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Important Notice to GNS 430/530 Owners Regarding WAAS Upgrade
Order Before Nov. 15 to Lock in $1,500 Price
Garmin has announced a delay in the introduction of the WAAS upgrade for its GNS 430/530, GPS 400/500 and GNC 420 units. Garmin says the delay is due to the necessity of a major change to some key components including a major software rewrite. The upgrade is now projected to be available by the third quarter of 2006.
Well, what's the hold-up, some of the owners of these units want to know. Why is it taking so long, they ask. Why are some handheld GPS receivers already WAAS-enabled, but our aircraft GPS receivers are not? To help answer that question, let's take a quick look at what WAAS is...sort of how it works... and why performance requirements are different for aviation.
WAAS stands for Wide Area Augmentation System. Briefly, it's a system of 25 ground stations and 3 geostationary satellites that correct GPS position accuracy from its normal 15 meters (about 45 ft.) to within about 3 meters (around 9 ft.). Now, if you are depending on your handheld GPS for traffic directions while driving, or to locate a marina while cruising on your boat, it actually doesn't make a lot of difference if your GPS is off by 45 feet or only 9 feet. So there are no mandatory standards for accuracy, and no FAA certification is required. But it's different for aviation use, where lives are at stake.
The exciting thing about WAAS, to most pilots we talk with, is that its increased accuracy over GPS alone will provide vertical as well as lateral guidance to the landing, making possible ILS-type precision approaches at most airports in the U. S., using only a properly certified GPS-enabled receiver in the airplane. In addition to its extreme accuracy, that receiver will generate its own electronic glideslope without the need for costly ground-based equipment. To provide the capability in its GPS 400/500 boxes, Garmin is having to upgrade them from TSO C-129a standards, under which they are now certified, to TSO C-146a standards.
Garmin says, "The complexity of this important project has increased, as well as the R&D investment to design, build and certify our new WAAS-enabled antenna, receiver and associated software." Garmin goes on to say, "This upgrade will not only meet the WAAS TSO C-146a, but will include a significant hardware upgrade with a new and faster micro-processor for your unit. It will also give you a one-year warranty on your radio, regardless of its current age at the time of the upgrade.
Knowing Garmin as we do, we suspect they are pedaling as fast as they can, consistent with the need to maintain quality. In many areas of the country, published vertical approaches already outnumber ILS approaches, and that number is increasing. We hope that helps answer the question of why it is taking so long to get those WAAS-enabled systems in our aircraft.
Garmin is commited to delivering WAAS capability, at the previously promised price of $1,500, to current owners of its 400/500 units who order the upgrade before November 15, 2005. So, if you are a current owner of a Garmin 400/500 unit, and have not ordered the WAAS upgrade, we urge you to do so soon--at least before November 15, to lock in the $1,500 price. Call now to be sure you are on the list.
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