Introduction

When man first started flying, nobody gave a serious thought about colliding with
another aircraft. But aircraft collisions have occurred since the first in 1910, which
involved the Wright brothers and stories in newspapers of near misses are aplenty.

Though the idea of avoiding aircraft conflict always existed, it was the collision between
two airlines over the Grand Canyon in 1956, which acted as a catalyst for more in-depth
research. In 1986 a midair collision involving an Air Mexico DC-9 and a private airplane
over California led to congressional legislation in USA, mandating a suitable collision
avoidance system.

Today it is a mandatory requirement in most countries to have equipment onboard which
will give the pilot sufficient warning regarding conflict situations.

Aim

To bring out the development and the working principles of the Traffic Collision
Avoidance System (TCAS)

Operating Principle

The aircraft carries a transponder, which is means of interrogating other aircraft
transponders thus facilitating air-to-air interrogation and reply. The bearings of the
transponder replies are determined automatically using directional aerials. The range of
the other aircraft is determined ( as in DME) by measuring the time interval between the
transmission of the interrogation and the reception of the response.

The reply data is used in the airborne computer to assess the threat, if any, from the
nearby aircraft and the reply put in one of the two categories:-

(a) Those aircraft, which constitute no threat, resulting in Traffic Advisory (TA).

(b) Those aircraft, which do present a threat resulting in a Resolution Advisory (RA)
being given to the pilot advising him to maneuver to avoid collision.


TCAS Levels

Currently, there are three levels of the TCAS system in use or in some stage of
development:-

(a) TCAS I. The simplest of the systems, it is less expensive but also less capable
than the others. It was designed primarily for general aviation use. The TCAS I
transmitter sends signals and interrogates Mode-C transponders. The TCAS I receiver
and display indicates approximate bearing and relative altitude of all aircraft within the
selected range, usually about forty miles. Further, the system uses color-coded dots to
indicate which aircraft in the area pose a potential threat. This is referred to as a Traffic
Advisory (TA). When a pilot receives a TA, it is up to him/her to visually identify the
intruder and is allowed to deviate up to + 300 feet. Lateral deviation is not authorized. In
instrument conditions, the pilot is required to notify air traffic control for assistance in
resolving the conflict.

(b) TCAS II. This on the other hand is a more comprehensive system than
TCAS I. This system was installed on all commercial air carriers operating in the United
States by December 31, 1993. It offers all of the same benefits and also issues a
Resolution Advisory (RA) to the pilot. In other words, the intruder target is plotted and
the system is able to tell whether the aircraft is climbing, diving, or in straight and level
flight. Once this is determined, the system advises the pilot to execute an evasive
maneuver that will de-conflict the aircraft from the intruder. There are two types of RAs,
preventive and corrective. Preventive RAs instruct the pilot not to change altitude or
heading to avoid a potential conflict. Corrective RAs instruct the pilot to climb or
descend at a predetermined rate of 2500 feet per minute to avoid a conflict. TCAS II is
capable of interrogating Mode-C and Mode-S. In the case of both aircraft having Mode-S
interrogation capability, the TCAS II systems communicate with one another and issue
de-conflicted RAs. Since this system costs up to $200,000 per aircraft, manufacturers
have built in an upgrade capability to the next generation TCAS III.

(c) TCAS III . This system will be virtually the same as TCAS II but will allow
pilots who receive RAs to execute lateral deviations to evade intruders. This will be
possible because the directional antenna on TCAS III will be more accurate and will have
a smaller bearing error.


Conclusion

When TCAS was first introduced, it was viewed as a nuisance more than anything else.
This was because the users considered the system unreliable. Pilots viewed it as just
another instrument they had to watch in an already busy cockpit. The introduction of
TCAS has reduced the risk of collision by as much as 75 percent and will prove to be
more efficient and effective in conjunction with improved ATC capability in future to
look ahead and plan for aircraft separation. TCAS equipment is currently far too costly
for installation due to which all countries are unable to implement this system. The hope
is that eventually TCAS prices may come down enough to be considered for many
general aviation. In the meantime, TCAS-equipped aircraft will provide significant safety
advantages for the everyday airline passenger. The problem of midair and near misses
with non-equipped aircraft will have to await a more cost effective solution.









TRAFFIC COLLISION
AVOIDANCE SYSTEM
(TCAS)