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On
Tuesday, a China Eastern Airlines Boeing Next-Generation 737-700 completed a flight into China's Lijiang Airport to validate the
capability and benefits of an advanced navigation method known as Required Navigation
Performance.
RNP uses global-positioning satellites and onboard flight-management systems to guide airplanes along precise flight paths with pinpoint
accuracy. RNP flight procedures provide operators a highly effective tool to enable safe and efficient operations in challenging terrain and
weather conditions, such as those at Lijiang, in the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains. Advanced arrival procedures like RNP will allow
airlines to significantly save on fuel and reduce flight delays by enabling airplanes to fly the most direct route to the runway.
Boeing,
Jeppesen, the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, and CEA have been working
together to expand new air traffic routes in China using this sophisticated technology. The RNP arrival and departure procedures for Lijiang
were designed by Jeppesen, a wholly-owned Boeing subsidiary.
Previously, Boeing teamed with CAAC and Air China in 2004 in a successful RNP demonstration at Lhasa Gongga Airport, with three world
firsts: first 757 RNP flight, first RNP flight at an airport with an elevation over 11,000 feet; and first RNP flight in Asia. Last year, Boeing in
cooperation with China Eastern Airlines, CAAC and the FAA completed a 737-700 RNP flight into Linzhi Airport in Tibet.
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