Future Aviation Surveillance Services and Technologies in Switzerland (FASST-CH)
In a nutshell
- FOCA wants to increase airspace users’ electronic visibility (e-conspicuity) in order to enhance safety
- FASST-CH mandate: define a roadmap for airspace surveillance services and supporting technologies by 2035
- The implementation contemplates in a first phase an i-conspicuity ecosystem by 2028: mandatory e-conspicuity in class E airspace, promotion of e-conspicuity for airspace users through existing and new technologies, and the establishment of ground infrastructure
- Looking ahead, a fully connected airspace is foreseen by 2035 where real time data will be available to users and airspace surveillance.
Since its early times, one of aviation’s principles is “see and avoid”: see other airspace users and avoid them. Several technologies have been introduced to support pilots in this task; but they do not properly interact. Even though most airspace users in Switzerland have at least one of these technologies onboard, the lack of interoperability is a safety issue.
In 2023, FASST-CH (Future Aviation Surveillance Services and Technologies in Switzerland) was launched to tackle this issue in a broader context. The vision for 2035 developed within FASST-CH in collaboration with several Swiss and international stakeholders is a fully connected airspace where pilots can access traffic, weather and airspace status data in real time.
The FOCA wants to build a fully connected airspace by 2035. To this end, within the project FASST-CH, the FOCA is asking owners and pilots to ensure that their aircraft are electronically conspicuous, contributing thereby to make the airspace safer. A list of recommended technologies has been published for this purpose.
The envisioned airspace will build on an i-conspicuity ecosystem, to be achieved by 2028, where air to air interoperability of technologies will be complemented by a ground infrastructure, thus ensuring complete visibility of the surrounding traffic.