ARINC 660C PDF

The origin of this document is traced to a number of industry activities but focuses primarily on the evolving airspace operations to be implemented by NextGen and SESAR that appear feasible in the next decade.

From these inputs, the AEEC set out to define impacts to avionics architectures that would apply to in-production and in-service airplanes, recognizing that the impacts on the architectures would vary as a function of the existing avionics baseline.

The equipage impacts described in ARINC Report 660C are intended to provide the airlines with the necessary information to evaluate modernization proposals, and to support the overall goal of fleet commonality while meeting operational requirements.

Note that the descriptions in ARINC Report 660C reflect avionics architectures from a transport category airline perspective but may also have applications to the regional market in some respects. For example, Sections 2.0 (Introduction to NEXTGEN/SESAR Concepts) and 4.0 (Impacts on Airborne Functional Architectures) may be applicable to both the major and regional segments, while Sections 3.0 (Avionics Reference Architectures) and 5.0 (Recommended Avionics Architectures to Support NEXTGEN/SESAR) specifically speak to large transport category aircraft operators. Although unique military requirements are not addressed in this document, Military Transport Aircraft must satisfy the same requirements as commercial transport aircraft since most of their operations are in civil airspace.

Purpose

This document identifies and describes the aircraft avionics capability necessary for operation in the evolving Communications Navigation Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) environment expected for the FAA NextGen program, Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) program and considerations of the Japan Collaborative Actions for Renovation of Air Traffic Systems (CARATS). These capabilities are intended to satisfy the industry’s long-term CNS/ATM operational objectives.

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Global Air Navigation Plan (GANP) (Doc 9750) is ICAO’s highest air navigation strategic document and the plan to drive the evolution of the global air navigation system, in line with the Global Air Traffic Management Operational Concept (GATMOC, Doc 9854) and the Manual on Air Traffic Management System Requirements (Doc 9882). Starting in 2020, the sixth edition of the GANP Doc 9750 document has been split into two separate levels: the Global Strategic Level and the Global Technical Level.

The Global Strategic Level is a document, written in executive language, which provides strategic directions for decision-makers. It has been made available via a printer-friendly, interactive, web-based platform on the ICAO GANP Portal.

The Global Technical Level of the GANP is comprised of the Aviation System Block Upgrade (ASBU) framework. It addresses airspace user needs, regulatory requirements, and the needs of Air Navigation Service Providers and Airports.

The ASBU defines target implementation timelines organized in four five-year blocks: Block 0 – 2013, Block 1 – 2018, Block 2 – 2023, and Block 3 – 2028 onward. Each Block addresses four aviation performance areas:

• Airport operations

• Globally-interoperable systems and data

• Optimum capacity and flexible flights

• Efficient flight paths

The Blocks contain Modules which define the Communication, Navigation, and Surveillance (CNS) information management functions required for the aircraft and ground components. Descriptions of the ASBU Blocks and Modules can be found in the latest version of the ICAO Working Document for the Aviation System Block Upgrades, The Framework for Global Harmonization, (latest issue July 2016).

ATM Modernization plans emphasize broad use of datalink communication, GNSS navigation and the various surveillance capabilities to improve flight deck situational awareness and enhance performance-based operations. This document assesses the impact of airspace modernization plans to airborne avionics equipment and architectures, recognizing that the benefit from equipping aircraft may depend on coordinated changes to regulations, procedures, ground infrastructure, etc. The equipage analyses contained herein are intended to represent a high-level system view that can be broadly disseminated to airlines, airspace planners, Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs), airframe manufacturers, avionics suppliers and others who participate in the development process. This document represents broad airline and industry consensus.

This document, ARINC Report 660C, is the successor to ARINC Report 660B, published in 2014. It focuses on long-term CNS/ATM objectives. The architectures discussed in this document reflect current, evolving, and end-state configurations to accommodate the current understanding of NextGen/SESAR plans.

The challenges to the industry set forth by this document require an unprecedented degree of cooperation. The benefits that the airlines expect are reduced avionics acquisition costs, reduced life cycle costs, early attainment of operational benefits, flexible software revisions, fleet commonality, and system growth capacity.