Aircraft Navigation System

Presented by
Balaba,Marjorie P.
Masangkay Raisa Viena A.
Rodriguez,Danica Meryl O.
Salvador,Jobelle B.

Introduction
The basic principles ofair navigationare identical to
generalnavigation, which includes the process of
planning, recording, and controlling the movement of a
craft from one place to another
The techniques used fornavigationin the air will
depend on whether the aircraft is flying undervisual
flight rules(VFR) orinstrument flight rules(IFR).

TO NAVIGATE PILOTS NEEDS TO KNOW

Starting Point (point of departure)

Ending Point (final destination)
Direction of travel
Distance of travel
Aircraft speed
Aircraft fuel capacity
Aircraft weight & balance information

How Do Pilots Navigate?

Dead Reckoning and Pilotage
Pilotage or Piloting - is a term that refers to the sole
use of visual ground references.
Dead Reckoning -involves the use of visual checkpoints
along with time and distance calculations.

How Do Pilots Navigate?

Celestial Navigation
one of the oldest
forms of navigation,
and one of the first
navigation aids used
by transport aircraft
Celestial navigators
use a device called a
sextant to determine
the angle between a
known star and the
horizon.

How Do Pilots Navigate?

Radio Navigation
With aircraft equipped with radio navigation aids
(NAVAIDS), pilots can navigate more accurately than
with dead reckoning alone.
They are also more precise. Instead of flying from
checkpoint to checkpoint, pilots can fly a straight line to
a "fix" or an airport. Specific radio NAVAIDS are also
required for IFR operations.

Types of Radio Navigational Aids (NAVAIDS)

Automatic Direction Finder/ Non-directional Beacon

(ADF/NDB)
VHF Omnidirectional Range (VOR)
Distance Measuring Equipment (DME)
Instrument Landing System (ILS)

History

VHF Omnidirectional Range (VOR)

Developed from earlier Visual-Aural Range (VAR)
systems, the VOR was designed to provide 360 courses
to and from the station, selectable by the pilot.
They became the major radio navigation system in the
1960s, when they took over from the older radio
beacon andfour-course (low/medium frequency range)
system.

History

Distance Measuring Equipment (DME)

Developed in Australia, it was invented by
JamesGerryGerrandunder the supervision ofEdward
George "Taffy" Bowen.
Another engineered version of the system was deployed
byAmalgamated Wireless Australasia Limitedin the early
1950s operating in the 200MHzVHFband.

History

Instrument Landing System (ILS)

Tests of the ILS system began in 1929 in the United States.
The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) authorized
installation of the system in 1941 at six locations.
The first landing of a scheduled U.S. passenger airliner
using ILS was on January 26, 1938
The first fullyautomatic landing using ILS occurred in
March 1964 atBedford Airportin UK.

VHF Omnidirectional Range

(VOR)

VHF Omnidirectional Range [VOR]

operate in the Very High Frequency aviation
navigation [NAV] band between 108 117.95MHz
transmissions are line-of-sight the ground to air
range depends on the elevation of the beacon site,
the height of the aircraft and the power output.
is a radio beacon that transmits a signal that
represents the 360 of the compass.

VOR Service Coverage

VOR broadcasts
from 108.000117.950 MHZ.
Its operational
service volume is
up to 130 NM from
the station (upper
right).
There are 3 types of
VOR stations (lower
right).

Basic Principle of Operation of the VOR

The VOR facility transmits two signals at the

same time. One signal is constant in all
directions, while the other is rotated about
the station. The airborne equipment
receives both signals, looks (electronically)
at the difference between the two signals,
and interprets the result as aradialfrom
the station.

VOR Phases
The VOR signal is
comprised of a Reference
Phase and a Variable Phase.
The Reference Phase is
broadcast in all directions.
The Variable Phase is a
rotating beam.
The difference of phase
between the Reference
Phase and the Variable
Phase is used by the VOR
receiver in the airplane to
calculate the bearing from
the station.

Magnetic North is the reference datum for

measuring the phase difference between the
two signals. At Magnetic North, the two signals
are exactly in phase. At other points around the
compass, the phase difference varies
accordingly. The aircraft equipment resolves the
phase difference and displays it primarily in the
form of angular displacement from Magnetic
North as measured from the VOR station.

