Earlier this month, the Garmin GNS 480 earned the industry's first TSO C146a Gamma-3 certification, which enables pilots to fly Localizer-Precision with Vertical (LPV) guidance approaches and receive primary-means GPS navigation via the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS).

Ten years ago, Garmin was the first avionics manufacturer to demonstrate the Initial Operating Capability of the Global Positioning System (GPS) by certifying the GPS 155 TSO for non-precision GPS approaches in IFR conditions.

"In 1994, we proved that pilots could rely on satellite navigation for IFR operations and that event has changed the course of aviation," said Gary Kelley, Garmin's director of marketing.

"We believe certification of the GNS 480 for LPV approaches is equally significant, because it provides pilots with primary GPS guidance during all phases of flight and opens the possibility of shooting an ILS-like approach into thousands of airports that are not currently served by an ILS."

As the first panel-mount avionics system approved for LPV approach operations, the GNS 480 meets the highest level of certification for WAAS navigation. The GNS 480 utilizes satellite-based navaids for precise lateral and vertical approach guidance - similar to Instrument Landing System (ILS) operations - without the need for ground-based navaids of any kind.

The Gamma-3 level of certification makes the GNS 480 the only WAAS navigator approved to fly the FAA's new LPV approaches. The FAA has begun to deploy these new landing procedures, which will support instrument approaches with lateral and vertical guidance using the most stringent standards.

The GNS 480 has an innovative 15-channel WAAS receiver that updates the aircraft's position at a rate of five times per second. Like Garmin's other integrated avionics, the GNS 480 provides oceanic-approved IFR GPS/NAV/COM functionality and VOR/ILS capabilities - but does so on a 3.8-inch (diagonal), 256-color moving-map display.

Approved for installation on more than 700 aircraft, the GNS 480 is currently available at a suggested retail price of $11,995.

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