Radio Collision-Avoidance Systems for Aircraft

Several cooperative radio systems for avoiding aircraft collisions are considered from the standpoints of technical requirements, feasibility, and cost. The system with the broadest potential application is selected. In basic form, the selected system utilizes the upper UHF region to communicate altitude and heading information, and vertical maneuvers are defined by the altitude information. In expanded form this system determines relative bearing and heading, to predict collision hazard in both the vertical and horizontal planes. Potentially, a reduction in unintentional collisions of 100: 1 can be achieved with the selected approach. The applicability of this system to collision avoidance problems of military, commercial, and private aircraft, and to related problems of navigation and air traffic control is outlined.