Mooney’s Acclaim Type S, Ovation 3, and Ovation2 GX have earned FAA approval to use Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS)-aided navigation and Safe-Taxi technology via amended Type Certificate. The systems work with the Garmin G1000 avionics’ GPS to ease pilot workloads in instrument conditions and better manage high traffic environments both in the air and on the ground, according to Mooney. Deliveries of WAAS-approved Mooney aircraft with the Safe-Taxi software upgrade will begin immediately. Upgrades to earlier aircraft are expected to become available in the second quarter, after Mooney establishes its pricing structure for retrofit packages. Mooney says the move to WAAS meets with the company’s determination to provide aircraft that are built with the ability to safely and efficiently perform in the same environment as turboprop business aircraft. Working in Mooney aircraft, the WAAS system can interface with the Garmin GFC700 autopilot and also generate a virtual glide path for more than 3,000 straight-in GPS and RNAV approaches already in the aircraft’s navigation system.
WAAS-augmented navigation provides positional accuracy to within 9 feet and with the FAA’s published LPV (lateral position with vertical guidance) allows approaches to general aviation airports down to minimums of less than 300 feet and three-quarters of a mile.
