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Old June 29th 06, 12:02 PM posted to rec.aviation.piloting
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Default How different is aviation GPS?

I guess since you folk use GPS to navigate all across the globe and
requires to be both very precise and instantaneous, my equipment is
very much inferior to what's used in aviation.


Well, several wrong assumptions here.

1. Most airline aircraft do not or not regularly use GPS to "navigate
across the globe". They use inertial navigation. Some use inertial
navigation with position updates from GPS. GPS is typically used in
general aviation aircraft - because it is cheap.

2. For enroute navigation, GPS accuracy of the standard signal (50
meters or so) is plenty accurate, altitude is measured with
barometrics, not GPS. For approaches to airports, the prevalent method
of navigation is not GPS, but other means (google ILS and VOR). GPS
approaches can make do with standard GPS signals, however, in the US
more and more approaches using WAAS (a method of differential GPS) as
an enhanced signal. However, the approaches down to an automatic
landing are never done with GPS, they use ILS.

2. The key problem in aviation with GPS is immediate feedback to the
airplane in case the signal goes bad, aka signal integrity monitoring.
Certified aviation GPS receivers have higher standards in that regard.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)