Morse Code

3 letter identifier
Individual
frequency
Match Morse Code
to ensure
appropriate
signal.

VOR Ground Station

VOR Ground Station

VOR Ground Station

VOR Indicator
The VOR course is
selected by turning
the OBS (Omni
Bearing Selector)
knob to the desired
course.
The Course
Deviation Indicator
(CDI) displays
steering commands.

Flying the VOR

Initial Tracking
Tune, Identify, Twist
Turn OBS to center needle and
figure out position (use FROM)
Note heading on top of card
If flying FROM station (radial), then
turn to that heading
If flying TO station, put reciprocal
heading on top and center, then turn
to that heading

Flying the VOR

Wind Correction
Further away, more correction is
needed to get back on track
At 60NM from station, 1 = 1NM

Generally, when within 20NM,

20-30 in direction of needle
works
Once needle centers, turn back
towards original heading, but
add wind correction of 5

Flying the VOR

Station Passage
CDI will become very sensitive,
and then begin to oscillate
Flag will switch from
TO/OFF/FROM
Switching Radials
During station passage, turn
OBS to new course to fly

Flying the VOR

Intercepting

If needle is alive, then turn towards it

as if you were tracking it
If full deflection, first center needle to
find what radial you are on
Twist OBS back to desired course
Parallel that course
Turn 30-60 in direction of needle,
depending on distance from station
Once needle is alive, turn back in
direction of desired course
Follow tracking procedures

VOR Reliability
At the VOR facility, a monitoring system
and two transmitters insure continuous
reliable service. If the VOR signal is
interrupted or the phasing is changed, the
monitor system turns off defective
equipment, turns on the stand-by
transmitter, and excites an alarm at the
remote control station. When a VOR is on
the air while servicing is taking place, the
station identification is removed.

Doppler VOR
Is installed when a particular site has
too many reflecting objects to permit
the operation of a standard VOR

Doppler VOR

DISTANCE MEASURING EQUIPMENT

(DME)

DME Overview
DME provides the aircraft with distance to a station
information.
DME is required for aircraft operating at or above 24,000
feet (FL 240).
The aircraft sends out a pulsed signal to the station
(interrogation) and the station replies with a pulsed
signal.
Random spacing, called jitter makes each interrogation
unique to each aircraft; the station replies in kind.
By using the change of distance to station, ground speed
(GS) is calculated.
Using GS and distance, time-to-station (TTS) is
calculated.
Slant range is the distance to the station not just
laterally but vertically as well.
A scanning DME receives signals from DME stations up
to 300 miles away and uses triangulation to compute an
accurate fix.

Textbook page 89

DME Ground Station

DME is part of TACAN, a military navigation system which adds
DME to a VOR station.
A VOR with DME is known as a VORTAC station.

DME Tuning
DME is tuned by tuning either a VOR
or ILS station, as applicable.

DME EFIS
Display
Here is a DME readout on an EFIS Display.
The characters NAV1 indicate that the DME being displayed is
from the No. 1 VOR receiver.

NAV 1
2.3DME

DME Block Diagram: Aircraft

X and Y Channels

Originally there were 100 DME channels, the X channels.

When the system got overloaded, the channels were split to create the Y
Channels, adding 100 more channels for a total of 200 channels.
Airborne pulse spacing on the X channel is 12 microseconds; on the Y channel is
36 microseconds.
Ground Reply pulse spacing on the X channel is 12 microseconds; on the Y
channel is 30 microseconds.
Whether the airplane is on the X or Y channel, interrogation goes out on 1143
MHz.
The reply from the ground station comes back at 1143 MHz on the X channel
(+63 MHz).
The reply from the ground station comes back at 1080 MHz on the Y channel (-63
MHz).
If the ground station receives more interrogations than it can handle (>100), it
will reduce its receiver sensitivity and not reply to the aircraft on the outer
edges of its receiving range.

