Early Cessna Citations To Upgrade To TCAS II 7.1 Cessna owners and operators of early Citation models will be delighted to hear this new announcement from Textron Aviation/Cessna. The company recently gained certification for the offering of TCAS II 7.1 upgrades which will now allow them to perform these upgrades on select older Citation models. Citation models included for the upgrade are: CJ2, Citation II/SP, Citation SII, Bravo, V Ultra, Encore, Encore+, Excel, XLS, Citation III, Citation VI, Citation VII, Sovereign, and Citation X. European Commission rules already require aircraft with an airworthiness certificate issued after Mar. 1, 2012 and with a maximum takeoff weight of 5,700 kg or more, or with seating for 19 passengers to have the TCAS II 7.1 software version installed. For aircraft with airworthiness certificates issued prior to Mar. 1, 2012, the upgrade must be completed by Dec. 1, 2015.
In order to keep pace with new regulations, starting Dec. 1, 2015, all aircraft already equipped with TCAS and weighing more than 5,700 kg will be required to have the version 7.1 software upgrade to the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS II) in order to operate in European airspace. Recent model Citations, as well as applicable Beechcraft King Airs and Hawker business jets, already comply or have certified solutions available. For those who may not know, TCAS is an onboard avionics system that provides crew members audio and visual display indications alerting them to the presence of nearby air traffic that may pose a potential collision threat. In addition to Traffic Advisories (TAs), a TCAS II system also provides Resolution Advisories (RAs). The 7.1 upgrade provides greater clarity and real-time changes to the RAs. Currently no deadline exists for upgrading TCAS II systems with Version 7.1 software for operation in U.S. airspace. For more information: Cessna Aircraft Company 1 Cessna Blvd. Wichita, KS 67215 www.cessna.com ***
