On Jun 30, 12:20*pm, rlovinggood wrote:
Unlike Europe, where gliders are more separated from commercial
traffic, here in the USA we share airspace with commercial, military
and general aviation. *Our Tucson gliderport is right under an
incoming airway to Tucson International Airport and we have two other
nearby airports. *Since installing a transponder, I now deflect most
of the really heavy commercial and military traffic around me, but
still have concerns about others. *I nearly had a glider/glider head-
on with a fellow Tucson Soaring Club member a couple of years ago and
I have had close looks at a number of other planes, including a few
light twins and A-10s.

The only detection device that would be useful to me would alert me to
powered aircraft as well as gliders, and it seems that the new
PowerFLARM will do that. Whether or not it will be widely adopted at
its $1,500+ price point is another question.

Mike

If the new PowerFLARM works as both an ADS-B receiver and FLARM
transmitter/receiver AND serves as a secure flight recorder, then
$1,500 doesn't seem out of line. *Not that I can afford it, but it
doesn't seem too crazy. *Now, will powered aircraft with TCAS (Traffic
Collision Avoidance System) and ADS-B receive any type of signal from
the PowerFLARM? *Will the Hawker 800 and other bizjets see me on their
electronic gadgets before physical contact with up close and personal
inspections are made?

Ray Lovinggood
Carrboro, North Carolina, USA


The PowerFLARM is a Flarm radio-protocol transmitter and receiver but
is an ADS-B 1090ES receiver only. It does not transmit any ADS-B data.

You need a transponder (Mode C or Mode S) for the fast jets,
airliners, military transport, etc. to "see" you on their TCAS system.
Some GA aircraft will also see you on their TCAD systems, and many
folks will see you on PCAS. It is especially important that there is
no way for the big-iron's TCAS systems to issue an "RA" resolution
advisory unless your glider has a transponder. The TCAS will not see a
UAT transmitter. You can of combine ADS-B data-out and the transponder
by having a Mode S transponder with 1090ES data-out capability (the
Trig TT-21 being the prototypical example in the USA).

Over time other aircraft (including maybe that Hawker 800 example) may
add ADS-B data-in and CDTI (ADS-B based traffic display). At the high
end CDTI will be integrated with the TCAS based traffic display, but
again without a transponder even a combined CDTI/TCAS system will not
issue an RA against you as a threat. The other issue is that many fast-
jet owners likely are to be convinced of the benefit of ADS-B data-in
and CDTI over their current mandatory TCAS requirements. We'll have to
see what adoption rates there are (I'm curious and currently asking a
corporate flight department who operate Hawker 900XP and others about
their ADS-B data-in/CDTI plans). You sneeze in these cockpits and
somebody hands you an invoice that could buy a shiny new ASH-30Mi...

Darryl