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 navigation is vulnerable to outages and jamming, often with insufficient warning via current NOTAM systems, leading to unpreparedness among pilots and ATC.
Increasing pilot reliance on GPS, coupled with the FAA's VOR decommissioning program, creates a critical single point of failure that can severely impact navigation and situational awareness.
Pilots must develop robust contingency plans for GPS failures, including maintaining proficiency in traditional navigation methods (VOR/DME), practicing raw-data approaches, and considering legacy equipment as vital backups.

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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.