Increased Access for Helicopter Operators in Italy’s Piedmont Region

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is taking on a new project in Italy, demonstrating the added value of EGNOS for helicopters.

Italy’s Ente Nazionale Assistenza al Volo (ENAV) is making things easier for Helicopter Emergency Services (HEMS) operators with newly published EGNOS landing procedures. “New European satellite navigation technologies, and the services and applications that rely on these technologies, are key when it comes to aviation and flying in remote areas not served by costly ground infrastructure,” said an ENAV spokesperson at a recent event held in Turin. “ENAV’s newly published procedures will allow HEMS to take off and land in difficult weather conditions and at night, delivering a round-the-clock emergency service covering all the entire Piedmont region.” 

        Read this: EGNOS for Helicopters

EGNOS does not depend on any local ground navigation infrastructure, so it can deliver an affordable solution to small heliports or hospital helipads. It also enhances vertical precision and integrity to improve safety, accessibility and efficiency across Europe. It leads to a substantial reduction in the decision height for a pilot, making helipads accessible in poor weather conditions – of particular importance to medical and emergency operations. PINS down to Localiser Performance with Vertical Guidance, for example, allows access to heliports using vertical guidance to lead the flight to a specific point in space, from which the crew performs visual manoeuvring to the landing site.

ENAV plans to continue expanding EGNOS for operators. “The publication of these procedures and those that will follow will allow 118 (emergency number) responses to intervene quickly and in a more efficient and safe manner, securing a fast and widespread medical service in emergency or critical conditions,” the spokesperson said. “In the Piedmont region, where snow and rain in the winter can make visibility difficult, this will be especially useful.”

Expanding Capacity

The EU FP7 funded HEDGE-NEXT project last year implemented the first PinS LPV procedure in Europe, at Bern’s Insel Hospital. More recently, Barcelona Airport tested EGNOS for helicopters. New procedures, known as Simultaneous Non-Interfering (SNI) operations, will expand airspace capacity at the airport and allow helicopters to take passengers to and from the airport.

       Read this: Helicopter Industry Goes for the EGNOS Advantage

With PinS LPV procedures, approach and departures from civil airports will be at low levels and at 90° to the runway(s) in use – as long as the Runway Visual Range is within stipulated limits – thus precluding conflict with fixed-wing aircraft.

However, to take advantage of these procedures, helicopters must be EGNOS equipped. New AgustaWestland AW139, AW 109 SP, AW169 and AW189, along with all in-development Airbus Helicopters models, are all EGNOS ready.

More Information

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