Design Approach of a Future Air-to-Air Data Link

In the context of SESAR and NextGen frameworks, a series of air traffic services and operational concepts are envisaged for modernization of the air traffic management. These, however, assume the availability of an air-to-air (A/A) data link capable of supporting addressed, multicast, and broadcast data as well as voice communications under stringent performance requirements. Even though several A/A data links are available today, none of them is expected to be able to support all envisaged services under the demanding performance requirements. In this paper, we take the initial steps for the design of an advanced A/A data link. This system will not only have to support the envisaged services, but also to fulfil minimum performance requirements under the highly challenging dense air traffic expected in the future. First, we analyse the potential applications of the A/A data link and outline its desired capabilities and main design challenges. Then, we discuss the suitability of different medium access schemes, forward error correction codes, and modulation schemes for the design of the A/A data link. The most interesting candidates are proposed for a deeper analysis. Finally, we assess the availability of suitable air-to-ground, ground-to-ground, and air-to-air channel models, to be used for the design and evaluation of the A/A data link.