This post is for you Lou...Use of a satellite telephone for normal oceanic position reports/requests has finally been approved!

Inmarsat-3 providing satcom service for aircraft

TWA Captain Lou Burns indicated to me in a private e-mail he remains interested in the latest developments in flying the North Atlantic.  One of the latest improvements that just happened in September 2009 is the ability to use satellite telephones to deliver the normal position reports and requests formerly given by High Frequency (HF) radio.  We no longer have to endure the some times tedious effort required when using the HF radios.  The quality of the reception by the phone is far superior to that of the HF radio which makes it much easier to fully understand clearances. It is definitely a work load reducer for the crew.

The following appears in the latest version of the North Atlantic Minimum Navigation Performance Operations Manual edition 2009:

"6.1.14 Following successful trials, SATCOM ATS air/ground voice may now be used for any routine, non-routine or emergency communications throughout the NAT Region. State AIPs contain the necessary telephone numbers and/or short-codes for air-initiated call access to aeradio stations and/or direct to OACs. Since oceanic traffic typically communicate with ATC through aeradio facilities, a SATCOM call made due to unforeseen inability to communicate by other means should be made to such a facility rather than the ATC Centre, unless the urgency of the communication dictates otherwise...." 


Well Lou, it finally happened.  It is now possible to use satellite phones to make normal oceanic position reports and requests. 
In my next post, I will discuss automated oceanic position reports.

Randomness is good!

Many years ago while I was still working to get my instrument rating, I received a piece of advice from my flight instructor.  His name is Calvin Wilson and was to become Chief Engineer at Piper Aircraft in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania.  He suggested I apply the concept of randomness to my aircraft's track and altitude.  The result of doing this would be a much lessened chance of having a mid-air collision with another aircraft.


After giving this idea considerable thought, I agreed with it and I applied randomness in all my flying in the years since receiving the advice.  I would deliberately not fly exactly on course staying a small distance to the left or right.   I would avoid flying exactly on my assigned altitude by flying either a little higher or a little lower.  It did not matter whether I was flying under instrument flight rules (IFR) or under visual flight rules (VFR) or whether I was in radar contact or not.


In 2004 the authorities recognized the value of randomness when they approved the Strategic Lateral Offset Procedure (SLOP) to be used as a standard operational procedure while flying in the non-radar coverage oceanic airspace. China even approves the application of the Strategic Lateral Offset Procedure when operating in radar contact 


As many aircraft today are navigating the North American Airspace using Wide Area Augmentation Service (WAAS) Global Positioning Systems (GPS) with a navigation accuracy standard of plus or minus one meter, applying randomness is even more important to prevent collisions. Another place to consider applying randomness is in the airport traffic patterns.  Many airports publish traffic pattern altitudes and I avoid flying the exact altitude published for obvious reasons.


Strategic Lateral Offset Procedure Movie
(four minutes 18 seconds)

Global Positioning System (GPS) Calculated Altitudes

Most GPS receivers will deliver to you a calculated altitude.  Not all, but most do.  The accuracy of this altitude indication in a Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) GPS receiver today is plus or minus one meter, never worse than two meters. In the event you lose your primary altimeter, the calculated altitude may be used to good advantage. For a non WAAS GPS receiver, the altitude accuracy will be plus or minus 12 meters. Prior to the shutting down of the Selective Availability system, which happened on May 1, 2000 the calculated altitude accuracy was much worse - plus or minus 300 meters.

Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast ground stations - Pennsylvania

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File cabinet sized ADS-B ground station

        ADS-B antenna Queen City Airport ABE

The state of Pennsylvania has purchased and installed 4 Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast ground stations. They have been installed at Allentown Queen City airport, Wilkes/Barre Scranton airport, Lancaster airport and University Park airport in State College and are fully operational providing ADS-B coverage for eastern Pennsylvania. Photos by me.

China launches third Beidou GPS navigation Satellite

                                                      Photo credit: Xinhua News Agency
On January 17, 2010 China launched a third Beidou GPS navigation satellite.  The three Beidou satellites in geostationary orbits provide China with regional navigation signals. When the numbers are expanded to 35 satellites, it will  enable world wide coverage. The expanded system will be renamed Compass.

European Union announces increase in size of Galileo constellation to 32 satellites

In a surprise move, on January 7, 2010 the European Union announced the number of the satellites to be utilized by the Galileo system will be 32. This is a change from the original number planned of 30. The Galileo program has been plagued by delays and ever growing costs. When first announced in 1999, the total cost was projected to be 4.76 billion dollars and it was planned to be fully operational in 2010. A recent estimate is that it will not be fully operational until 2020 and its total cost will exceed 7 billion dollars. At the present time there are just two Galileo satellites in orbit.

GPS Satellite constellation to be increased from 24 to 27.

The enlarged constellation of satellites was just announced by US Air Force. It will take about 24 months to move the existing satellites to provide improved accuracy from the larger constellation as well as improved availability of the signals in mountainous terrain. Today there are 30 operative satellites in orbit with six acting as backups. No new satellites need to be launched to expand the existing system as they are already in orbit.