WAAS Benefits

Part 3 of 4: Learn about the government, airport and operational benefits of WAAS, including a fuel savings scenario. "

View the map of GPS "holes" at http://www.raimprediction.net/applet.php.

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"WAAS Benefits" Video Transcript

WAAS Benefits Overview (Increased Safety & Capacity)
Airport Benefits
Operational Benefits
Fuels Saving Scenario
Is WAAS For You?
Would More Airports Benefit My Operation?
Next-Gen Considerations

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My name is Gary Harpster and you're watching Understanding WAAS & LPV Part 3 of 4: WAAS Benefits.

WAAS System Benefits Overview (Increased Safety & Capacity)

WAAS Systems improve the navigational system accuracy for enroute, terminal and approach operations all over the continental United States. There are significant portions of Alaska, Canada, Mexico and Carribean as well. Navigational technology supports vertically guided instruments which provides you the approach to all qualified runaways in the United States, with ILS like precision. It's more flexible approach and departure routing. It cuts the arrival times. More direct, which becomes fuel efficient and a timely routing through the ATC network. Nav sources provides a navigational source for EGPWS, TAWS and ADS-B. Signficiant government cost savings. These are some of the benefits of WAAS.

Airport Benefits

WAAS offers an oppurtunity for airports to gain ILS-like approach capability with a minimum way of cash. Roughly it costs eighty thousand dollars to put a WAAS approach into an airport. Whereas an ILS typically costs over a million dollars. No consideration is needed to be given to the placement of the navigational facility, maintenance or clear zones around facility, or access for the maintenance.

Operational Benefits

The WAAS Operational Benefits that allow GPS to be used a primary means of navigation from take off through CAT 1 Precision. No longer is it necessary to use DME or VOR for an overlay approach. You can use a WAAS Receiver as the sole means of navigation. The signal going into that system is so accurate. It no longer needs DME or VOR for a backup. It removes GPS RAIM prediction, which reduces pilot work load. All pilots are required to check the GPS reliability along the route of flight and at the terminal area if they intend to use GPS for the approach. If you go to the FAA web page, you will see a map that shows that theres large holes across the United States periodically where there is no GPS coverage. WAAS allows enables more direct-to-operations providing signficant potential in fuel savings. Alot of times when your flying near the mountains or high power lines, or anything that could interfere with your navigational performance that you currently offer, WAAS receivers automatically calculate precision so it's not necessary to worry about the types of interferences that we run into today. It allows pilots to flight plan GPS approaches to destinations as well as airports, saving time and money again. So if you can't get into your primary airport because of weather, because of too many aircraft in the pattern, you can file to your alternate airport and if it has an WAAS approach, get the same precision as an ILS. Access to all RNAV and GPS approaches, there's currently there over 1,975 approaches that you can take advantage of. It allows approaches at smaller airports at night without no local altimeter settings. As you know, if the temperature gets too far below zero, the barometic altitude can change, sometimes as much as 200 to 300 feet. So with the GPS WAAS Receiver, you no longer need to worry about that correction.

Fuel Savings Scenario

It's more flexible for departure and arrival procedures and offers more direct to routes. An approach to intended airports, not served by an ILS, but now served with an WAAS/LPV Approach. You don't have to route to an alternate. Approaching destination airports, with weather below ILS or WAAS minimums, filing alternate airports with WAAS and LPV that may be closer to the original destination, shorter re-route.

Is WAAS For You?

Is it for you? WAAS by itself offers a lot benefits, even if your aircraft is not capable of handling the LPV signal. WAAS by itself does offer some advantages. It does provide sole source navigation, no DME or VOR needed. It eliminates the RAIM prediction, those big holes across the United States that I was talking about earlier. It offers a more "direct to" operation. It's more flexible departure and arrival. LP approaches filed as alternates also become your advantage. More airports serve with LPV approaches now, than there are ILSs, thats a big factor. If your flying into an airport now thats currently served by an ILS, you can maintain flying into that airport, but if the weather goes below minimums and you can no longer get into that, how far do you have to fly to get to an alternate airport. If you get on the FAA web page, you can check and see if the areas that you frequently fly into offer WAAS and LPV solutions. My guess is that they will, with 1,975 approaches, pretty likely that there's going to be an airport closer than anything that you previously been able to use as an alternate airport, that will be served by a WAAS approach.

Would More Airports Benefit My Operation?

It depends. If the airport that you currently fly into is not served by a WAAS approach, check to see what alternate airport you typically would fly into, more than likely it does have a WAAS approach. And you may find out that if you can't get into your primary airport, traveling just a few miles to an airport served by a WAAS approach could be to your advantage. As the FAA continues to transition from ground-based to spaced-based navigation, WAAS and LPV are the preferred navigation systems of the future.

Next-Gen Considerations

All navigation that we have in the United States right now, if it's not a WAAS receiver isn't precise enough to meet the Next-Gen requirements. The Next-Gen requirements is trained to unburden the existing congestion that we have in the airways, trying to get people the best altitutes, and the best tail winds that they can possibly give them. The only way that they can do that is more precise lateral and vertical navigation. WAAS receivers are that answer to that solution.

Contact Gary Harpster or a member of Duncan Aviation's Avionics Installation Sales team for more information.

Understanding WAAS/LPV Video Series

	WAAS Considerations: Introduction July 1, 2010 - Gary introduces the video series with a brief overview of key topics to consider if your aircraft isn't equipped with WAAS, including legacy interface problems, field approvals, annunciators, Next-Gen criteria, and how to determine if your aircraft is a candidate for an upgrade. » Watch "WAAS Considerations"
	Part 1: What is WAAS? July 8, 2010 - Find out how WAAS is a part of the FAA's Next-Gen initiative, the system network and coverage, and why installing WAAS-capable equipment doesn't mean you're ready to fly LPV approaches.. » Watch "What is WAAS?"
	Part 2: How WAAS Works July 15, 2010 - Learn how WAAS interacts with GPS signals, what augmentation messages do, and how they're processed. » Watch "How WAAS Works"
	Part 3: WAAS Benefits July 22, 2010 - Learn how WAAS changes navigational system accuracy, approaches, flexibility, precision, fuel savings and government and airport costs. Operational benefits and Next-Gen considerations are also discussed. » Watch "WAAS Benefits"
	Part 4: What is LPV? July 29, 2010 - Learn what LPV approaches are, how they benefit operators, and common equipment questions. » Watch "What is LPV?"