2,210 days remain until pilots in the United States must equip their aircraft to comply with ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast). If you haven’t given it much thought because the year 2020 seems like an eternity from now, I might just give you a reason or two to start planning!

Why are we transitioning? ADS-B is just one small piece of the NextGen puzzle and is necessary to handle the increased volume of air traffic that is anticipated to crowd our airspace in the coming years.

Did you know some areas around the world are requiring aircraft comply with ADS-B beginning today?

• Australia: All aircraft operating at or above FL 290 must be equipped to broadcast ‘ADS-B Out’.
• Hong Kong: Aircraft flying along PBN (Performance Based Navigation) routes L642 or M771 at or above FL290, must be ‘ADS-B Out’ equipped.
• Singapore: Aircraft that operate on select airways within specific regions of Singapore’s FIR at FL290 or above will need to have a compliant ‘ADS-B Out’ solution and approval from the State of Registry. Other Asian airspace is subject to this mandate. For more information visit the CAAS website. 

How can Garmin help? Visit our ADS-B Academy. An interactive installation planner can help you determine which ADS-B solution best fits your flying needs. Furthermore, find out more information about our GDL 39 ADS-B receiver and our certified ADS-B solution, the GDL 88. Take some time to watch our ADS-B videos for even further clarification on how ADS-B can help you see the larger traffic picture and give you subscription-free, FIS-B weather!

If the year 2020 seems a little far out to start planning your ADS-B upgrade, consider the number of aircraft that have yet to comply within the United States. There are roughly 230,000 active aircraft in the United States. If we assume half of those have yet to or need to update that means roughly 52 aircraft need to be updated every day in the U.S. until January 1, 2020!