Satellite-guided air traffic control systems must be in place by 2020, according to a new Federal Aviation Administration final rule.

The rules requires aircraft flying into most U.S. airports to transmit their position using Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technology, which uses Global Positioning System signals. GPS is more precise than radar and ADS-B ground stations are easier and less expensive to deploy.

The rule is part of a multi-billion effort to update national air traffic control systems known as NextGen. Under a $1.86 billion contracted the FAA awarded to ITT Corp. in 2007, ADS-B ground stations sufficient to cover the entire nation should be in place by 2013.  

The rule only requires that air traffic controllers receive ADS-B signals, not airplanes. The rules asks for industry comment on the avionics necessary that would make that possible.

ADS-B has already been deployed in various locations in the eastern United States and along the Gulf of Mexico, the FAA states in a factsheet.

Air traffic controllers at the Houston en route center can separate aircraft tracked by radar and ADS-B and the satellite-based system is used by controllers in the tower at Louisville International Airport and at the Louisville Terminal Radar Approach Control facility. Air traffic controllers in the Philadelphia area also can use ADS-B to track and separate aircraft. ADS-B coverage in Philadelphia extends 60 nautical miles out from Philadelphia International Airport and approximately 10,000 feet up. It also covers the surface area and the approach corridors to the runways. 

For more:
- see the final rule
- see this FAA press release on the rule
- check out the ADS-B factsheet

Related Articles:
FAA's NextGen faces host of challenges
FAA computer glitch causes widespread delays