GPS Service In Florida, Other Southern States, Atlantic Ocean May Be Unreliable

The FAA has announced that it will be conducting GPS testing over the next several days that may affect large areas of the southeast United States.

The testing is scheduled for December 7-11 and will be centered at 300500N/0800500W or the Ormond Beach VOR (OMN) 055 degree radial at 71nm. The testing may result in unreliable or unavailable GPS signal, the FAA said.

The specific schedule is as follows:
-07 DEC 13 1400Z – 1800Z 2000Z – 2359Z
-08 DEC 13 0000Z – 0100Z 1300Z – 1800Z
-09 DEC 13 1400Z – 1900Z
-10 DEC 13 1700Z – 2300Z
-11 DEC 13 1600Z – 2100Z

Each event may last the entire requested period.

According to an FAA advisory, the GPS signal may be unreliable or unavailable during testing within a 335NM radius centered at 300500N/0800500W or the OMN VOR 055 degree radial at 71 NM at FL400 and above, decreasing in area with decrease in altitude to 285NMR at FL250, 220NMR at 10,000 FT MSL, 182NMR at 4,000 FT AGL and 139NMR at 50 FT AGL.

Pilots are strongly encouraged to report anomalies during testing to the appropriate ARTCC to assist in the determination of the extent of GPS degradation during tests. The NOTAMs discussed in this advisory may change with little or no notice. Pilots are advised to check NOTAMs frequently for possible changes prior to operations in the area. NOTAMs will be published at least 24 hours in advance of any GPS tests.

FMI: Advisory