Definition
The network of ground-based radio stations and supporting equipment that receive position broadcasts from aircraft equipped with Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) Out, and that transmit traffic and weather information to aircraft equipped with ADS-B In. These ground stations feed aircraft position data into the air traffic control surveillance system and broadcast services such as Traffic Information Service-Broadcast (TIS-B) and Flight Information Service-Broadcast (FIS-B).
Plain English
The set of radio stations on the ground that listen to ADS-B signals from aircraft and send useful information back up to them. It is the ground half of the ADS-B system, working with the equipment installed in aircraft.
Context Anchor
Seen in NextGen, surveillance, and instrument procedures discussions when the FAA explains how aircraft position information moves between airplanes, ground stations, and air traffic control.
Derivation
Infrastructure comes from the Latin 'infra' (below) and 'structura' (a building or framework), meaning the underlying framework that supports a system. Here it refers to the supporting ground network that makes the airborne ADS-B system actually work.
Why Pilots Care
Enables real-time traffic information and improved situational awareness without relying solely on radar.
Analogy
Think of it like a mobile phone network. Your phone can send and receive signals, but it needs towers and connected equipment on the ground for the system to work over a wide area.
Intuition Check
“Ground” does not mean the dirt or the airport surface here. It means the fixed equipment on the ground that supports the ADS-B system.
Example Sentence 1
Once the aircraft climbed above 3,000 feet, it was within range of the ADS-B ground infrastructure and traffic targets began appearing on the display.
Example Sentence 2
The reliability of ADS-B ground infrastructure is critical for maintaining continuous surveillance during enroute phases of flight.