Alaska Airlines selects APiJET for NASA TASAR commercial development
Alaska Airlines has turned to APiJET to fully develop, optimize and ultimately deploy TASAR across its entire fleet. Full-fleet deployment will commence as soon as January 2020.
Seattle, WA, April 26, 2019 – APiJET, a pioneer in real-time aircraft data analytics, today announced that it has partnered with Alaska Airlines to continue the development of NASA’s Traffic Aware Strategic Aircrew Requests (TASAR) technology. Over the last few years, NASA and Alaska Airlines have collaborated on the TASAR concept. Alaska Airlines has now turned to APiJET to fully develop, optimize and ultimately deploy the product across Alaska’s entire fleet. Following a short-term development and trial period, full-fleet deployment will commence as soon as January 2020.
“A partnership with APiJET for commercial development of TASAR technology provides a perfect fit for two companies with forward technology thinking in their collective DNA,” said Alaska Airlines Director of Fleet Technology Bret Peyton.
The TASAR product would be the equivalent of having a Waze-like app in the cockpit. Alaska Airlines is an industry innovator with a series of technology success stories, including the early adoption of fog-busting heads-up displays (HUDs). In 1995, the airline pioneered required navigational performance (RNP), satellite-based GPS technology to fly more reliably, efficiently and precisely in challenging weather and terrain-constrained areas. Additionally, Alaska was the first U.S. airline to remove all paper manuals and navigation charts from its entire fleet, replacing these with electronic flight bags. TASAR technology development with APiJET marks yet another “tech-forward” milestone in Alaska’s long track-record of innovation.
APiJET’s extensive real-time aircraft data and airline IT experience combined with Aviation Partner’s aircraft performance engineering expertise were the determining factors in Alaska’s decision to partner with APiJET.
“We welcome the opportunity to support Alaska in further developing TASAR,” said APiJET CEO Tom Gibbons.“Our experience with real-time aircraft data analytics aligns perfectly with Alaska’s TASAR needs, while also leveraging Aviation Partners’ expertise.”
