ADS-B Airport Surface Surveillance Capability (ASSC)
What it does
ASSC improves surface surveillance and situational awareness in all kinds of weather. ASSC is similar to a prior system deployed in the U.S. called the Airport Surface Detection Equipment, Model X (ASDE-X), which is deployed at 35 airports.
With ASSC/ASDE-X, controllers see aircraft and ground vehicles on the airport surface, and on approach and departure paths within a few miles of the airport. ASSC correlates flight-plan information with position displays, providing surveillance data with an accuracy and update rate suitable for:
- Situational awareness in all weather conditions
- Departure queuing
- Conflict detection and alerts
- Taxi route conformance monitoring
Benefits
- Helps prevent runway collisions
- Improves situational awareness leading to fewer surface delays
How it works
The ASSC system receives input from:
- ASDE-3 Surface Movement Radar
- ASSC multilateration remote units
- ADS-B
- Airport Surveillance Radar/Mode-S
- Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS)
ASSC fuses this data to produce a highly accurate display for controllers to show aircraft and ground vehicles on the surface movement area, and on arrival and departure routes. Pilots with TIS-B and cockpit displays can also receive data derived from ASSC.
ASSC data is also transmitted to other FAA systems listed below.:
- Surveillance Broadcast Services (SBS)
- Data Distribution via SWIM/STDDS
- Runway Status Lights (RWSL)
- Terminal Flight Data Manager (TFDM)
Availability
ASSC is operational at the locations below:
- Anchorage (ANC)
- Cincinnati (CVG)
- Cleveland (CLE)
- Kansas City (MCI)
- New Orleans (MSY)
- Pittsburgh (PIT)
- Portland (PDX)
- San Francisco (SFO)
Over the next few years, it will be implemented at:
- Joint Base Andrews (ADW)