The World ATM Congress held in Madrid 10- 12 March has been the ideal venue for EGNOS to engage with partners and to introduce airports and ANSPs to the benefits of Performance Based Navigation (PBN). An EGNOS stand and a dedicated Workshop organized by ESSP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA)  brought together ANSPs and airports interested in operational implementation.

At the top of this list of benefits is RNP down to LPV approaches, which enable all weather near-precision approaches without the need for expensive ground equipment. Today, EGNOS allows 250 feet minima, with the objective being to reach 200 feet minima by the end of the year, which will significantly increase the operator’s real operational capability and safety.

“Nowadays, 176 LPV procedures are already in use in more than 113 airports across Europe, providing a cost effective alternative equivalent to conventional ILS CAT I instrument landing procedures,” says Thierry Racaud, ESSP CEO, who is EGNOS Service Provider under a contract with the GSA. “LPV200 will be a major milestone for the EGNOS programme and will further encourage the implementation of EGNOS procedures at airports across the full EU-28.”

EGNOS Enables an Integrated European Sky

Another advantage of EGNOS is its interoperability with other SBAS systems – without the need for different avionic equipment. As a result, most manufacturers in the general and business aviation sectors are already putting EGNOS-ready equipment on-board new models. At the same time, the commercial manufacturers are taking notice, with many OEMS installing EGNOS equipment into their latest models.

To put this in the frame of figures, an independent cost-benefit analysis commissioned by the GSA indicated that the benefits for Europe’s aviation sector will be total €2.4 billion by 2030. Of this total savings, about €1.2 billion is due to reduced flight delays, diversions and cancellations. Another €900 million in savings is the result of the reduction of Controlled Flight into Terrain (CFIT) accidents, and €300 million due to the phase out of infrastructure navaids.

Challenges Ahead

Today’s GNSS penetration in the global aviation market is over 80%, and GNSS is expected to reach over 90% penetration by 2022 as an enabler of PBN. The shipments of EGNOS enabled devices are expected to dominate the entire market, including the commercial/regional, business and general aviation segments. The penetration of SBAS enabled units in equipped aircraft is expected to increase from some 20% in 2012 to 60% in 2020.

To support this growing market, continued adoption throughout the segment must be ensured. To accomplish this, steps must be taken to facilitate EGNOS adoption through enablers/tools/methodologies to facilitate LPV implementation. This includes increasing the availability of cost efficient avionics solutions, supporting operators in getting both equipped and certified with EGNOS avionics and facilitating crew training for such operations.

In support of all these points, the GSA is overseeing several funding opportunities. The Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation’s current call has €25 million available in funding. According to GSA Market Development Officer Carmen Aguilera, the GSA is particularly interested in aviation applications dealing with GNSS. “During the first call, five of the funded projects dealt with aviation,” she said. “As this is an important sector for EGNOS, similar numbers are expected from the second call.”  

More so, in 2014 the GSA launched a call for proposals to foster further EGNOS adoption in the European civil aviation sector. According to Aguilera, the objective of the call was twofold. “On the one hand, the grant aims to support projects that enable users to equip and use their aircraft or rotorcraft fleet with GPS/SBAS-enabled avionics,” she said. “On the other hand, it aims to allow Air Navigation Service Providers and aerodromes/heliports to implement EGNOS-based operations in Europe.”

A similar call for proposals for 2015 is currently in development and is expected to launch in May.

Aviation powered by EGNOS: awards

In summary, for both operators and airports, EGNOS is a smart choice: with little need for on-board equipment and no need for a ground infrastructure, EGNOS offers all users increased accessibility and safety.

To celebrate this EGNOS advantage, the workshop concluded with an awards and recognition ceremony for some of the ANSPs and operators who have recently signed EWAs and/or published their first LPV procedures.

Working Agreement Signature Awards were given to the following ANSPs:

• Bulatsa
  
• LVNL
  
• Jersey Airport
  
• ACR Sweden
  

Awards for First LPV Implementation at Local Airport

• LPS SR (Bratislava and Kosice, Slovak Republic)
• LVNL (Groningen, Netherlands)
• LFV (Goteborg, Sweden)
• NAV Portugal (Lisbon, Portugal)