ROME, ITALY – September 10, 2018 – Leonardo has announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Aireon LLC, developer of the world’s first space-based air traffic surveillance system. The MOU will allow Leonardo, which provides advanced Air Traffic Management (ATM) solutions for Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs), to integrate space-based Automatic Dependent Broadcast (ADS-B) data into its ‘LeadInSky’ ATM system. LeadInSky is Leonardo’s latest-generation Air Traffic Management (ATM) automation platform. It offers safer and more secure air traffic control via multi-level redundancies and disaster-recovery capabilities. This…

The pre-registration period opened Wednesday for the Aireon ALERT program, a free service offered jointly by Aireon and the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) aimed at helping to track aircraft in emergency situations.

Aireon ALERT will be the only free service providing global coverage and GPS location and real-time tracking data to assist rescue coordination centers in emergency situations. Through a 24/7 communications facility, operated by the IAA at its North Atlantic Communications Centre in Ballygirreen, County Clare, Ireland, Aireon ALERT will make it possible to precisely query the location and flight track of any ADS-B equipped aircraft flying in distress.

Aireon announced today the seventh successful launch and deployment of its space-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) payloads, hosted by the Iridium® NEXT satellite constellation. At 04:39:30 AM PDT (11:39:30 UTC), a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and placed 10 new Iridium NEXT satellites into low earth orbit, bringing the total number of Aireon payloads in orbit to 65.