Block Diagram:
The ground
stationStation
Ground
receives, decodes and
replies
interrogations
the airplane.
There
is
Microsecond
delay
to
interference.

to
from

50
time
avoid

The squitter sends

out pulses if the
ground station is not
receiving any aircraft
interrogations;
this
causes any aircraft
within range to wake
up out of automatic
standby mode and
start
interrogating
again.
Every 30 seconds, the
station transmits a
Morse code ID on
1030 Hz

Review Q & A Chapter 13

DME
13.1 An airborne DME sends out a pulse known as an ____.
Answer: Interrogation signal.
13.2 DME is a component of a military system known as ____.
Answer: TACAN.
13.3 A DME station is located as part of a ____ ground station. Together they are known as a ____.
Answer: VOR, VORTAC.
13.4 In addition to distance-to-station, an airborne DME computes ___and___.
Answer: Ground Speed, Time-to-station
13.5 A distance error in DME is called ____.
Answer: Slant range.
13.6 All aircraft interrogating the same DME ground station are on the same frequency. How does an
aircraft identify its replies from all others?
Answer: Jitter or random spacing of pulses.
13.7 How is a DME station tuned in?
Answer: By tuning a VOR or an ILS station.
13.8 What happens when more than about 100 aircraft interrogate the same DME ground station
(overload)?
Answer: The station reduces its receiver sensitivity and does not respond to aircraft at the edges of its
range.
13.9 Why does the DME ground station delay its reply by 50 microseconds?
Answer: To avoid interference.
13.11 Does the DME station transmit an ID?
Answer: Yes.

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WHAT IS ILS?
IT IS A GROUND-BASED INSTRUMENT APPROACH SYSTEM WHICH PROVIDES PRECISION
GUIDANCE TO AN AIRCRAFT APPROACHING A RUNWAY.

INSTALLED ON EACH END OF A RUNWAY

USES RADIO SIGNALS AND SOMETIMES COUPLED WITH HIGH-INTENSITY LIGHTS.
ENABLE A SAFE LANDING DURING INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC),
SUCH AS LOW CEILINGS OR REDUCED VISIBILITY

INSTRUMENT APPROACH PROCEDURE CHARTS (OR "APPROACH PLATES") ARE PUBLISHED

FOR EACH ILS APPROACH, PROVIDING PILOTS WITH THE NEEDED INFORMATION TO FLY AN
ILS APPROACH DURING INSTRUMENT FLIGHT RULES (IFR) OPERATIONS.

CATEGORIES OF OPERATION MINIMUMS

1. CATEGORY I
2. CATEGORY II
3. CATEGORY III A
4. CATEGORY III B
5. CATEGORY III C

THE DESCRIPTION AND PLACEMENT OF THE INDIVIDUAL

PARTS OF THE ILS SYSTEM

HOW IT WORKS?
BASIC PRINCIPLE: ILS WORKS ON BASIC PRINCIPLE OF BEARING BY LOBE
COMPARISON.

MAIN COMPONENTS REQUIRED BY ILS:

GUIDANCE INFORMATION: THE LOCALIZER AND GLIDE SLOPE
RANGE INFORMATION: THE OUTER MARKER (OM) AND THE MIDDLE MARKER
(MM) BEACONS
VISUAL INFORMATION: APPROACH LIGHTS, TOUCHDOWN AND CENTERLINE
LIGHTS, RUNWAY LIGHTS

ILS SUBSYSTEM
1. LOCALIZER SUBSYSTEM
IT IS USED TO PROVIDE LATERAL GUIDANCE TO THE AIRCRAFT AND THUS ALLOWS
FOR TRACKING THE EXTENDED RUNWAY CENTERLINE
LOCALIZER INFORMATION IS TYPICALLY DISPLAYED ON A COURSE DEVIATION
INDICATOR (CDI) WHICH IS USED BY THE PILOT UNTIL VISUAL CONTACT IS MADE AND
THE LANDING COMPLETED
IT CONSISTS OF:
I. LOCALIZER ANTENNA ARRAY (GROUND EQUIPMENT)
II. LOCALIZER SIGNAL RECEIVER (ONBOARD EQUIPMENT)

LOCALIZER ANTENNA ARRAY

A VHF TRANSMITTER EMITTING HIGHLY DIRECTIONAL LOBES IS LOCATED
TYPICALLY 1,000FT (300 M) BEYOND THE STOPPING END OF THE RUNWAY. THE
TWO LOBES ARE AMPLITUDE MODULATED; THE ONE TO THE RIGHT AT 150 HZ AND
THE OTHER TO THE LEFT AT 90HZ ON ONE OF THE CARRIER FREQUENCY BETWEEN
108.10 MHZ AND 111.95 MHZ. ONLY ODD FREQUENCIES ARE FOR THE LOCALIZER.
THERE ARE 40 CHANNELS AVAILABLE FOR ILS LOCALIZER. THE LOCALIZER
RADIATION PATTERNS ARE NORMALLY ARRANGED

HE DUAL-FREQUENCY LOCALIZERS ARE EXTREMELY PRECISE AND CAN BE USED

FOR THE ILS CATEGORIES II/III.

LOCALIZER RADIATION

LOCALIZER SIGNAL RECEIVER

THIS EQUIPMENT ENABLES TO RECEIVE THE LOCALIZER SIGNAL, PROCESS IT AND TO
DISPLAY THE AIRCRAFTS POSITION ON AN ONBOARD INDICATOR .

IF THE AIRCRAFT ON APPROACH IS ALIGNED WITH THE RUNWAY CENTERLINE, THE CDI
WILL DISPLAY NO DIFFERENCE IN THE DEPTH OF MODULATION (DDM) BETWEEN THE 90
HZ AND 150 HZ AUDIO TONES; THEREFORE, THE CDI NEEDLE IS CENTERED. IF THE
AIRCRAFT IS TO THE RIGHT OF THE CENTERLINE, THE 150 HZ MODULATION WILL
EXCEED THAT OF THE 90 HZ AND PRODUCE A NEEDLE INDICATES DIRECTION OF
DEFLECTION ON THE CDI TOWARDS THE LEFT. RUNWAY.

IF THE AIRCRAFT IS TO THE LEFT OF THE CENTERLINE, CENTERED NEEDLE =

CORRECT THE 90 HZ MODULATION WILL EXCEED THAT OF ALIGNMENT THE 150 HZ AND
PRODUCE A SIMILAR BUT OPPOSITE DEFLECTION. (FULL SCALE DEFLECTION = 2.5

WHEN THE AIRCRAFT IS OUTSIDE THIS COURSE DEG FROM THE CENTRE LINE)
GUIDANCE SECTOR, THE CDI IS REQUIRED TO PROVIDE FULL SCALE DEFLECTION.

BLOCK SCHEME OF THE ONBOARD COURSE BEACONS

SIGNAL RECEIVER

A plane flying approximately along the axis of approach,

however partially turned away to the left

A plane flying nearly in the approach axis

slighlty leaned out to the right

A plane flying exactly in the axis of approach

A plane situated out of reach of the VKV course

beacons signal

GLIDE SCOPE SUBSYSTEM

GUIDANCE TO TOUCH DOWN ZONE IN ELEVATION IS
PROVIDED BY TWO OVERLAPPING LOBES
PRODUCING ON INCLINED PLANE OF EQUI- SIGNAL.

IT CONSIST OF:
i. GLIDE SLOPE ANTENNA ARRAY (GROUND
EQUIPMENT)

ii.

GLIDE SLOPE SIGNAL RECEIVER (ONBOARD

EQUIPMENT)

GLIDE SCOPE ANTENNA ARRAY

THE TRANSMISSION OF THE LOBES FOR VERTICAL GUIDANCE IS IN UHF BAND
BETWEEN FREQUENCIES 329.30 AND 335.0 MHZ WITH 150 KHZ SPACING, PROVIDING 40
CHANNELS.

THE RADIATION IS ARRANGED SUCH THAT 150 HZ MODULATED SIGNAL LOBE IS BELOW
THE 90 HZ MODULATED LOBE AND THE PLANE OF EQUI-SIGNAL THUS FORMED,
NORMALLY DEFINES A SLOPE OF 3 TO THE HORIZONTAL.

A SLOPE OF APPROXIMATELY 3 INTERSECTS THE RUNWAY AT APPROXIMATELY 300M

(1,000 FT) FROM ITS BEGINNING AND PROVIDES A DESCENT OF 300 FEET FOR EVERY
ONE NM OF FORWARD TRAVEL.

