Karen Walker/ATLANTA
A REQUEST FOR proposals (RFP) has been issued to US helicopter operators interested in bidding for a contract to provide a premium short-haul transportation service in Atlanta, Georgia, during the 1996 Olympic Games.
The RFP follows the successful initial trial of the planned low-airspace system, which will use the global-positioning system (GPS) to allow helicopters to "free-fly" within the Atlanta metropolitan area during the Olympics, providing law-enforcement, VIP-transportation, emergency-care and commercial-business services.
Commercial-helicopter operators are being invited to bid for the business-cargo sector. Many downtown businesses have expressed an interest in being able use such a service, which they see as the only reliable means of transferring documents and packages in and out of central Atlanta during the Games. Between six and ten helicopters, depending on type will be needed. The winning bid will be announced by early 1996 and selection will depend on factors such as, the standards of safety and reliability offered, as well as the cost of the service.
The initial one-day trial involved a Bell 212 owned by the local law-enforcement agency. The helicopter visited each of the 13 heliport sites so far earmarked for the project, and focused on evaluations of the datalink antenna and signal strength at each point. There were no reported problems.
Charles Stancil, senior research engineer at Georgia Tech Research Institute, which is coordinating the project along with the US Federal Aviation Administration and NASA, says: "We now know that the messaging system works and that our basic concept is good." A second trial, involving several helicopters, is due in January.
Arnav System's GeoNet data-link has been selected for the project. Each participating aircraft will be equipped with a GeoNet radio transceiver and an Arnav multi-function display or hand-held message terminal showing aircraft GPS position and flight-plan way-points over an Olympic transportation route map. Up-linked weather-radar graphics, convective activity, sequence reports, pilot reports and weather alerts within a 280km (150nm) radius of Atlanta will overlay the map.
Source: Flight International
