Safety services using the internet protocol suite: Benefits, progress, and challenges

Moving from ACARS and ATN to IPS is an important technology migration that will help all stakeholders in air-ground safety services data communications (airlines, equipment vendors, airframers, ANSPs, and communication service providers) to achieve a more modern, cost-effective, and robust data communications network infrastructure. Through efforts by Boeing, Honeywell, Inmarsat, and SITA, progress has been made to demonstrate the feasibility of an IPS-based solution. Additional efforts are in progress to complete the IPS standards, perform validation exercises, and define a transition strategy. Once deployed, IPS will provide the basis for a unified avionics architecture and consistent air-ground operation, for both current and future AOC and ATS applications and using both existing and evolving communications media.