Major business jet maintenance and support provider Duncan Aviation has found that 23% of the US-registered business jet fleet, or around 3,384, is yet to be fitted with ADS-B Out equipment in advance of the FAA’s January 1, 2020 deadline.
The FAA has set a deadline of the beginning of next year for all US-based aircraft to be fitted with the Automatic dependent surveillance—broadcast (ADS-B) satellite tracking technology, which enables an aircraft’s position to be monitored constantly .
At this rate, we anticipate that at least 1,660 business jets will not be in compliance when the calendar flips to Jan. 1, 2020,” said Matt Nelson, Manager of Satellite Operations for Duncan Aviation.
According to research carried out by Duncan Aviation, even fewer turboprops will be equipped. The report, which is based on data from Duncan Aviation’s customer database, the FAA and other industry sources, states that 49% of turboprop aircraft are not yet in compliance and that more than 3,800 of them will still need ADS-B upgrades at the beginning of 2020.
“I encourage operators who are not in compliance to consider investing in the upgrade yet this year,” Nelson said. “Right now, we still have some availability at some of our satellite shops for ADS-B work and can turn aircraft in less than 10 days.”
Duncan Aviation’s Bruce Miller, the manager of the company’s Satellite Avionics Shop in Cincinnati, Ohio, said he has noticed a flurry of quote requests as customers realize the FAA’s deadline for upgrading to ADS-B is approaching.
Among the aircraft for which Miller recently scheduled upgrades at the Cincinnati Satellite Shop are a Cessna 550 and a King Air.
“We’re putting the Garmin GTX-345 in the 550,” said Miller. “We have other paths to certify King Airs, but we opted for the Garmin solution based on the equipment in the customer’s cockpit.”
As with managers at the other Duncan Aviation Satellite Shops, Miller is seeing customers who have already upgraded to ADS-B turn their attention to other avionics installations.
“Although we still have space available, we are turning out quote requests for installing the Gogo AVANCE L5,” added Miller.”
Duncan Aviation holds or has access to 42 Supplemental Type Certificates (STCs) for FAA-approved ADS-B equipment for more than 100 models.
