Early Operational Experience With New Capabilities Enabled by GBAS Landing Systems (GLS)

T. Murphy, J. Ackland, T. Imrich, T. Lapp, and R. Freidman

Abstract:	The first commercial air transport airplane with GLS capability was certified in May of 2005. The 737NG achieved this milestone after more than a decade of technology development and flight demonstrations. Extensive international coordination led to the current ICAO definition of Ground Based Augmentation Systems (GBAS) and the associated standards for airborne components. In the course of implementing GLS on the 737NG many advantageous aspects of GBAS capabilities were demonstrated for the first time by Boeing during first a technology demonstrator program in 2002 and then during flight testing in support of certification. For example, the use of multiple approach definitions to the same runway, offset thresholds, and support of approach capabilities to nearby airports has been demonstrated. This paper describes briefly the operational experience that Boeing has gained with GBAS in the course of this final stage of the development. The 737NG has been flown against 6 different ground stations, manufactured by 3 different organizations serving 11 different airports including locations in both the Northern and Southern hemisphere. Approaches flown included typical ILS-like straight in approaches with autoland as well as multisegment curved approaches using RNAV, RNP and the GBAS positioning service. Other demonstrations include guidance for low-visibility takeoff, guidance on missed approach and landing performance during simulated and induced ground station failure conditions. Boeing's early operational experience with GBAS has generally been excellent. As we begin use of GBAS in daily airline operations it is important for airspace managers, airline operational planners and navigation service providers to understand the potential new or improved capabilities enabled by GBAS, as well as its potential for cost reduction for existing airspace system infrastructure. Qantas Airways is taking delivery of its new 737-800 airplanes with GLS functionality and will have nine airplanes GLS capable by the end of January 2006. A GBAS has been installed at Sydney International Airport and in-service operational evaluations are about to begin. Continental Airlines is establishing a similar GLS in-service evaluation using a GBAS installation in Guam scheduled to be complete in late 2006. Additional airlines have expressed interest in conducting GLS operations.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 2006 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation January 18 - 20, 2006 Hyatt Regency Hotel Monterey, CA
Pages:	468 - 478
Cite this article:	Murphy, T., Ackland, J., Imrich, T., Lapp, T., Freidman, R., "Early Operational Experience With New Capabilities Enabled by GBAS Landing Systems (GLS)," Proceedings of the 2006 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation, Monterey, CA, January 2006, pp. 468-478.
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