[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 251 (Thursday, December 31, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 86977]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28916]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration


Notice of Industry Meeting

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The FAA is hosting a virtual industry day to introduce the 
Small Airport Surveillance Sensor (SASS) Project to the aviation 
community. The FAA will present and discuss the SASS Project vision, 
objectives, and project timelines. The SASS Industry Day will provide a 
platform for interested organizations to learn about the technical 
details of the SASS system, and to potentially collaborate on projects 
with the FAA on SASS.

DATES: The virtual meeting will be held on February 4, 2021, from 10:00 
a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
    Registrations to attend the SASS Industry Day must be completed by 
January 29, 2021.
    Requests for accommodations to a disability must be received by 
January 15, 2021.
    Letters of Interest from industry to work with the FAA on SASS must 
be received no later than March 12, 2021. Further details regarding 
submission of the Letters of Interest will be provided during the SASS 
Industry Day event.

ADDRESSES: This will be a virtual meeting. Those who wish to attend 
must register via the following Eventbrite link: https://www.eventbrite.com, search for ``SASS Industry Day'' under the Events, 
and click on Register. Follow-on electronic invitations for the virtual 
meeting will be sent to the Eventbrite-registered attendees.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Lewis, SASS Project Manager, 
Technology Development & Prototyping Division (ANG-C51), Federal 
Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 
20591; telephone (202) 267-0875; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    There are over 500 airports in the U.S. with air traffic control 
towers. Tower controllers maintain situational awareness of surface and 
nearby airborne traffic primarily via visual surveillance, which can be 
impaired during times of low visibility or bad weather. Depending on 
the airport size, visual surveillance can be augmented with various 
means. Most of the large airports (surrounded by Class B airspace) have 
Airport Surveillance Detection Equipment--Model X (ASDE-X) which 
provides situational awareness to tower controllers of surface and 
nearby airborne traffic. The medium size airports (surrounded by Class 
C airspace) generally lack ASDE-X due to cost considerations. All 
aircraft entering Class B or C airspace are now required to have ADS-B 
Out capability.
    There are also approximately 350 airports surrounded by Class D 
airspace only, which does not require the ADS-B Out capability. Since 
aircraft not equipped with ADS-B capability will continue to operate at 
these airports surrounded by Class D airspace, there is a need for a 
low-cost, all-weather surveillance capability to provide situational 
awareness in times of bad weather and/or low visibility.
    The SASS system addresses this need by employing a novel phased-
array antenna, state-of-the-art digital signal processing and 
commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware. Unlike ASDE-X, the SASS 
system only requires two sensor arrays and a master unit, all of which 
are located on the airport grounds. An SASS testbed has been 
implemented and operated at Hanscom Field in Massachusetts by MIT 
Lincoln Laboratory with FAA funding.
    The SASS testbed has been used to demonstrate active (interrogated) 
and passive (listen only) surveillance of Mode S and air traffic 
control radar beacon system (ATCRBS) transponders. The positional 
accuracy goals of 30 feet on the airport surface and 0.2 nautical miles 
(NM) out to 20 NM range have been achieved. Based on this demonstrated 
performance, the FAA wishes to begin technology transfer of the SASS 
design to industry. The SASS Industry Day is the first step in this 
process.
    Each industry member that is interested in working with the FAA to 
engage in the potential further development of SASS after attending the 
SASS Industry Day event must provide a Letter of Interest to the FAA 
which states the organization's capability to undertake the development 
of the technology, past performance/history in developing other 
secondary surveillance systems, proposed schedule for developing the 
technology and anticipated commercial use for the technology.
    The U.S. Department of Transportation is committed to providing 
equal access to this meeting for all participants. If you need 
alternative formats or services because of a disability, such as sign 
language, interpretation, or other ancillary aids, please contact the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on December 21, 2020.
Brandon Roberts,
Executive Director, Office of Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2020-28916 Filed 12-30-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P