The U.S. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center digital directorate’s international airborne battle management/command and control division at Hanscom AFB, Mass., wants industry feedback on installing Automatic Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B Out) transponders on Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) E-767 airborne early warning and control system aircraft by Boeing [BA].
“The contractor shall respond with a Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) to include a delivery schedule and pricing,” AFLCMC said in a March 21 business notice. If AFLCMC decides to proceed, a contractor would be expected to deliver compliant transponders and software by June 30 next year.
JASDF has four E-767 AWACS.
On Jan. 1, 2020, all aircraft flying in controlled airspace were to have ADS-B Out transponders, which constantly broadcast an aircraft’s location and identifying information. The military has had concerns about aircraft on sensitive missions publicly declaring that information, so the Federal Aviation Administration promulgated a military exemption and established a process for military missions to receive waivers on a case-by-case basis.
The ADS-B Out transponder upgrade “is required to comply with FAA Rule 14 CFR Part 91 ADS–B Out performance requirements to support Air Traffic Control service,” per the March 21 business notice. “Original compliance date for operating in U.S. airspace was 1 January 2020. However, a FAA waiver extends compliance date until 31 December 2024. ADS-B Out transponder reporting is required for preferred flight routing in U.S. airspace after 1 January 2025.”
For Japan’s four E-767s, Boeing is under contract with the Air Force to provide a new mission computer and ADS-B Out–a hardware and software update, including a Global Positioning System card, to the E-767’s Raytheon Technologies [RTX] APX-119 Mark XII Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) Mode 4 transponder. The new transponder is to be the APX-119 IFF Mark XIIA IFF Mode 5, ADS-B embedded GPS transponder. Mode 5 is the National Security Agency cryptographic standard required on military aircraft since 2020.
The Air Force has been the service charged with equipping U.S. military aircraft with ADS-B (Defense Daily, Aug. 20, 2019).