TECH TALK
NEXTGEN WILL DRIVE BIG DATA INTO AVIATION
BY JOHN PAWLICKI
With the explosion of Big Data onto the world, and the fact that companies, governments and industry groups are collecting more and more information about every facet of our lives, it should be no surprise that business models….. Well, now that aviation is entering the realm of constant digital communications, be it operational ADS-B information, or, health status monitoring data, all of this data generated will become more and more valuable over time. Especially for those who can gather larges sets of it, archive it, collate the results and look for patterns. And, wherever there is monetary value, competing agendas will emerge. The apply-named Big Data movement, as well as the Internet of Things (basically, sensors being attached to anything which can hold one), aka, the IoT, the economics of aviation will be changing in the near future.
BACKGROUND Big Data is defi ned as, “extremely large data sets that may be analyzed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations”. Many government agencies around the world have been gathering certain types of data about us for years (kudos to Eric Snowden for highlighting this), and individuals have been allowing Google, Facebook and other online providers to do so about our personal lives as well. The entire ‘Smart Home’ consumer electronics movement is based upon people installing thermostats
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which learn our behavior patterns over time (and report them back to the product developer), monitor our home for break-ins, unwanted visitors, burst water pipes, electrical and water usage, and allow for remote access and control of waaaayyy too many devices (I really do not want LG refrigerator knowing if my milk should have been tossed out a few days ago). While industrial uses for the IoT preceded smart homes, the creativity of the consumer electronics devices is creating new use cases for all industries to make use of. For a few years now, the Internet of (Flying) Things movement, where more and more sensors are being installed onto avionics, engines and seemingly in every nook and cranny of newer aircraft, has further increased the automated stream of on-board data being wireless off -loaded. We are slowly entering into a full-blown data storm (almost as deadly as a thunderstorm at times, since you can drown in the numbers… be sure to where an MS Excel life vest). Today’s newest engines are smarter than the entire aircraft from the last generation, and can track more lifecycle data points automatically than we ever could manually. This is changing how aviation maintenance is managed, but is also changing the economics of aircraft and parts manufacturing (no more relying on hearsay from an operator on what happened to a faulty part, we can simply perform a data dump for a forensic analysis on certain types of
smarter avionics). Engine OEMs and certain avionics manufacturers have been using such data to not only upgrade their support centers, but also modify future product designs. Airlines, cargo/logistics operators,
larger business fl eets operators, travel- related entities and certain airports have been able to capture various types of data over the years, allowing some of these companies to more intelligently manage their operations. The travel industry in particular is adept at dynamic pricing based upon volume (air travel, hotel room rates, rental car rates), and this is completely driven by large amounts of near- real-time data. But the diff erence here between such data and what we are looking at in regards to data generated by NextGen and other air traffi c management systems, is that most of the data in the travel industry, and aircraft maintenance can be considered ‘internal’ data, for the most part. It is trusted since it is under your own control. But, data coming from NextGen, and SESAR, and other ANSPs around the world once they upgrade to a ADS-B-augmented system, is that the FAA will gather ALL fl ight operations data, and deliver it to any qualifi ed requestor.
WHICH BRINGS US TO WHAT IS
STARTING TO HAPPEN TODAY The FAA already delivers such data today, but this will be amplifi ed once NextGen reaches full operational status in the years to come. NextGen depends upon data emanating via
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