Canadas ADS-B

Just to make sure you understand whats up, lets review. In the U.S., weve got excellent radar coverage, so all those radar sites have been modified to understand your aircrafts ADS-B out transmissions. In those areas where radar sites dont quite have adequate coverage, the FAA has added ground stations specifically to receive your ADS-B Out. The bottom line is that the FAA has sufficient ground-based coverage to know where you are almost all the time, using your ADS-B Out.

Frank Bowlin

Tuesday, October 01, 2019 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

US ADS-B equipage, particularly 978 MHz UAT systems, is generally incompatible with Canada's satellite-based ADS-B system, which requires a 1090 MHz transponder.
To meet Canadian ADS-B requirements for controlled airspace (phased implementation starting February 2021), aircraft need a 1090 MHz ADS-B Out transponder equipped with "Diversity," meaning integrated top and bottom antennas.
Upgrading to a Diversity-capable 1090 MHz transponder significantly increases costs, both for the unit itself and for the complex installation of a second antenna, and often requires a new purchase rather than an upgrade.

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Now that many of us have already met the U.S. January 1, 2020 deadline for ADS-B equipage, and most of the procrastinators are at least making plans, along comes a general awareness that what we do in the U.S. is unlikely to permit us to fly into Canada after their equipage deadline. Uh, now what?

Quick Review

Just to make sure you understand what’s up, let’s review. In the U.S., we’ve got excellent radar coverage, so all those radar sites have been modified to understand your aircraft’s ADS-B out transmissions. In those areas where radar sites don’t quite have adequate coverage, the FAA has added ground stations specifically to receive your ADS-B Out. The bottom line is that the FAA has sufficient ground-based coverage to know where you are almost all the time, using your ADS-B Out.