In an announcement made at the North Pole, Santa Claus declared that his reindeer sled has been equipped with new, emerging avionics technology intended to safely speed delivery of gifts this Christmas season. Indicating his elves had been busy working on this project since last summer, Santa announced that the team successfully equipped their new state-of-the-art sled with the emerging technology Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B). ADS-B broadcasts "own-sled" position, as well as other message set elements, and is intended to reduce the likelihood of both airborne and surface collisions.

"We had no choice but to equip. With the revitalization of air travel this past year, and the increasing number of near-misses we've encountered in recent years, this move to new technology was necessary to protect Santa and his precious cargo. With ADS-B Sled Display of Traffic Information (SDTI), Santa, as well as his helpers back at North Pole Dispatch can now "see" potentially conflicting air traffic, vastly enhancing situational awareness. The associated Flight Monitoring Application will also allow Dispatch to monitor Santa's progress and react more quickly to any unforeseen difficulties. "It really will make a difference as to how we can self-separate our reindeer and sled from private, commercial, and airline traffic," said Santa during today's press conference.

Mrs. (Karen) Claus, also a Boeing 747 management pilot for a major airline, was quite positive. She said, "Can you imagine what might happen in bad weather, when we deliver all those gifts and land on the roofs of apartment houses? With our new onboard multifunction SDTI displays, we can significantly reduce the likelihood of both roof-incursions as well as Controlled Flight Into Rooftop (CFIR) accidents, the latter being a collision between the sled and one of many obstructions in this obstacle-rich environment. The avionics incorporates terrain, architecture, and obstacle databases…those old television antennas on a Cape Cod style roof can be treacherous. Also, high television antenna concentrations are especially prevalent around large apartment complexes."

Roof incursions and CFIR accidents, although rare, have dramatically increased in recent years with the building of these large apartment and condominium complexes, especially in and around large cities, according to Mrs. Claus. "Our new ADS-B and SDTI equipment will help us safely make multiple sled deliveries in highly populated, downtown, city centers," said Mrs. Claus.

Meanwhile, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials announced in Washington, DC that a limited number of Ground Broadcast Transceivers (GBTs) to support this technology will be deployed to provide updated traffic, weather and aeronautical data to Santa's sled. Santa had been cooperating with the FAA's Safe Flight 21 Program and the Alaska Capstone Program to evaluate this technology in Alaska. Santa said that initial flight tests were conducted in the vicinity of Bethel and Juneau, Alaska, using production GBTs produced by Sensis Corporation, and with avionics manufactured by GARMIN AT. Bethel is just a few short "hops" by reindeer from Santa's headquarters at the North Pole.

"We participated in the Bethel tests because we saw immediate benefits to our operations. My Dispatch office can now use ADS-B to track my progress; thereby helping my elves to provide more efficient ramp management and inventory control for my frequent returns to reload my sled," said Santa. "We can receive up-linked traffic from traditional radar sites as well as real time weather data, and we've agreed to participate in flight monitoring testing, so FAA can track me as I head south".

In a separate development, the FAA is expected to announce that it will be expanding ADS-B radar-like services within the Anchorage Air Route Traffic Control Center (ANC ARTCC) as soon as these new ADS-B ground stations are fully certified. Additionally, the FAA's Safe Flight 21 Program is cooperating with academic institutions such as Embry Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) to deploy a limited ADS-B network in the "lower 48 states." "An Initial Operational Capability NOTAM announcing expanded services to aircraft may be possible as early as this coming spring", commented one senior FAA Official, who wished to remain anonymous.

As part of an innovative installation approach to conserve weight, Santa's elves have devised a way to use the reindeer's antlers to mount the two ADS-B antenna, vastly reducing the time (and cost) required for installation of the overall ADS-B avionics system.

While some FAA officials said that they initially had some serious certification issues and "heartburn" with this approach, FAA's concerns were addressed as part of a dedicated flight test program. "The Applicant showed us an equivalent level of safety to other aircraft as well as reindeer operations," said a FAA spokesperson in Seattle. "We had no reason to delay the installation."

Upon hearing the news that this new equipment would be available for use this Christmas, Rudolf, the lead reindeer with his nose so red, exhibited good pilot judgment when he said, "I'll drink to that -- but not on Christmas Eve when I'm on duty!"

Santa Claus operates the world's largest one-day-only small package delivery system. Santa delivers more packages to more households on Christmas than does all the other small package delivery services combined. The FAA's Safe Flight 21 and Capstone Programs are very real, and hold promise in 2005 for providing significant safety, capacity, and efficiency benefits to all airspace users.

FMI: www.faa.alaska.gov/capstone, www.faa.gov/safeflight21