In article ,
lid says...


DCA or JFK?


The NYTimes article refers to a demo at DCA, but the illustration (not
reproduced here) shows the Canarsie approach to JFK's 13L, and its conflict
with LGA's 04, as described by Tim below.
My (admittedly uninformed) comment was motivated by the fact that LGA also has
a 13/31, of the same length, I believe, as their 04/22, so I wonder how often
JFK will be using the ILS to 13L (below minima for the visual portion of the
Canarsie approach) and LGA will be using ILS to 04 - seems like they would
both be landing on 13 under those conditions, but again there could be any
number of reasons I'm not specifically aware of that would make this conflict a
real hassle for them.

The DCA issue is a bit of a funny one, because we need to develop all sorts of
wizardry in order to comply with our own, self-imposed restrictions. If it's
such a bad idea, or such a present danger to the sitting government to have
planes flying low over the Capital, then it would seem that was just a bad
place to put a major airport! Nevertheless, the demo is impressive, and even
with all the inertia Tim describes in getting the airlines' fleets equipped,
it's still a promising development. Airlines in the US may not be in much of a
porition to rejuvenate their fleets as they are in much of the rest of the
world, but sooner or later it will become necessary, and the way will be found.
The further along we are with this stuff when that begins to happen, the closer
we will be to a really useful modernization - it's been a long time coming.

Greg





FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


AOC 42-05 December 20, 2005
Contact: Alison Duquette
Phone: 202-267-3883 New FAA Navigation Procedure at Reagan National
Helps Travelers, Airlines, Airport Neighbors WASHINGTON, DC —
The Department
of Transportation's Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) today announced
that a new navigation procedure at
Ronald Reagan Washington National
Airport will increase efficiency,
improve safety, and reduce the effect
of aircraft noise and emissions on
homes and businesses under the flight
path.

Called "Required Navigation
Performance" (RNP), the procedure
takes advantage of a plane's onboard
navigation capability to fly a more
precise flight path into the airport.
The Reagan National RNP approach to
Runway 19, which follows the Potomac
River, allows planes to land with
considerably lower cloud ceilings and
visibility than currently required,
increasing airport access during
marginal weather.

"We're tapping the high-performance
computing capability of today's
aircraft to move more planes more
safely and efficiently," said FAA
Administrator Marion C. Blakey. "The
environmental benefits are terrific
too, because flying straight down the
middle of the flight path means that
people on the ground perceive less jet
noise and experience fewer engine
emissions."

The procedure at Reagan National may
be used by any operator who can meet
specific FAA requirements for aircraft
navigation performance and pilot
training. Alaska Airlines is the first
air carrier authorized by the FAA to
use the RNP procedures at Reagan
National. The airline pioneered the
use of RNP procedures at Juneau and
other airports in Alaska.

Besides the new procedure at Reagan
National, the FAA has authorized RNP
procedures at Juneau, San Francisco,
Portland, OR; Palm Springs, CA; and
Hailey (Sun Valley), ID.

At all the airports,
RNP's "repeatability" — allowing
aircraft to fly the same path
consistently — lets the FAA
design procedures to avoid noise-
sensitive areas with the assurance
that aircraft will fly the exact path
every time.

The FAA and the aviation community
have collaborated for more than a year
to make performance-based navigation a
reality. When performance-based
navigation is fully implemented at
airports across the nation, it will
establish precise approach, arrival
and departure procedures. It also will
improve situational awareness for
pilots and air traffic controllers,
and provide smoother traffic flows,
saving fuel and benefiting the
environment.



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Bob Noel
New NHL? what a joke