Matt Thurber, editor-in-chief at AIN Media Group, has been flying since 1975 and writing about aviation since 1978 and now has the best job in the world, running editorial operations for Aviation International News, Business Jet Traveler, and FutureFlight.aero. In addition to working as an A&amp;P mechanic on everything from Piper Cubs to turboprops, Matt taught flying at his father’s flight school in Plymouth, Mass., in the early 1980s, flew for an aircraft owner/pilot, and for two summer seasons hunted swordfish near the George’s Banks off the East Coast from a Piper Super Cub. An ATP certificated fixed-wing pilot and CFII and commercial helicopter pilot, Matt is type-rated in the Citation 500 and Gulfstream V/550. Based in the Pacific Northwest, Matt and his team cover the entire aviation scene including business aircraft, helicopters, avionics, safety, manufacturing, charter, fractionals, technology, air transport, advanced air mobility, defense, and other subjects of interest to AIN, BJT, and FutureFlight readers.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

Honeywell has been testing alternative navigation technologies that could enable accurate navigation in GPS-denied environments, all without relying on a ground-based backup system such as eLoran. The three technologies are vision-, celestial-, and magnetic anomaly-aided navigation.

 


Vision-aided navigation uses cameras to gather live visual feeds and compare the position of the aircraft to mapping information. This technology has also been tested for drone navigation, as well as an <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2019-08-13/automatic-landing-tested-da42">autoland system</a> tested by Germany’s Technical University of Munich in a Diamond DA42. In Honeywell testing in a Leonardo AW139 helicopter and Embraer E170 airliner, engineers were able to create GPS-like performance, including a 67 percent performance improvement over earlier tests.

 


Celestial-aided navigation has a long history and, in modern times, star tracking is a principal navigation method for spacecraft. Honeywell tested the celestial-nav system in the E170, reaching an accuracy of 25 meters circular error probability of 50 percent, a 38 percent improvement over earlier testing.

 


According to Honeywell, “This is the first time a resident space objects-based (RSOs) navigation solution was demonstrated on an airborne platform, as most competing solutions rely only on star-based navigation.” RSOs are satellites orbiting earth, and Honeywell’s system tracks RSOs with a star tracker “to provide a passive, not jammable solution with GPS-like accuracy in GPS-denied or spoofed conditions.”

 


Finally, Honeywell said it “conducted the world’s first real-time magnetic anomaly-aided navigation on an airborne platform—the Embraer E170.” This method "measures earth’s magnetic strength and compares it with magnetic maps to accurately identify the position of the vehicle.” The tests were done on an embedded platform, not in “special environments to mitigate electromagnetic noise,” the company said, which is “a historic milestone.”

New developments and products in avionics, specifically about aircraft electronics in the cockpit.

When GPS Denied, Honeywell Has a Solution

Honeywell testing has shown that alternative navigation technologies can mitigate denial of GPS signals. 

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

News and issues about aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), covering all segments of the aviation industry; and modifications for aircraft and engines. Subjects include product support of aircraft, engines and avionics, MRO company mergers, acquisitions, announcements and personnel, Airworthiness Directives, Supplemental Type Certificate approvals and other topics.

News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, maintenance, operations, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security, and training.

New features add MultiScan radar and next-gen capabilities

Collins Announces Upgrades to King Air, Hawker Avionics

News and issues relating to international air transport and cargo carriers, national airlines and regional airlines, including aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.

Essential news and analysis on the defense aerospace business. Your trusted source for new and ongoing programs and requirements in military aircraft (manned and unmanned), engines, avionics, weapons and associated systems, including ground-based air defense.

Main security threat areas include Middle East conflict zones

GPS Spoofing Still a Problem for Aircraft Operators

Recent developments presage some compelling new products

Avionics Advancing Slowly but Surely into the Future

News and issues relating to civil and military unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) of all kinds and sizes, including those used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), combat (unmanned combat air vehicles, or UCAVs), law enforcement, research and other applications. Of particular focus is the FAA's planned integration of UAS into the U.S. national airspace system.

News and issues relating to the aerospace industry that are related to the science, engineering and business of flight in space involving civil, industrial and military applications, and similar topics related to flight in the atmosphere of the Earth that are not covered more directly by other AINonline subject channels. In other words, both astronautical and aeronautical subjects, except for those aeronautical topics that are specifically covered elsewhere on this website.

A sale of peripheral assets could net up to $12 billion for the aerospace and defense group

Jeppesen and ForeFlight Sale Could Yield $8B For Boeing

Charles Alcock

News and developments about airplanes, helicopters and unmanned air vehicles used in all varieties of operations, including airlines, military, business, commercial, general aviation and private.

News and developments about everything that goes into the cabin of an aircraft, from floor coverings to headliners, with a special emphasis on in-flight entertainment, communications and other electronics for passengers. If it is in the cabin of an aircraft, it’s covered here.

More In Avionics

Collins Announces Upgrades to King Air, Hawker Avionics

New features add MultiScan radar and next-gen capabilities

GPS Spoofing Still a Problem for Aircraft Operators

Main security threat areas include Middle East conflict zones

Avionics Advancing Slowly but Surely into the Future

Recent developments presage some compelling new products

Jeppesen and ForeFlight Sale Could Yield $8B For Boeing

A sale of peripheral assets could net up to $12 billion for the aerospace and defense group

Hermeus Installs Starlink for Beyond-line-of-sight Tests

Start-up is developing a family of hypersonic aircraft using air-breathing propulsion

Aerodata Backup GPS Approved for Anti-spoofing/jamming

Vulnerability to bad actors is a critical aviation issue

Beta’s Electric Airplane Debuts Garmin G3000 Prime Avionics

Garmin introduced the third-generation flight deck last month

Global Aviation STCs ClearVision EFVS in King Airs

Approval enables operators to add head-up display to King Air turboprops

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN