Your Missing Air Traffic

Its not much of a stretch to say that in-cockpit traffic detection technology has never been more prevalent or popular than it is today. From the Boeings and Airbuses required to have a certified TCAS aboard, to the guy or gal banging around in a Cub on a lazy summer afternoon and using the traffic information from ADS-B, its likely some kind of in-cockpit traffic detection technology is available. Theres only one real problem with all of these technologies: theres no way they detect all potential traffic, although some see a more complete traffic picture than others. From that one problem, however, flow two others. The first is the false sense of security even a top-of-the-line system can provide. The second is the extra workload-and especially the additional head-down time-to which pilots are susceptible as they watch the traffic display and not the sky outside the aircraft. But even the best traffic detection and alerting system wont see an aircraft without a transponder, and the traffic information provided via ADS-B has its own set of considerations, which are summarized in the sidebar on the opposite page. Lets take a look at why all this is true.

Editorial Staff

Tuesday, January 19, 2016 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

In-cockpit traffic detection technologies, while common, are inherently incomplete, unable to detect all potential air traffic, which can lead to a false sense of security and increased pilot workload.
These systems' limitations stem from their reliance on other aircraft having specific transponders or ADS-B Out, and the conditional nature of services like TIS-B (ADS-B In) in displaying traffic not in radar contact.
Pilots should utilize these technologies as advisory supplements for enhancing situational awareness, always prioritizing diligent visual scanning out the window as the primary means of collision avoidance.

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It’s not much of a stretch to say that in-cockpit traffic detection technology has never been more prevalent or popular than it is today. From the Boeings and Airbuses required to have a certified TCAS aboard, to the guy or gal banging around in a Cub on a lazy summer afternoon and using the traffic information from ADS-B, it’s likely some kind of in-cockpit traffic detection technology is available. There’s only one real problem with all of these technologies: there’s no way they detect all potential traffic, although some “see” a more complete traffic picture than others.

From that one problem, however, flow two others. The first is the false sense of security even a top-of-the-line system can provide. The second is the extra workload—and especially the additional head-down time—to which pilots are susceptible as they watch the traffic display and not the sky outside the aircraft. But even the best traffic detection and alerting system won’t see an aircraft without a transponder, and the traffic information provided via ADS-B has its own set of considerations, which are summarized in the sidebar on the opposite page. Let’s take a look at why all this is true.