WAAS Approaches Outnumber ILS

By Stephen Pope

Aviation International News >> November 2008
ATC

The number of GPS-based wide-area augmentation system (WAAS) instrument approach procedures in the U.S. has surpassed the number of ILS approaches in the country, according to the FAA. “This is clearly a turning point for aviation and the way pilots navigate,” the agency noted in a statement announcing the milestone. WAAS LPV approaches with vertical guidance are now located at 833 airports, and the total number of WAAS procedures now numbers 1,333. The FAA’s goal is to install 500 new WAAS procedures per year on all runways that qualify for the procedures. While the implementation of WAAS approaches has proceeded rapidly since the commissioning of WAAS in 2003, the business jet community has been slow to equip the fleet to make use of the new approaches because of certification issues and a lack of qualified FMS equipment.

Back

FAA constructing new ‘nerve center’ Thursday 01. of January 2009 Federal and local officials broke ground early last month for a new Air Traffic Control System Command Center colocated with the FAA’s Potomac... [more]
Go Direct helps users achieve RNP approval Thursday 01. of January 2009 For most flight department managers, the thought of navigating the maze of FAA rules to fly required navigation performance (RNP) approach... [more]
WAAS LPV Approvals Picking Up Thursday 01. of January 2009 A number of WAAS LPV (lateral precision with vertical guidance) equipment approvals for business jets have been completed recently or will be... [more]
ADIZ Now a Permanent Washington Landmark Tuesday 16. of December 2008 Despite heavy opposition by pilots and aviation alphabet groups, airspace restrictions and procedures implemented around Washington, D.C., after... [more]
FAA Signs NetJets as Newest NextGen Partner Tuesday 09. of December 2008 Columbus, Ohio-based fractional provider NetJets Aviation on Friday forged an agreement with the FAA to become the agency’s latest NextGen... [more]