First GPS IIF Satellite Undergoes Environmental Testing
~ the U.S. Air Force GPS Wing and Boeing Corp. are set to begin environmental testing on the first GPS IIF satellite at the Boeing Spacecraft Development Center in El Segundo, California
~ the GPS IIF satellites will have all of the capabilities of the previous blocks
~ will feature an extended design life of 12 years, faster processors with more memory, and a third civil signal, L5
~ L5 signal will be augmented by the Federal Aviation Administration's Wide-Area Augmentation Systems (WAAS)
~ L5 is to improve the reliability and robustness of safety-of-life applications for commercial aviation
~ the satellite will progress through thermal vacuum, acoustic, and separation shock testing
~ before delivery to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in 2008 with a projected launch date in 2009
~ tests required to evaluate and qualify the integrated space vehicle design in the environments it will encounter during launch and on-orbit operations
~ critical to ensuring confidence in the vehicle design as well as characterizing the performance in a simulated space environment
~ the results of the tests performed on the first space vehicle will establish the baseline for the remaining GPS IIF fleet
~ Colonel David Madden is the commander of the GPS Wing at the Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base
~ the space vehicle program manager is Barbara O’Melia, John Duddy is the director of GPS Programs at Boeing

»Future of Navigation
GPS Modernization
~ the addition of two new navigation signals for civil use to the existing at 1575.42 MHz (L1)
~ L2C will be added on the existing L2 carrier, located at 1227.60 MHz for non-safety critical applications
~ the Block IIR-M satellite, the first to add his capability was launched September 25, 2005
~ L5 at 1176.45 MHz will be provided initially on GPS Block IIF satellites beginning in 2007
~ and continuing with the Block III satellites scheduled for launch beginning in 2012
~ L5 signal is protected worldwide for aeronautical radionavigation use
~ L5 will support aviation safety-of-life applications
~ L5 will make GPS a more robust radionavigation service for many aviation applications,
~ as well as all ground-based users (maritime, railways, surface, shipping, agriculture, recreation, etc.)
~ L1-C/A, L2C, and L5 will be available for initial operational capability by 2012, full operational ca. 2015

Benefits of L5
~ L5 will provide significant benefits above and beyond the capabilities of the current GPS constellation
~ and even after the planned second civil frequency (L2) becomes available
~ precision approach navigation worldwide
~ increased availability of precision navigation operations in certain areas of the world
~ improved interference mitigation

Precision Navigation Operations Worldwide
~ L5 will provide applications with continuous, highly accurate, three-dimensional position information
~ L5 offers the potential of providing precision approach capability throughout the footprint of a satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS) geostationary (GEO) satellite
~ outside the defined SBAS service areas, users in the footprint of these broadcasts will be able to use dual frequency avionics (L1 and L5)
~ L1 + L5 provide a precision approach capability with little or no ground infrastructure investment
~ these dual frequency avionics will use integrity data from augmentation system corrections that are broadcast from Geostationary Earth Orbit Satellites (GEOs) on L1 and L5
~ in the event of interference on either L1 or L5, these regions within the footprints,
~ can revert to non-precision approaches using GPS with integrity data from SBAS corrections broadcast on L1 or L5 or GPS
~ with receiver autonomous integrity monitoring (RAIM)

»Los Angeles Air Force Base GPS Wing

»ARINC
»Satellite-Based Navigation and Landing Systems for Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs)
~ ARINC Engineering Services develops both commercial and military applications of satellite navigation (SATNAV) technologies
~ is now applying that technology to the operation of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs)
~ ARINC’s technology allows satellite-guided, automated aircraft landings and flight tests—even in adverse electromagnetic environments
~ the technology shows great promise for civilian aviation applications
~ it includes positive aircraft control for taxi, takeoff, and landing, flying in terminal airspace, and monitoring
~ JPALS work for the Department of Defense has given ARINC the engineering depth to develop SATNAV applications for the commercial sector
~ ARINC is managing two JPALS automated landing programs for the U.S. Navy and Air Force
~ these proof-of-concept programs have achieved exceptional accuracy
~ yielded dozens of successful proof-of-concept landings both ashore and at sea

»FAA Navigation Services/GPS
»GPS IIF/III by Boeing