Excessive GPS Outage in the Southeast

[Ed_Wischmeyer]

There will be GPS interference testing, on and off for essentially the entire month of January, centered on far southeastern Georgia. Based on geography, this is probably being done by the Navy.

https://www.faasafety.gov/files/noti...t_Advisory.pdf

There are several things wrong with this testing:
* The NOTAM says that GPS may be "unreliable." They don't say what this means, but it might mean that your GPS will give incorrect positions, and you won't know it;
* This is entirely too long for the testing. One day of testing, perhaps, especially if it's a VFR day to minimize inconvenience for those of us for whom GPS is the main or even sole source of radionavigation. But a full month? No.

Yes, our military needs to test things from time to time, but the diver has left the springboard, and GPS is no longer a military-only resource for them to turn on and off at their convenience for however long they may feel like.

AOPA says that these kinds of tests are sometimes changed based upon public input. Personally, I'm going to contact my congressman and encourage him to raise **** with (presumably) the Navy.

[Ed_Wischmeyer]

Here's an AOPA article talking about their participation in the process:

https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/...tage-impact-2/

[tspear]

If we want GPS to truly be a civilian system, then it needs to be funded in such a way.
It was and is a military system. As such, we have to expect this.

Tim

[JoeLofton]

A couple of years ago I lost the GPS signal to my Garmin 796 and Trutrak ADI while maneuvering VFR though the crowded El Paso airspace (restricted areas, El Paso airport and Biggs Army Airfield, international border). Discovered later that the Army was conducting interference testing in the area. To my surprise my iPad mini kept a GPS position lock. Apparently the iPad uses both the US and Russian GPS systems, and the GLONAS signal was available. Using the sectionals on the iPad and look-out-the-window techniques I cruised on through without incident. Could have done it without the GPS location, but the stress level would have gone up considerably.

[RVbySDI]

Originally Posted by JoeLofton

A couple of years ago I lost the GPS signal to my Garmin 796 and Trutrak ADI while maneuvering VFR though the crowded El Paso airspace (restricted areas, El Paso airport and Biggs Army Airfield, international border). Discovered later that the Army was conducting interference testing in the area. To my surprise my iPad mini kept a GPS position lock. Apparently the iPad uses both the US and Russian GPS systems, and the GLONAS signal was available. Using the sectionals on the iPad and look-out-the-window techniques I cruised on through without incident. Could have done it without the GPS location, but the stress level would have gone up considerably.

Works out for VFR. Wonder what it would have been like in IMC on an IFR flight?

[airguy]

Originally Posted by RVbySDI

Works out for VFR. Wonder what it would have been like in IMC on an IFR flight?

Radar vectors.

[rv7charlie]

Originally Posted by tspear

If we want GPS to truly be a civilian system, then it needs to be funded in such a way.
It was and is a military system. As such, we have to expect this.

Tim

Tell that to the FAA the next time they decommission another ground based nav transmitter and/or ILS in their nextgen program. While you've got them on the phone, ask them about how they'll protect you from other traffic using ADSB while GPS is being jerked with.

Oh, and who paid for that 'military' system?

[Raymo]

Originally Posted by rv7charlie

Oh, and who paid for that 'military' system?

My thought, exactly. It is our system.

[KRviator]

Originally Posted by tspear

If we want GPS to truly be a civilian system, then it needs to be funded in such a way.
It was and is a military system. As such, we have to expect this.

Tim

It is. Galileo, Glonass and others are civillian systems, and presumably will be jammed too.

Australia now relies almost exclusively on GPS for IFR navigation and ADS-B position source information. ASA decommisioned the majority of VOR's and NDB's a few years ago.

An example: Here's the remaining VOR coverage nation-wide, at 10,000'. Good luck if you are flying anywhere remotely regional...

[Auburntsts]

For anyone who really wants to know the ins and outs of the GPS system, I suggest heading over to https://www.gps.gov/ to learn the real scoop as there's some mis-info in this thread.