A Complete Manual for Conducting International Flight Operations

Performance Based Navigation

Different sections of the world have different requirements with respect to navigation accuracy requirements. Crewmembers shall review and become familiar with the levels of accuracy required in the airspace in which they intend to operate. The best source of information regarding navigation performance can be found in ICAO Doc 7030. Should an aircraft exceed the limits for the airspace, a written report of the Gross Navigational Error may be required. Pilots shall also submit a NASA Report or Safety Management System report and advise maintenance if the GNE was due to an aircraft equipment malfunction.

NORTH ATLANTIC AIRSPACE

MNPS- Minimum Naviagation Performance Airspace

NAT DOC 007 - The lateral deviation shall be less than 6.3 NM or the portion of the total flight time spent by the aircraft 30 NM or more off the cleared track shall be less than 5.3 X 10-4 or the portion of total flight time spent by the aircraft between 50-70 NM off the cleared track shall be less than 13X 10-5.

EUROPEAN  NAVIGATION REQUIREMENTS

B-RNAV

P-RNAV

Is the common level of accuracy required to navigate via airways in most European countries. B-RNAV states that the aircraft is capable of navigating with within an accuracy of 5 NM 95% of the time. Pilots shall determine their aircraft is capable of the required level of accuracy and shall verify approval to do so by referencing Operations Specification B50 and B34.

 Is the common level of accuracy required to navigate in terminal areas in most European countries. P-RNAV states that the aircraft is capable of navigating within an accuracy of 1 NM 95% of the time.

 

Crewmembers shall determineif  their aircraft is capable of the required level of accuracy and shall verify approval to do so byreferencing FAAA  Operations SpecificationB50 and B344 or relevant LOA (Letter of Authorization)4

AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND, AND JAPAN NAVIGATION REQUIREMENTS

RNP-4

Is the common level of accuracy required to navigate in Australia, New Zealand and Japan. RNP-4 states that the aircraft is capable of navigating with within an accuracy of 4 NM 95% of the time. Pilots shall determine their aircraft is capable of the required level of accuracy and shall verify approval to do so by referencing Operations Specification B50. It is also important to note that RNP-4 requires that operators be approved for CPDLC and must have an ADS-B out installation on the aircraft according to FAA Order 8400.33. Your company may or may not have RNP-4 authorization.

RNP-10

Is the common level of accuracy required to navigate in most of the CEP. RNP-10 states that the aircraft is capable of navigating with within an accuracy of 10 NM 95% of the time. Pilots shall determine their aircraft is capable of the required level of accuracy and shall verify approval to do so by referencing FAA Operations Specification B50 or the relevant LOA.

RNP-1

In many places the term RNAV and RNP are used interchangeably and possibly even incorrectly, i.e. RNP-10 actually functions as RNAV-10 airspace. Regardless, RNAV-1 and RNP-1 both state that the aircraft will be reliably located within 1 NM for 95% of the time. RNP equipment, however, has monitoring capabilities that will alert the crew when the probability exceeds 99.999% that the position will fall outside double the tolerance of the airspace. U.S. guidance regarding RNP airspace is published in AC 90-105.

APPROACHES, ARRIVALS, & DEPARTURES

RNP- AR Approaches

AR implies Authorization Required. Guidance to flight crews is provided by the FAA in AC 90-101A. Crewmembers may or may not have Operations Specifications for RNP-AR procedures. RNP-AR procedures differ from RNP procedures in that RNP-AR will have RNP values less than 0.3 NM for final approach segments, and they will include RF legs. RF legs are constant radius turns around a fix as seen on the far right.

 

The minimums for the approach will also be based upon the level of RNP performance that the navigation system is capable of. In the example for Reagan National the RNP value is 0.11 for a DA(H) of 475’ (462’). RNP-AR approaches will also always incorporate BARO-VNAV capability.

RNAV-1/RNAV-2 Arrivals and Departures

RNAV-1/RNAV-2 procedures are utilized in the United States on routes including (non-overwater) Q-Routes and T-Routes and terminal SID’s and STARS. Guidance for flight operations utilizing RNAV-1 and RNAV-2 is taken from AC90-100A and company specific procedures.

 

Generally, SIDS and STARS are conducted utilizing RNAV-1, and RNAV routes would be conducted utilizing RNAV-2. RNAV-1 requires a total system error of not more than 1 NM for 95% of the time. RNAV-2 requires a total system error of not more than 2 NM for 95% of the time. It is important to note that RNAV- 1/RNAV-2 may be based on DME/DME, VOR/DME and IRS/IRU position solutions as well as GPS. Procedures that do not allow RNAV-1/RNAV-2 using ground based navaids should indicate as such on the procedure. When conducting RNAV-1/RNAV-2 flight operations, it is not necessary to have the ground based navigational aids tuned and identified.

 

Flight operations conducted utilizing only GPS must perform a RAIM check to insure that GPS will be available for the intended route of flight. A RAIM check may be performed by referencing NOTAM’s for GPS outages, using the aircraft specific navigation equipment for performing a RAIM check or using the FAA RAIM prediction website or approved 3rd party vendor. If it is determined at any point along the intended route of flight that RAIM will not exist for more than 5 minutes, the flight will be delayed, re-routed or rescheduled.

 

When loading a RNAV-1/RNAV-2 procedure into the FMS, it is recommended that it first be determined that the FMS database is current and that the RNAV procedure is loaded in its entirety from the database (as opposed to entering each individual fix). If it is determined that the RNAV procedure is missing a fix, it is permissible for pilots to insert the missing fix using the fix name, i.e. BOACH intersection. It is not acceptable for a pilot to enter a fix using the latitude and longitude or the point bearing and distance.

 

It is recommended procedure that pilots utilize the aircraft flight director and autopilot and confirm that the half-bank mode is NOT selected in order to ensure that the aircraft remains within the tolerances of the RNAV procedure. For instance, the scaling for an RNAV-1 procedure will permit .5 NM on either side of the route, however BRIEF deviations up to 1 NM would be allowable in the case of an overshoot or undershoot.

 

Should the loss of RNAV capability occur while conducting an RNAV procedure, the flight crew shall immediately advise ATC of such and request an amended clearance.

 

Revision date: July 29, 2015

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