The FAA has begun flight testing a new digital communications system that it calls Nexcom, for “next-generation communications.” The modernized system will eventually require that the entire U.S. GA fleet, from Airbuses to Zlins, be equipped with new digital radios.
The mandate for change in the panel will be accompanied by a complete revamping of the ground communications network. This program, called FAA Telecommunications Infrastructure (FTI), will replace the current ad-hoc system-some sites are FAA owned; others are leased (from multiple vendors)-with one that will be more integrated, more reliable, more flexible and more capable, as well as more efficient and less costly to maintain and administer than today’s system. The modernization program won’t be cheap, however. The contract, which the FAA last year awarded to prime contractor Harris Corporation, will cost $1.7 billion over the next 15 years.
