On any given morning, groups of US Airways Airbus A330s head west out of various European countries on North Atlantic tracks that ultimately lead to Philadelphia International Airport. Those routes and more are about to become more efficient this month with the expected operational approval from the FAA late this year of the carrier's SafeRoute suite of automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) tools. As certified by the FAA in April, SafeRoute features four applications that allow for reduced or managed in-trail spacing, more efficient oceanic altitude control and increased situational awareness on the ground. SafeRoute is built by an L-3 Communications and Thales joint venture, ACSS. US Airways demonstrated its initial plans for the applications to Aviation Week in a CAE-built Airbus A330 simulator at the carrier's base here on May 15. As of mid-May, Airbus had completed the full SafeRoute installation (hardware and software) in 11 Airbus A330s (two A330-200s and nine -300s) and planned to equip the remaining nine -200s in its fleet with the technology by early November.
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