NASA's "Vision"

On Fri, 24 Sep 2004 23:19:36 -0400, "John T" wrote in
::


I have no idea when - or even if - this technology will actually make it to
the field, but it is an area of active research. There is an SVS-style
system on the market today, but it is akin to viewing, say, the old
BattleZone arcade game next to FlightSim 2004. The technology is simply not
in the same era.

Thank you for the report.

From the SATS information I have seen on the web, NASA intends for
non-certificated aviation passengers to rent aircraft after arrival
equipped with a system similar to that which you describe, and use it
for transport from the airline hub to a municipal airport destination.
While that scenario seems wildly optimistic to one who appreciates all
that is involved in aerial navigation, it appears that progress is
proceeding.

More information he

http://www.defensedaily.com/cgi/av/s...e=0301sats.htm
SATS proposes to fully leverage new cockpit and aircraft
technology to develop aircraft and to fully exploit digital
information and communication technologies to develop the airspace
infrastructure. The ultimate result would be that aircraft and the
airspace could be used with the same ease as automobiles and
highways are used today.

The skill sets mandatory for today’s GA pilots would no longer be
required. Burley, who is also a pilot, says the person flying a
SATS aircraft will more appropriately be called an "aircraft
operator," because only minimal training will be required. A
real-world example is a modern subway system, which is run
primarily by computer, with oversight by an operator who no longer
requires the skills of a locomotive engineer.

http://oea.larc.nasa.gov/PAIS/AGATE.html
http://lava.larc.nasa.gov/BROWSE/agate.html
http://homepages.ius.edu/GSLOSS/socprobhome/id293.htm

NASA intends for
non-certificated aviation passengers to rent aircraft after arrival
equipped with a system similar to that which you describe, and use it
for transport from the airline hub to a municipal airport destination.


Nary a word about weather. So long as aircraft fly by virtue of airfoils,
weather will always be an issue, and not because of visibility either.

Jose



--
(for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)

"Teacherjh" wrote in message
...

NASA intends for
non-certificated aviation passengers to rent aircraft after arrival
equipped with a system similar to that which you describe, and use it
for transport from the airline hub to a municipal airport destination.


Nary a word about weather. So long as aircraft fly by virtue of airfoils,
weather will always be an issue, and not because of visibility either.

My guess is the wild-eyed vision NASA espouses is 100% marketing, in order
to get a bunch of non-aviation people excited enough to provide some measure
of funding. They know full well this will never happen but the research
involved will generate plenty of useful spinoffs into the real world, which
they will be able to use to prove the funding was well spent.

The kind of aviation we're talking about here--fast, all-weather, xc
ops--will simply never be a game for duffers. Serious hobbyists, yes.

What I'd like to see NASA work on with the FAA is to revise certification
standards so we can get promising technologies into the fleet more
efficiently. I can imagine a portable ADS-B type unit that requires only
limited installation (say an antenna mount). After all, we're only talking
about a transponder and a GPS receiver, right?

Now imagine creating a general-purpose specification that manufacturers
could simply prove their units adhere to, rather than requiring a full
certification regime for each one, and also developing a standardized
testing approach that makes installation certification fairly simple and
thus low-cost. Within a couple years you'll see every avionics mfr. building
a unit, thus driving down prices, possibly to less than $5,000 installed,
perhaps even less in high volumes. Before you know it, you get well over 50%
of the GA fleet covered with the equivalent of RNAV, TCAS, EGPWS, and Mode
S, enhancing utility and safety for absolutely everybody. Simplified
installation and low-cost instruments means upgrade cycles will shorten to
3-5 years rather than the 10-20 seen today.

Odds of this happening? Goose Egg.

Best,
-cwk.