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Amy Laboda

Chief NextGen officer and deputy FAA administrator Michael Whitaker is adamant in his message about ADS-B equipage: on Jan. 1, 2020 when the FAA’s ADS-B OUT mandate becomes effective, pilots who want to fly in Class A, B and C airspace and above 10,000 feet agl will need to be flying aircraft equipped with ADS-B OUT avionics. Some mandates are already in place in Asia and Australia and others are coming. Europe’s mandate is June 8, 2016 for new aircraft and June 7, 2020 forretrofit.
Avionics and aircraft manufacturers have been hard at work developing supplemental type certificates and service bulletins to accommodate the new equipment in older aircraft, and MROs are ramping up their avionics crews in anticipation of full schedules. Even so, aircraft owners surveyed by AIN are only just beginning to think about upgrading to meet the mandate.
“It’s basically a transponder upgrade; in some cases [certain Mode S transponders] it is just a software upgrade, said Jens Hennig, v-p of operations for the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. There is additional wiring, possibly an antenna to be swapped, the need for a GPS sensor that meets certain standards and a few other compatibility tweaks to be accomplished before the aircraft is mandate-ready. “That depends on whether the owner chooses a standalone system or a fully integrated system,” he added. 
With just four years to go, choosing an upgrade, scheduling the aircraft for downtime and obtaining a slot at the MRO are just the first steps. Many aircraft owners are concerned about paying for the upgrades, too. The industry think tank Equip 2020 saw that coming and helped form the NextGen GA Fund, through which any aircraft owner–an individual or business–is eligible for financing avionics upgrades for U.S.-registered piston, turbine and experimental aircraft. This includes all types and ages of fixed-wing and rotary aircraft.
“The NextGen GA Fund will help customers of AEA member repair shops move forward with the Jan. 1, 2020, ADS-B equipage mandate,” said Paula Derks, president of the Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA, Booth C6930). “It brings private-sector capital to help pilots and aircraft owners overcome financial challenges to completing these safety-enhancing installations.” 
The NextGen GA Fund is owned by NEXA Capital Partners and by partner aerospace companies. NEXA’s public-private partnership offerings tap aerospace industry investment and federal loan guarantees, creating alternative funding sources for equipment installation. 
“Finding efficiencies and cost-effective ways to meet public needs has never been more important to Congress, taxpayers and aircraft owners,” said Michael Dyment, managing partner and founder of NEXA Capital Partners. The NextGen GA Fund is providing 60-month financing for ADS-B OUT upgrades and has some package deals to offer. These include Jumpstart GA (basic ADS-B OUT compliance) and Jumpstart IN (three possible systems for ADS-B IN/OUT). Loan amounts for the upgrades start at $10,000, and the aircraft need not be used for collateral.
“The debate is not about upgrading U.S. aircraft with NextGen; it’s how to finance it inexpensively,” Dyment said. “The NextGen GA Fund is about doing just that. An alternative to commercial bank financing, the NextGen GA Fund offers owners of general aviation aircraft the advantage to equip for NextGen without a large cash outlay or having to mortgage the aircraft in return.” More information about the GA Fund is available at nextgenfund.com.

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