The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) welcomed the introduction of bipartisan legislation in the U.S. Senate to direct installation of cost-effective air traffic technologies to fill a critical safety gap at many general aviation (GA) airports across the country.
Introduced by Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), the Air Traffic Situational Awareness Enhancement Act directs the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to procure and install Airborne Position Reference Tool (APRT) technology at more than 90 smaller and rural airports under the Federal Contract Tower (FCT) program.
APRT uses automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) data from aircraft to present controllers with a real-time display of local airspace, offering significantly greater situational awareness over use of visual observations and radio calls to separate traffic, and greatly reduced installation and maintenance costs when compared to radar-integrated systems.
“This off-the-shelf technology will have a huge and immediate impact at many contract tower facilities across the country that currently manage a significant amount of mixed operations without any digital assistance,” said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen. “APRT is critical to reducing risk and maintaining operational safety. We are pleased to see this important safety legislation introduced in the Senate and urge its swift passage.”
FCTs currently operate at 265 airports across the country. If enacted, this NBAA-supported legislation would facilitate acquisition, installation and operating expenses for APRT at the FCT airports that currently lack Standard Terminal Automation Replacement Systems (STARS) or similar radar-integrated air traffic displays.
The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 called on Congress to direct the FAA to approve systems like APRT to improve operational situational awareness at FCTs. The agency approved the first APRT last summer, with several additional airports deploying APRT to positive effect in the time since.
In addition to NBAA, the Air Traffic Situational Awareness Enhancement Act is also endorsed by the Regional Airline Association; U.S. Contract Tower Association; Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and Airlines for America.
