Published: 1996

Description:
A paper published in 1996 describing the 1983 GPS technology demonstration flight from Cedar Rapids, IA to the Paris Air Show, showcasing early civil aviation GPS applications. GPS provided flight guidance for the trans-Atlantic flight, terminating in a pre-determined taxi route to a parking point. Both a military code receiver and a civil code receiver using rudimentary differential techniques were demonstrated with the route guidance derived from the GPS position and velocity information integrated into the co-pilots displays.

The goal of that demonstration was to navigate an aircraft from Cedar Rapids, Iowa to the Paris Air Show in LeBourget, France. The trip was broken up into 5 segments, each only about 3-4 hours in length, as that was the length of the navigation windows formed by the only 6 satellites in orbit at that time. At the end of the transatlantic trip, taxiing and parking of the aircraft were accomplished using rudimentary, and previously undemonstrated, differential techniques. Four key capabilities of the system were demonstrated:

• Transatlantic navigation
• Increased Accuracy with the use of differential techniques
• Accurate land navigation and positioning
• Effectiveness of GPS as a commercial aircraft navigation system

Item History:
Key Demonstration Capabilities: Transatlantic navigation, Increased accuracy with differential techniques, Accurate land navigation, Commercial aircraft navigation system potential. Demonstrated early potential of GPS technology for commercial applications, highlighting rapid technological advancement.