used by airport wireless links.

AIRCOM IP Portal and VPAN Management Service

the AIRCOM IP service will be different to that of the AIRCOM ACARs networks in that airline ground systems will
exchange information directly via terminal wireless and satellite links without passing via a central message processor.
the AIRCOM IP service value proposition is to manage the use by multiple airlines of a shared IP infrastructure, including
shared airport wireless networks. the AIRCOM IP service will provide airline ground systems with virtual Private Aircraft
networks (vPAns) providing access to each of their IP equipped aircraft.
the vPAn establishment and management process will authenticate the identity of the ground systems and the aircraft and
then ensure the security of their exchanges. the vPAn administration will provide accounting and service Level Agreement
the AIRCOM IP Portal will be congured with criteria to dene which application data should be sent via satellite links while
the aircraft is in ight and which data should wait until the aircraft is accessible via a lower cost airport wireless link.

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AIRCOM IP VPAN provider

AIRCOM IP virtual Private Aircraft network will be provided by a system called the AIRCOM IP Portal.

AIRCOM IP Portal
Provision of the service
Log-on & Log-off
Connectivity
management
Authentification
and monitoring

Manage the provision of the service by distributed servers deployed

in the customer premises
Only handle log-on & network management exchanges, not the
user application data
Transparently connects aircraft logging on via SBB or airport
wireless stations to their airline operations centre
Authorize and monitor the communications between the airline
customer premises systems and aircraft

AIRCOM AirportLink Implementation

the AIRCOM IP service will need to provide service via wireless networks in as many airports as possible. sItA is currently
negotiating agreements with airport operators and/or their designated wireless providers to provide access to AIRCOM IP
customer aircraft.
sItA is working with airports to implement wireless AIRCOM AirportLink services for aircraft that comply with the AeeC
standards and with the requirements of the terminal wireless LAn Unit avionics.
sItA can provide the needed systems to the airport operator or work with the existing wireless provider to adapt the
network to meet aircraft needs. this will vary as different gates are used by IP equipped aircraft.
Aircraft use of Ieee 802.11 wiFi has the industry standard name gatelink: the wiFi technology and service is widely
available but aircraft usage faces many issues beginning limitation of the range to approximately 100 meters. this normally
restricts the coverage to specially equipped gates and can make coverage hard to guarantee.
In the interim, since AIRBUs and Boeing are delivering aircraft with twLUs installed that can only use wiFi, an initial
AIRCOM gateLink service will be provided until aircraft are equipped with links that can provide better coverage such as
the Ieee 802.16 wiMax or Lte needed for the full AIRCOM AirportLink service.

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AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 23

In-flight AIRCOM SwiftBroadband Implementation

the AIRCOM IP service will provide in-ight coverage initially using satellite links, rst the Inmarsat swift64 service and later
using the Inmarsat swift Broadband (sBB) service as the required avionics are installed in the customer aircraft.
the main Inmarsat avionics vendors, Rockwell Collins and Honeywell/thales have for a number of years offered in addition
to classic service an optional swift64 capability. this is now being installed on aircraft needing IP service including 777s
with eFBs and now AIRBUs A380s.
AIRCOM has implemented interfaces to the Inmarsat swift64 service and contracted to buy the service from both stratos
and vizada as necessary. the provision of AIRCOM IP service via swift 64 has been tested with initial customers.
Inmarsat implemented swift Broadband service in late 2007 but so far the only sBB avionics that have been implemented
are stand alone sBB only systems. Rockwell Collins and Honeywell plan to expand their Inmarsat classic avionics to handle
sBB in 2009 at which point sBB capability will be installed on long haul air transport aircraft and be incorporated into
AIRCOM swiftBroadband service.
In the future, the in-ight AIRCOM IP services could also use terrestrial broadband networks such as one being deployed by
AirCell in the UsA. It could also use non-Inmarsat satellite links such as the ku-Band links planned to be implemented by
Panasonic and other providers.

Conclusion
the previous sections have illustrated how AIRCOM new generation services have evolved to support the changing needs
of airlines. through the ongoing support of AIRCOMs ACARs legacy communications, the migration of Ats
communications to the Atn, or the introduction of IP-based AOC communications, sItA will continue to be at the forefront
of the provision of technology and service to support the aircraft communication needs of airlines.

24 POsItIOnIng PAPeR

sItA 2010

About SITA
we are the worlds leading specialists in air transport communications and It solutions. we deliver and manage business
solutions for airline, airport, gDs, government and other customers over the worlds most extensive network, which forms
the communications backbone of the global air transport industry.
Created and owned by the air transport community, sItA is the communitys dedicated partner for information and
communications technology. As a team of industry experts, our know-how is based on working with customers across the
global air transport community. Almost every airline and airport in the world does business with sItA.
sItA innovates collaboratively with the air transport industry, and the industry itself drives the companys portfolio and
strategic direction. Our portfolio includes managed global communications, infrastructure and outsourcing services, as well
as services for airline commercial management, passenger operations, flight operations, aircraft operations, air-to-ground
communications, airport management and operations, baggage operations, transportation security and border
management, cargo operations and more.
with a customer service team of over 1,900 staff around the world, we invest significantly in achieving best-in-class
customer service, providing integrated local and global support for both our communications and It application services.
we have two main subsidiaries: OnAir, which is the leading provider of in-flight connectivity, and CHAMP Cargosystems, the
world's only It company dedicated solely to air cargo. we also operate two joint ventures providing services to the air
transport community: Aviareto for aircraft asset management and CertiPath for secure electronic identity management. In
addition, we sponsor .aero, the Internet top level domain reserved exclusively for aviation.
we are one of worlds most international companies. Our global reach is based on local presence, with services for over
550 air transport industry members and 3,200 customers in over 200 countries and territories. set up in 1949 with 11
member airlines, today we employ people of more than 140 nationalities, speaking over 70 different languages. sItA had
consolidated revenues of Us$1.49 billion (1.07 billion) in 2009.
For further information go to www.sita.aero.

sItA 2010

AIRCOM new geneRAtIOn seRvICes 25

notes and references

Note 1, Page 19:

26 POsItIOnIng PAPeR

TheProATNProductshavebeencreatedand/orcontainportionscontributedandcopyrightedbyEgis
Avia(Sofravia),AirtelATN,theFrenchairnavigationserviceprovider(DSNA/DTI,previouslySTNA),
andtheEuropeanOrganisationforSafetyofAirNavigation(EUROCONTROL).

sItA 2010

Specialists in air transport communications and IT solutions

For further information, please contact sItA by telephone or e-mail:
East & Central Europe
+41 22 747 6000
info.ece@sita.aero
Latin America & Caribbean
+55 21 2111 5800
info.lac@sita.aero
Middle East & North Africa
+961 1 637300
info.mena@sita.aero
North America
+1 770 850 4500
info.nam@sita.aero
North Asia & Pacific
+65 6545 3711
info.nap@sita.aero
North Europe & Sub-Sahara Africa
+44 (0)20 8756 8000
+27 11 5177000
info.nesa@sita.aero
South Asia & India
+65 6545 3711
info.sai@sita.aero
South Europe
+39 06 96511500
info.seu@sita.aero
www.sita.aero

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onto your mobile device, and use it to scan the barcode.

sItA 11-tHw-038-4. All trademarks acknowledged. specications subject to change without prior notice. this literature provides
outline information only and (unless specically agreed to the contrary by sItA in writing) is not part of any order or contract.