New EGNOS-based landing procedure for Le Bourget Airport
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Representatives of ESA, the European Commission, EUROCONTROL and the French Transport Ministry celebrated the publication of a new EGNOS landing procedure at the ESA pavilion at this year's Paris Air Show.
The Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport. ©Peter GutierrezBy augmenting existing GPS signals, European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) offers enhanced vertical precision and integrity, allowing pilots to rely on it for safer approach to less easily accessible airstrips or under difficult meteorological conditions.
The EGNOS Safety-of-Life service was made available on 2 March 2011, a milestone for this groundbreaking European programme, but airports still need EGNOS-specific landing procedures for their runways in order for it to be used in real flight operations.
The new EGNOS landing procedure published for Le Bourget airfield in Paris is the third such procedure published in Europe, after Pau and Clermont-Ferrand.
Speaking at a celebration of the publication of the new EGNOS landing procedure, ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain said, "The publication of the Le Bourget landing procedure is a remarkable result. It has been accomplished through the co-operation of a number of actors and it gives us a powerful new tool, the equivalent of the WAAS augmentation system in the United States."
About the airport
Located just 11 km from Paris, le Bourget Airport is well known as the site of the famous Paris Air Show, but it is also a functioning airport and one of the most important business airports in Europe.
In operation since 1919, Le Bourget was Paris' only airport until the construction of Orly Airport in 1932. It is perhaps most famous as the landing site for Charles Lindbergh's historic solo transatlantic crossing in 1927. The Airport is featured in the Dan Brown novel The Da Vinci Code.
In 1977, le Bourget was closed to international traffic, and in 1980 to regional traffic. Today, only business jets operate out of the airport. Le Bourget Airport is also the site of the French Air and Space Museum.
WAAS is the Wide Area Augmentation System. Operating in the USA, WAAS augments existing satellite navigation signals such as GPS and makes them suitable for safety-critical applications such as flying aircraft, just as EGNOS now does in Europe.
Experts say the WAAS system has already delivered tremendous benefits for aviation in the United States and there is no reason to believe that EGNOS will not have a similar impact in Europe.
It's there, use it!
Also speaking at the Paris Air Show, the European Commission's Paul Flament said, "EGNOS is providing a useful service for civil aviation in Europe. It is real, it is effective and it is safe." He called EGNOS the result of the "stubborn effort" of many men and women who worked on a programme that has had doubters and detractors. "EGNOS is a clear demonstration of Europe's maturity and know-how," he affirmed.
EUROCONTROL Director General David McMillan stressed EGNOS' contribution to the larger air transport system. "EGNOS is a key technological solution to help increase safety at airports, allowing precision landings under difficult conditions, reducing flight cancellations and delays and ultimately helping to increase our existing air traffic capacity."
EUROCONTROL is now working closely with air navigation service providers in Europe, including France's Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC), to promote the use of EGNOS.
Thierry Mariani, French Secretary of State for Transport expressed his country's support for the initiative. "It is difficult to gauge the full impact that satellite navigation will ultimately have on aviation, from increasing safety and capacity to noise reduction in areas near airports. And a very important element is that it requires no investment in new ground infrastructure, a big question for smaller airports like Le Bourget."
Once you try it…
One thing is clear – pilots who try EGNOS are quickly sold on its merits. Small aircraft pilot Sven Girsperger has tested EGNOS in flight, using a handheld receiver to assess the EGNOS signal (in no way a handheld device may be used for an operational approach). He reports, "The improvement in accuracy is enormous. There is no practical difference between landing with EGNOS and landing with a conventional ILS procedure." The main question for Girsperger and other pilots who have tried EGNOS is when more airports will be ready to use it.
A key initiative now for the GSA, the European Agency charged with promoting EGNOS uptake in the aviation industry, is the 'Accepta' project, which is providing airports, airlines and operators with funding for the development and publication of EGNOS approach procedures.