Air Ground Communications Systems (AGCS) Subcommittee

Last Update: May 9, 2012

Chairman: Kenny Blankenship, American Airlines
APIM 10-007A: SwiftBroadband Safety Services Provisions, ATCt Interference Management, Extended L Band Operation, and legacy HF, VHF, and satcom standards as needed. (pdf, 164K)

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Goal: The goal of the Air/Ground Communications Systems (AGCS) Subcommittee is to ensure that current and emerging satellite, HF, and VHF air-ground communication systems are specified based on airline operational requirements and defined for cost-effective implementation based on existing and anticipated aircraft architectures. An objective is to develop standards compatible with the existing Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS®) and Aeronautical Telecommunication Network (ATN) as defined by ICAO SARPs.

Benefits: The standards provide the air transport industry with global Air/Ground Communications capabilities by enabling the transfer of character- and bit-oriented information over the air-ground links. Updated standards will lead to improved network performance, increased uniformity in data link service provider interfaces, and expanded Air Traffic Services (ATS). Additionally, the air transport industry benefits from continued competition among communications service providers and equipment vendors through interchangeability of equivalent avionics units.

Project: Document SATCOM, VDL, and HFDL Subnetworks

Scope: The current scope of this task is to develop and maintain SATCOM standards, and monitor developments that may impact existing VDL or HFDL standards.

Benefit: This project supports airlines in achieving a SATCOM capability that can be used for air traffic service data link applications (e.g., FANS-1/A) in oceanic and remote airspace. Additionally, SATCOM capabilities can provide airlines added revenue from passengers accessing commercial services such as telephony, facsimile, e-mail, web browsing, and file transfers.

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Meeting Announcement:

Working Papers:

Current Drafts:

Circulation Prior to Adoption Action
Draft 1 of Supplement 14 to ARINC Characteristic 741: Aviation Satellite Communication System, Part 1, Aircraft Installation Provisions (pdf, 261K)
To Obtain Complete Document
Adoption Notification (pdf, 791K)

Circulation Prior to Adoption Action
Draft 1 of Supplement 11 to ARINC Characteristic 741: Aviation Satellite Communication System, Part 2, System Design and Equipment Functional Description Description (pdf, 227K)
To Obtain Complete Document
Adoption Notification (pdf, 791K)

Circulation Prior to Adoption Action
Draft 2 of Supplement 5 to ARINC Characteristic 761: Second Generation Aviation Satellite Communication System, Aircraft Installation Provisions (pdf, 243K)
To Obtain Complete Document
Adoption Notification (pdf, 791K)

Circulation Prior to Adoption Action
Draft 1 of Supplement 5 to ARINC Characteristic 781: Mark 3 Aviation Satellite Communication System (pdf, 278K)
To Obtain Complete Document
Adoption Notification (pdf, 791K)

Last Meeting Report:

Air/Ground Communications Systems Subcommittee
January 24-26, 2012; in Cocoa Beach, Florida

Click here for information regarding Ku-Band.

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