Establishing Aerodrome Reference Point (ARP) in WGS-84 Co-ordinate System and GPS Survey of Indian Airports
B K Srivastava
GM (Cartography)
Airports Authority of India
India
bksrivastava@AAI.AERO
K Ramalingam , Srikishan
Abstract
Geodetic datum problems and discrepancy in position of aircraft in flight were noticed due to use of different co-ordinate systems in Europe. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) recommended adoption of WGS-84 as the standard geodetic reference system for civil air operations. Accordingly there was a requirement to establish Reference Stations in WGS-84 System at various airports and to conduct actual physical survey by using GPS, so as to, find out the precise and absolute geographical co-ordinates of various airport facilities and radio navigational aids etc. in WGS-84 System.1
For such work, Airports Authority of India (AAI) used “dual frequency geodetic GPS receivers” at its seven International Airports and also at nine major domestic & operationally important domestic airports in India to establish permanent reference stations in WGS-84 at the Aerodrome Reference Point (ARP) there3, and then conducted physical survey by using GPS and other precise survey equipments to determine WGS-84 co-ordinates for Aerodrome facilities and Radio navigational aids. The accuracy obtained was about 5 cms in terms of horizontal and vertical positions, as a result of use of highly accurate equipments. Some more airports are also being covered for establishing ARP and for collection of aeronautical data in WGS-84 system by physical survey. Finally all operational civil airports in India are proposed to be surveyed in this manner. Such data is being used for flight planning, operation of aircrafts, preparation of aeronautical charts and for other operational purposes for the use of airlines, pilots, Air Traffic Control (ATC) and for other aeronautical agencies associated with aviation activity. The details of establishing ARP in WGS-84 at civil Airports in India and surveying those airports for collection of data in WGS-84 System for the entire airport is presented in this paper.