uAvionix has decided to not use Mode C because it cannot deliver adequate performance : SkyEcho has an omnidirectional antenna- hence no azimuth detection is possible The use of signal strength is unreliable as a distance measure Mode C transponders don’t transmit unless triggered by a ground radar or TCAS. This doesn’t happen in many [...]
Ian McFarlane of Burn Gliding Club provided this example: “I was at Burn Gliding Club yesterday (25th August 2022) and took a student on a winch launch sortie (we were typically gaining about 1200ft AGL in light winds). As I flew the downwind leg (in an ASK-21 Glider) I observed a small GA aircraft approximately 500ft [...]
Ensure that the device is mounted vertically (power connector facing the ground) Minimize metal obstructions towards the front of the aircraft Power up well before departure so that GPS has time to acquire all satellites
CAA have specified that the Beacons will broadcast 978MHz UAT ADS-B messages with an Emitter Category of ‘Point Obstacle’. The location broadcast by the Beacon will be based on the geographical position of the Beacon as reported by the Beacon’s built-in GNSS position source. The altitude broadcast will be a fixed altitude in feet above [...]
Fully charge the device Power on and leave the device in an open area with very good visibility of the whole sky (away from hangars etc) Leave this way for a few hours so that it can acquire the full almanac
Airspace users equipped with 978MHz UAT ADS-B IN and within range of these broadcasts should be able to receive real-time alerting of site activity from the ADS-B Obstruction Beacon if their avionics/Electronic Flight Bag application receives 978MHz UAT ADS-B IN data and supports the display of 978Mhz UAT ADS-B Point Obstacles. Some avionics/Electronic Flight Bag [...]
Hold down the power button until the lights flash (about 10 seconds). This re-sets the wireless system to no password.
CAA has provided the following guidance for GA pilots: “Pilots observing the electronic depiction of an ADS-B Obstruction Beacon during the trial, should recognise that associated flying activities are underway, assess the location and vertical extent of the activity, avoiding the immediate vicinity of the beacon in accordance with their avoidance techniques when observing the [...]
The prime objective of SkyEcho is air-air surveillance. However, the CASA AC envisages SkyEcho being used for situational awareness. In Australia, it is envisaged that Airservices Australia will, in due course, enable the display of SkyEcho with a different symbology for the purposes of ATC situational awareness. Different symbology is required so that the ATC [...]
Address Qualifier Field Encoding In accordance with DO-282, Beacons will broadcast an Address Qualifier value of 5, meaning the Address Type is ‘Fixed ADS-B Beacon’, using a non-ICAO, state assigned unique 24-bit address. 24-bit Address Field As qualified by the above, each Beacon will broadcast a fixed non-ICAO 24- bit address (Hex Code). These will [...]