GLIDE SCOPE RECEIVER

SIMILAR TO THE LOCALIZER IT RECEIVES, PROCESSES AND DISPLAYS
THE SIGNAL FROM THE GLIDE SLOPE ARRAY. GLIDE- SLOPE PATH
DISPLAY IS IDENTICAL TO THE LOCALIZER INDICATION.

IF THE AIRCRAFT IS ON 3 DEGREE GLIDE PATH, EQUAL AMOUNTS OF

THE 90 HZ AND 150 HZ ARE RECEIVED AND THE CDI WILL BE CENTERED.
NEEDLE INDICATES ABOVE/BELOW

IF THE AIRCRAFT IS ABOVE THE GLIDE PATH.

THE 90 HZ MODULATION
EXCEEDS CENTERED NEEDLE = CORRECT GLIDE PATH THAT OF THE 150
HZ AND PRODUCES A DEFLECTION ON THE CDI DOWNWARDS. THE
SENSITIVITY IS SET SO THAT THE IF THE AIRCRAFT IS BELOW THE FULLSCALE INDICATIONS OCCUR AT APPROX ESTABLISHED GLIDE PATH, THE
150 HZ 2.3 AND 3.7 DEGREES ELEVATION. MODULATION PREDOMINATES
AND PRODUCES A SIMILAR BUT OPPOSITE DEFLECTION.

A case when the aircraft is located right of the

runways axis and too high over the glide slope.

A case when the aircraft is located left of

the runways axis and too low under the
glide slope.

Both pointers in the middle the aircraft is located in the point of

intersection of the course and descent plane.

Figure 11 An example of the displayed GS pointer notifying a diversion

from the glide slope, a too weak received signal, or an obstacle on the way.

MAKER BEACONS
OM
(OUTER MARKER)

MM
(MIDDLE MARKER)

IN
(INNER MARKER)

RUN WAY LIGHT SYSTEM

THE INSTRUMENT DESIGNED TO PROVIDE VISIBILITY INFORMATION

IS CALLED A TRANSMISSOMETER.

IT IS NORMALLY LOCATED ADJACENT TO A RUNWAY. THE LIGHT

SOURCE IS SEPARATED FROM THE PHOTO-ELECTRIC CELL RECEIVER
BY 500 TO, 700 FT.

THE RECEIVER, CONNECTED TO THE INSTRUMENT READOUT IN THE

AIRPORT TOWER, SENSES THE REDUCTION IN THE LIGHT LEVEL
BETWEEN IT AND THE LIGHT SOURCE CAUSED BY INCREASING
AMOUNTS OF PARTICULATE MATTER IN THE AIR.

IN THIS WAY THE RECEIVER MEASURES THE RELATIVE

TRANSPARENCY OR OPACITY OF THE AIR. THE READOUT IS
CALIBRATED IN FEET OF VISIBILITY AND IS CALLED RUNWAY VISUAL
RANGE (RVR).

LIMITATIONS:
1. INSTALLATION OF ILS CAN BE COSTLY DUE TO THE COMPLEXITY OF THE ANTENNA SYSTEM
AND SITING CRITERIA.

2. 2. TO AVOID HAZARDOUS REFLECTIONS THAT WOULD AFFECT THE RADIATED SIGNAL, ILS
CRITICAL AREAS AND ILS SENSITIVE AREAS ARE ESTABLISHED. POSITIONING OF THESE
CRITICAL AREAS CAN PREVENT AIRCRAFT FROM USING CERTAIN TAXIWAYS. THIS CAN
CAUSE ADDITIONAL DELAYS IN TAKE OFFS DUE TO INCREASED HOLD TIMES AND
INCREASED SPACING BETWEEN AIRCRAFT.

3. 3. LOCALIZER SYSTEMS ARE SENSITIVE TO OBSTRUCTIONS IN THE SIGNAL BROADCAST

AREA LIKE LARGE BUILDINGS.

4. 4. IF TERRAIN IS SLOPING OR UNEVEN, REFLECTIONS CAN CREATE AN UNEVEN GLIDE

PATH CAUSING UNWANTED NEEDLE DEFLECTIONS.

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ENJOY THE FLIG