Page 21 - ITU-T Focus Group on Aviation Applications of Cloud Computing for Flight Data Monitoring - Avionics and Aviation Communications Systems

ITU-T Focus Group on Aviation Applications of Cloud Computing for Flight Data Monitoring
Avionics and Aviation Communications Systems

or streaming can be broken into several groups of avionics and electronics systems. Aircraft data links systems
which transmit data off the aircraft are covered in section 11 and are not described in this section, which
focuses on the systems that generate and provide flight information and data.
This section is supported by Appendix 2: ADS-B mandates.

10.1.2 High-level summary

The following is a high-level summary of each avionics and electronics system that may be considered a data
source that could support flight data transmission or streaming.

10.1.3 On-board information systems

On-board information systems can be grouped as follows for the purposes of considering them for their
suitability for streaming aircraft information and flight data:

i) Aircraft flight data management and recording systems;

ii) Other avionics and electronic systems.

10.1.4 Aircraft flight data management and recording infrastructure

These are the systems on board today that are used to collect, process, analyse, store and forward flight data
via available off-board data links such as aircraft communications addressing and reporting system (ACARS)
data links and other data link systems in the flight deck or cabin. Aircraft is also increasingly equipped with
airport surface data links that are used to transmit recorded flight data that is equivalent to black box data.
Most airlines and half of aircraft in the world are already equipped and are routing flight data this way post
flight on a routine basis for safety and maintenance applications. Small packages of data from on-board flight
data management systems are sent via short text messages using ACARS on a large majority of aircraft in the
global fleet.

The diagram below illustrates typical aircraft flight data management and recording infrastructure that is
present on virtually every large passenger and cargo aircraft built since the late 1990s which represents the
majority of aircraft in service today. While the names of the units on various aircraft types vary, the functionality
provided is the same. In the diagram below, generic terms are used for the various functions.

11