Honeywell is closing in on certification for a host of long-awaited avionics upgrades intended to expand the capabilities of many Gulfstream and Dassault business jets.
The Phoenix avionics manufacturer reported last month it is wrapping up simulator and flight testing that will add functionality for future air navigation system (Fans1/A); wide-area augmentation system localizer performance with vertical guidance (Waas LPV); and required navigation performance special aircraft and aircrew authorization required (RNP Saaar) operations in PlaneView-equipped Gulfstreams. Honeywell also said it has delivered “load software” for these capabilities to Dassault, along with the promised synthetic-vision upgrade for EASy-equipped Falcons announced last fall.
Fans1/A, used on oceanic flight routes, enables text-based datalink communications between pilots and controllers. Waas LPV is a GPS instrument approach type that provides ILS-like landing minimums (as low as 200-foot decision height) without the need to erect costly ground stations. There are now more than 1,300 Waas LPV approaches in the U.S., versus fewer than 1,000 ILS approaches. RNP SAAAR is a special type of procedure that allows suitably equipped aircraft flown by appropriately trained crews to fly extremely precise (0.1-nm lateral accuracy) tracks, including curved approach courses. The FAA permits Honeywell to assist aircraft operators seeking RNP SAAAR approval through the company’s recently launched Go Direct Services.
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