Aircraft datalink communications for the future

Future avionics will help the pilot communicate by facilitating the process of sending and receiving information, whether the information is exchanged with onboard systems or ground entities. Also, automating the information exchange is possible for most types of information. This paper discusses the role of future datalink capability in helping the pilot communicate in the new, broader sense of communication. This third, but very important, aspect of pilot responsibility is the next step of creating sophisticated avionics functionality. This will result in new integrated displays of information and automated system capability commensurate with what has already been accomplished in the aviate and navigate areas.