The Industry’s Only Free, Global, Emergency Aircraft Location Service

What does Aireon ALERT cost?

The Aireon ALERT service is free of charge to pre-registered authorities such as ANSPs, aircraft operators, regulators and search and rescue organizations.

How does Aireon ALERT work?

When an aircraft is in an uncertainty phase, alert phase or distress phase, a pre-registered ANSP, aircraft operator, regulator or search and rescue organization can call the Aireon ALERT 24/7 phone number and provide the missing aircraft’s unique ICAO Aircraft Address or ICAO Flight ID. The Aireon ALERT operator will search for the last known position of the aircraft, and if found, will provide that location in WGS84 coordinates to the ANSP, aircraft operator or search and rescue organization over the phone. The Aireon ALERT operator will also email a report of the location of the missing aircraft to the designated representative within the pre-registered organization.

Who can register for Aireon ALERT?

The service is only available to commercial aircraft operators, ANSPs, regulators and search and rescue organizations who may at some point need to know the last known position of an aircraft in an uncertainty phase, alert phase or distress phase. The service is not designed for private pilots and the General Aviation (GA) community, who are reminded that they should escalate all requests for uncertainty, alert or distress actions with the appropriate ANSP and mandatory State authority in accordance with current procedures. Use of the Aireon ALERT service by persons who want to know the last position of an aircraft, but are not directly related to or responsible for the aircraft in focus, can compromise the timely delivery of the service.

Can Aireon ALERT make aircraft operators and ANSPs ICAO GADSS compliant?

No. Aireon ALERT does not make aviation stakeholders GADSS compliant. Aireon ALERT simply helps ANSPs, aircraft operators, regulators and search and rescue organizations get the last-known position of an aircraft in an uncertainty phase, alert phase or distress phase.

What is the difference between Aireon ALERT and GlobalBeacon^SM

Aireon ALERT is a free service that is filling a critical need, ensuring ANSPs, aircraft operators, regulators and search and rescue organizations have the most accurate aircraft position data available when responding to an incident in remote or oceanic airspace. Aireon ALERT uses global space-based ADS-B data provided by Aireon, but is operated by the IAA. Once a stakeholder has registered for Aireon ALERT, it can contact the 24/7 operations facility to obtain the last known position of an aircraft in an uncertainty phase, alert phase or distress phase. This will include a map of the last 15 minutes of flight, with one plot per minute and a 4-dimensional report including altitude, latitude, longitude and time information. Aireon ALERT is only to be used when an aircraft is in an uncertainty phase, alert phase or distress phase.

GlobalBeacon is a fee-based product developed by Aireon and FlightAware that allows aircraft operators to continuously track their fleet movements. This capability will help airline and operator compliance with existing and upcoming International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Global Aeronautical Distress Safety System (GADSS) standards outside of surveilled airspace. By combining FlightAware’s web interface, algorithms and airline flight information with Aireon’s space-based ADS-B network, GlobalBeacon provides aircraft operators with a minute-by-minute aircraft tracking dashboard that features configurable alerts, offering immediate notification of abnormal events. Airline Operations Centers can proactively monitor their fleet and identify deviations from its intended flight path, abnormal flight situations or a sudden loss of position data and activate an alert of a distressed status when the situation occurs. Further details can be found at https://globalbeacon.aero/.