What If GPS Doesnt?

Anything that can go wrong, will, and at the worst possible moment-so states Finagles corollary to Murphys Law. This notion is drilled into pilots from the beginning, so that it becomes second nature to have a plan to handle all sorts of potential failures that could be experienced in flight. Engine failure: check. Instrument and system malfunction: got it covered. Communication failure: no problem. GPS failure... Uhhh, what? Hang on a minute.

IFR Staff

Wednesday, April 12, 2017 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

GPS is highly vulnerable to interference from various sources, and current notification systems for outages are often insufficient, leading to pilots being unprepared for signal loss.
Increasing reliance on GPS, alongside the FAA's decommissioning of traditional navaids, creates a critical single point of failure that can severely impact navigation, ATC surveillance, and approach capabilities, particularly for general aviation.
Pilots must actively prepare for GPS outages by maintaining proficiency in traditional navigation methods, understanding their aircraft's backup capabilities, and considering the retention of legacy navigation equipment.

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Anything that can go wrong, will, and at the worst possible moment—so states Finagle’s corollary to Murphy’s Law. This notion is drilled into pilots from the beginning, so that it becomes second nature to have a plan to handle all sorts of potential failures that could be experienced in flight. Engine failure: check. Instrument and system malfunction: got it covered. Communication failure: no problem. GPS failure… Uhhh, what? Hang on a minute.

A reader recently told us about a GPS outage while flying VFR along airways over Arizona. The pilot reported no GPS signal for around 100 NM. Other general aviation and airline traffic in the area reported a similar loss, and ATC seemed to be taken by surprise as well.