Required navigation performance (RNP) procedures designed by Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen for operations at Linzhi airport in the mountainous region of Tibet were yesterday demonstrated by a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-700.

Boeing in a statement says it worked in cooperation with Jeppesen, China Eastern, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and the US FAA on the RNP demonstration into Linzhi.

The RNP arrival and departure procedures were designed by Jeppesen, it adds.

The Linzhi facility lies at an elevation of 9,670ft (2,950m). Chinese operators are working to implement RNP technology in areas with difficult terrain and weather like Tibet and Sichuan in hopes of expanding safe and efficient operations in the country.

“I'm pleased that the Boeing family continues to build on its long history of partnering with the Chinese government, regulatory agencies and airlines to advance aviation in China,” says Boeing VP of regulatory affairs Chet Ekstrand.

“Working together, we are enabling access to locations previously inaccessible by air, and truly bringing the people of the world together as never before.”

Air China began trialling RNP in Tibet last year as part of China’s larger plan to expand RNP operations throughout the country. The project also involved Boeing and Naverus, the Seattle-based company that helped develop RNP approaches for Canada’s WestJet Airlines.

In September 2006, Air China received CAAC approval to use RNP at Linzhi, after successfully completing flight tests of the procedures on a Boeing 757.

RNP operations require specially equipped flight management systems in the cockpit and satellite navigation technology which allow crews to fly into and out of airports without using traditional ground-based navigational aids.

RNP is especially useful in high-terrain airports with complex approaches that must be closed during bad weather. Under RNP, airlines can operate into these types of airports with lower weather minimums.

 

 

Source: FlightGlobal.com

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