The FAA has issued a flight advisory for GPS interference testing. Here's the notice:

https://www.faasafety.gov/files/notices/2016/Jun/CHLK_16-08_GPS_Flight_Advisory.pdf

GPS testing is scheduled as follows and may result in unreliable or unavailable GPS signal.
A. Location: Centered at 360822N1173846W or the BTY VOR 214 degree radial at 059 NM.
B. Dates and times:
7 JUN 16 1630Z – 2230Z
9 JUN 16 1630Z – 2230Z
21 JUN 16 1630Z – 2230Z
23 JUN 16 1630Z – 2230Z
28 JUN 16 1630Z – 2230Z
30 JUN 16 1630Z – 2230Z

Map - this is pretty big coverage area.

This happens on a fairly regular basis out here in the SW (NM, NV, AZ, CA). It has been going on for years, and I have yet to experience an issue. On the other hand, I'm not flying a EMB-300 Phenom.
http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/medi ... MB-300.pdf

How do they generate that GPS interference- by setting off an EMP?
That's a huge area. Maybe just signal disruption at the source (satellite)?

AOPA says that the huge GPS interference testing has been cancelled by the Navy. Now there's a much smaller one for the Fort Carson, CO area, for June 17th, which has a maximum radius of about 16 nm. https://www.faasafety.gov/files/notices ... visory.pdf That'll probably not affect much of anyone, other than some Phenom 300 landing or taking off from KCOS.

Cary

Is it just me, or does anyone else think that this type of testing is getting to the point of being crazy and irresponsible in an era where more and more aircraft are flying pretty much solely by GPS reference, and the ATC system is (supposedly) in the process of switching over to the "NextGen" ADS-B (read GPS) based technology? Going by population, I would suspect that the "as proposed" SOCAL GPS interference testing could have potentially affected something like 20-25% of the aircraft in the US... Seems like there is a new "test" NOTAM almost every week... Gotta wonder what benefit is being gained by all of these tests.

JP256 wrote:Is it just me, or does anyone else think that this type of testing is getting to the point of being crazy and irresponsible in an era where more and more aircraft are flying pretty much solely by GPS reference, and the ATC system is (supposedly) in the process of switching over to the "NextGen" ADS-B (read GPS) based technology? Going by population, I would suspect that the "as proposed" SOCAL GPS interference testing could have potentially affected something like 20-25% of the aircraft in the US... Seems like there is a new "test" NOTAM almost every week... Gotta wonder what benefit is being gained by all of these tests.

I tend to agree. When I'm VFR, it's no big deal--pilotage and ded reckoning works just as well today as it did 40+ years ago. And I do keep my VORs (both on my 430W and my #2 navcom) tuned when I'm IFR, just in case. But often times, a "direct to" GPS routing means I'm not on airways, so it would take some jockeying to get onto the airways if the GPS were to go TU. And if it were to happen during a GPS approach, that would create all sorts of problems!

Cary