{"id":14472,"date":"2025-06-07T16:16:45","date_gmt":"2025-06-07T10:46:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/?p=14472"},"modified":"2026-07-26T10:28:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-26T04:58:19","slug":"air-data-computer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/air-data-computer\/","title":{"rendered":"Air Data Computer (ADC)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<h2>Centralised Pressure Source using Air Data Computer (ADC)<\/h2>\n<p>An Air Data Computer (ADC) is an aircraft system that calculates critical flight data such as airspeed, altitude, vertical speed, and outside air temperature using inputs from pressure sensors.It provides this information to the flight instruments, autopilot, flight management system, and other onboard avionics.<\/p>\n<h3>Requirement of Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Eliminates the need for multiple pitot and static lines.<\/li>\n<li>Provides a centralised source of pitot and static pressure.<\/li>\n<li>Converts pressure data into electrical or electronic signals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Advantages of Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Provides air data to multiple aircraft systems.<\/li>\n<li>Supplies pressure information to:<\/li>\n<ul>\n<li>Flight Data Recorder (FDR).<\/li>\n<li>Navigation Computer.<\/li>\n<li>Autopilot.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Equipment Dependent on Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The ADC supplies pressure and air data to:<\/li>\n<ul>\n<li>Flight Data Recorder (FDR).<\/li>\n<li>Electronic Flight Information System (EFIS).<\/li>\n<li>Aircraft Warning Systems.<\/li>\n<li>ATC Transponder.<\/li>\n<li>Inertial Reference System (IRS).<\/li>\n<li>Flight Control Computer (FCC).<\/li>\n<li>Flight Management System (FMS).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Types of Air Data Computer (ADC)<\/h2>\n<h3>Analogue Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Uses an <strong>E-I Bar<\/strong> to convert pressure data into electrical inputs.<\/li>\n<li>Pressure information is transmitted through pressure transducers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Digital Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-6.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Uses analogue-to-digital interface units.<\/li>\n<li>Pressure information is transmitted through a digital data bus.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Configuration Module<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-7.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Corrects position (pressure) errors.<\/li>\n<li>Includes Built-In Test Equipment (<strong>BITE<\/strong>).<\/li>\n<li>Performs a power-up self-test during system start-up.<\/li>\n<li>Continuously monitors system health (typically every second).<\/li>\n<li>Supports maintenance testing during servicing or fault diagnosis.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>System Redundancy<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-8.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Provides redundancy to handle pitot\/static blockage or leaks.<\/li>\n<li>Allows electrical changeover to an alternate static source.<\/li>\n<li>Captain&#8217;s pressure sensors can supply data to the First Officer&#8217;s instruments if required.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Failure Warning in ADC<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Failure detection is carried out using a comparison monitor.<\/li>\n<li>A warning flag appears if valid data is lost or an internal failure occurs.<\/li>\n<li>The system continuously compares outputs from the left and right ADCs.<\/li>\n<li>A warning light is illuminated on the instrument warning panel when a fault is detected.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Advantages of ADC over Conventional Pitot-Static Systems<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-10.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Supports advanced digital, moving tape, and combined instrument displays.<\/li>\n<li>Reduces instrument and time-lag errors using servo systems.<\/li>\n<li>Improves accuracy through comparison of multiple sensor inputs.<\/li>\n<li>Provides altitude and airspeed data channels for additional aircraft systems.<\/li>\n<li>Acts as a centralised pressure data source for multiple avionics.<\/li>\n<li>Offers a cleaner installation with simplified maintenance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Inputs and Outputs of an Air Data Computer (ADC)<\/h2>\n<h3>Inputs to Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/flight-instruments\/i10-air-data-computer-11.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Pitot pressure.<\/li>\n<li>Static pressure.<\/li>\n<li>Total Air Temperature (TAT).<\/li>\n<li>Angle of Attack (AOA).<\/li>\n<li>Weight-on-Wheels (WOW) switch.<\/li>\n<li>Main power supply.<\/li>\n<li>Backup power supply.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Outputs from Air Data Computer<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Altitude.<\/li>\n<li>Vertical Speed.<\/li>\n<li>Indicated Airspeed (IAS) or Calibrated Airspeed (CAS).<\/li>\n<li>Static Air Temperature (SAT).<\/li>\n<li>True Airspeed (TAS).<\/li>\n<li>Mach Number.<\/li>\n<li>Angle of Attack (AOA).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Centralised Pressure Source using Air Data Computer (ADC) An Air Data Computer (ADC) is an aircraft system that calculates critical flight data such as airspeed, altitude, vertical speed, and outside air temperature using inputs from pressure sensors.It provides this information to the flight instruments, autopilot, flight management system, and other onboard avionics. Requirement of Air Data Computer Eliminates the need for multiple pitot and static lines. Provides a centralised source of pitot and static pressure. Converts pressure data into electrical or electronic signals. Advantages of Air Data Computer Provides air&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[345],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14472","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cpl-atpl-flight-instruments"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14472"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14472\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16655,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14472\/revisions\/16655"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}