GYRO WANDER AND MAP PROJECTIONS

Wing Commander Keith R. Greenaway, RCAF

Peer Reviewed

Abstract:	The purpose of this paper is to discuss a source of gyro wander which has been brought about by the use of high performance directional gyros in high speed aircraft and which until recently could be overlooked. In the past, mechanical imperfections in the gyro often produced precessions larger than the apparent wander resulting from the earth’s rotation. However, as gyros improved, precession was reduced and provision was made to allow for the rotation of the earth, and in latitudes where the magnetic compass was not reliable, the gyro became the main directional instrument. Today, the gyro threatens to replace the magnetic compass as the primary directional instrument in high speed aircraft. For some time, it has been claimed that the slaving of high performance directional gyros to the magnetic field deteriorates their efficiency and results in a less accurate heading than if they were free. Tests in high speed aircraft have supported this theory.
Published in:	NAVIGATION: Journal of the Institute of Navigation, Volume 4, Number 8
Pages:	293 - 298
Cite this article:	Greenaway, Wing Commander Keith R., RCAF,, "GYRO WANDER AND MAP PROJECTIONS", NAVIGATION: Journal of The Institute of Navigation, Vol. 4, No. 8, 1955, pp. 293-298.
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