NEWSKY - Networking the Sky for Aeronautical Communications

Abstract

An overview of the NEWSKY project (“NEtWorking the SKY”) is given. This project is co-funded by the European Commission within the 6th Framework Programme and has started in February 2007. The main goal of the NEWSKY project is to show that the integration of different communications systems and different applications into a global, heterogeneous network for aeronautical communications is feasible and how this integration can be achieved. The envisaged applications comprise not only Air Traffic Control (ATC) and Air Traffic Management (ATM) but also airline and passenger communications (AOC, AAC, APC). The aim of NEWSKY is not the development of new link technologies; rather, NEWSKY aims to develop an innovative networking concept to integrate different existing and emerging link technologies into a single, global network for a secure, seamless and robustly redundant communication system, which is scalable to cope with future long-term increasing demands. High benefits are expected from the increased information availability and information sharing possibilities that the NEWSKY network will enable.