Is TCAS II required for RVSM?

[THE Flying Ace]

RVSM is RVSM. DRVSM is just the acronym given to decribe the RVSM airspace over the lower 48. TCAS is not required in RVSM. TCAS requirments are seperate from RVSM requirments.

 

[Stealthh21]

As of now, you do not need TCAS for RVSM.

 

[Headwind]

Our aircraft has been RVSM since 1999 with TCAC I. When getting a new LOA in 2004 we were told without TCAS II / riv.7 we could only get DRVSM. This was all we needed and it still took 4 months from the Atlanta FSDO. We also had an LOA (to past owner) for the MEL. The original RVSM package also had a MEL with LOA to the past owner. The Atlanta FSDO updated our MEL, promised an LOA, then refused to issue an LOA saying it's not needed for Part 91. I was so happy to get this new RVSM LOA over with I didn't push the MEL.
Anyway we do have DRVSM with TCAS I and was told that TCAS was not required, but if you have TCAS II it must have riv. 7.

HEADWIND

 

[FL420]

An article dated January 1, 2004 in Aviation Today found at http://www.aviationtoday.com/sia/20040101.htm explains the TCAS II/RVSM problem. Selected pertinent excerpts follow:

Presented with an opportunity to strike a blow for redundancy, federal officials took a pass. The decision discomfits many pilots, who perceive a reduced margin of safety. The case involves the final rule published Oct. 27, in which the Federal Aviation Administration laid out its program for domestic reduced vertical separation minimum (DRVSM) flights......

The new order in domestic skies takes effect Jan. 20, 2005......

With less vertical space between aircraft, traffic alert collision avoidance system (TCAS) technology assumes a greater importance in assuring the margin of safety......

Here is where a lawyer's eye for fine distinctions comes in handy. Consider the wording of the introduction to the FAA’s final ruling:

"The RVSM program allows the use of 1,000-foot vertical separation at certain altitudes between aircraft that meet stringent altimeter and autopilot performance requirements. This rule also requires any aircraft that is equipped with traffic alert collision avoidance system, version II (TCAS II) and flown in RVSM airspace to incorporate a version of TCAS II software that is compatible with RVSM operations. The FAA is taking this action to assist aircraft operators to save fuel and time, to enhance air traffic control flexibility, and to enhance airspace capacity."

More specifically, the TCAS II must be version 7.0, not version 6.04......

What FAA is saying is that if one’s aircraft is equipped with TCAS II, it must be version 7.0 in order to fly in DRVSM airspace. Here’s the distinction: if an aircraft is not equipped with TCAS II, no matter—it’s not required.

One has to read all the way to page 50 of the final rule to discover that the FAA "does not concur" that TCAS II, version 7.0, should be a requirement for operation in RVSM airspace.

This escape clause has pilots unions spun up. They believe, for safety’s sake, that TCAS II, version 7.0, should be a no-exceptions precondition for flying in DRVSM airspace......

The definitive word on this and on most other subjects re: RVSM, both domestic and international, can be found on the FAA's RVSM website at http://www.faa.gov/ats/ato/rvsm1.htm.

 

[ultrarunner]

Unless it is a requirement for the airspace being used, TCAS II is not required for RVSM. If the aircraft has TCAS, it must be TCAS II and must be version 7.0 or better.

NO, it does not. If an airplane HAS TCAS II and is going to be operated in RVSM airspace, it must conform to change 7. That is the ONLY regulatory requirement for TCAS in RVSM.

 

[erj-145mech]

And now the government and industry are working on TCAS IV, which will give RA for horizontal traffic too, not just vertical traffic.

 

[FL420]

, but if you were to go to Europe for example, where they have full blown RVSM, it would in fact, be required. Is this accurate or have I misinformed? Please reference a source on the net if posible, so I can collect on my steak dinner. Thanks

Re: TCAS requirements for RVSM in Europe:

http://www.ecacnav.com/Content.asp?PageID=77

Question P1: Do I require ACAS/TCAS to operate in RVSM airspace?
Answer: The carriage and operation of ACAS/TCAS is not an RVSM requirement. However, the ICAO Regional Supplementary Procedures for Europe (Doc 7030/4) require that ACAS II be carried and operated in the European Region by all civil, fixed-wing turbine-engined aircraft having a maximum take-off mass exceeding 5700 kg or a maximum approved passenger seating configuration of more than 19.

Re: TCAS requirements for RVSM in other ICAO countries:

http://66.102.7.104/searchq=cache:cP_cyJ_Xl2EJ:www.faa.gov/ats/ato/150_docs/Pacific_RVSM-Ops_Proc_NOTAM_24Nov.doc+TCAS+ACAS+RVSM&hl=en
2. Airborne Collision Avoidance System II (ACAS II). (TCAS II, Version 7.0 meets the ICAO ACAS II standard).
(a) U.S. operators flying in airspace where RVSM is applied must comply with Part 91 Appendix G (Operations in RVSM Airspace). Appendix G states that unless otherwise authorized by the FAA, aircraft equipped with TCAS II and used in RVSM operations must incorporate Version 7.0 or a later version. For operations within other countries,
Part 91 Section 91.703 requires U.S. operators to "…comply with the regulations relating to flight and maneuver of aircraft there in force".(b) Non-U.S. Operators should confirm ACAS II equipage requirements applicable to them with the responsible State authority. Many countries have adopted the ICAO Annex 6, Part I (International Commercial Air Transport Airplanes) standard: from 1 January 2005, turbine-engined airplanes with a maximum certificated take-off mass in excess of 5,700 kg or authorized to carry more than 19 passengers shall be equipped with ACAS II.

I like steak too.

 

[FL420]

And now the government and industry are working on TCAS IV, which will give RA for horizontal traffic too, not just vertical traffic.

Didn't you mean to say the RA's displayed in the cockpit will be able to give instructions for maneuvering in the horizontal plane as well as in the vertical plane for resolving the RA?

Thanks for the heads up(to me at least) re: the shelving of TCAS III in favor of TCAS IV.