ATC TCAS WX INS Flashcards
PSR
Primary surveillance Radar
What does PSR enable
air traffic control to detect aircraft in the control zone
What is transmitted by a rotating antenna
RF pulses
How does a RF pulse work
A portion of the RF will be reflected by an aircraft, back to the antenna
What is the rotation of the antenna synchronized with
the sweep on the controller’s screen
what will reflect a smaller amount of RF energy
Smaller Aircraft
What can not be determined with ATC
altitude
Can you identify a specific aircraft
no
SSR
Secondary Surveillance Radar
What is SSR developed to do
overcome limitations associated with PSR
What are 3 advantages of SSR
clear identification of aircraft on radar screen
altitude information possible
squawk identification of specific aircraft possible
3 different types of transponders
Mode A
Mode C
Mode S
What are transponders designed to do
Operate with the SSR of ATC units
Mode A transponder is found in
older aircraft
What can Mode A be programmed to transmit
4 digit transponder or squawk code
What happens when the transponder receives a radar signal
sends back the transponder code
What does the transponder codes allow
for ATC units to distinguish between aircraft
Mode C transponder is found in
new aircrafts
What can mode C transponder have
squawk code
What can Mode C transmit
current pressure altitude to the ATC - required in some control zones in canada
What are Mode S transponders designed to do
help ATC in busy areas - allow automatic collision avoidance
Where is Mode S mandatory
in controlled airspace in many countries
Why in general aviation have there been objections
cost, size, limited benefit in uncontrolled airspace
What additional information can Mode S relay
permanent identity, traffic information service, weather information
SLS
Side Lobe System
What happens if a transponder tries to respond to a side lobe?
The ATC scope would show erroneous position of the azimuth
P2 pulses is transmitted at
lower power than p1 and p3
