OMEGA HYPERBOLIC NAVIGATION

OMEGA was the first truly

global radio navigation system for aircraft, operated by the United States in cooperation with six partner nations.

Argentina Norway Liberia France Japan Australia

HISTORY
Developed by the United

States Navy for military aviation users

Was

approved for full implementation in 1968

Initially, the system was to

be used for navigating nuclear bombers across the North Pole to Russia
Later it was found useful

for submarines

John Alvin Pierce, the "Father of Omega," first

proposed the use of continuous wave modulation of VLF signals for navigation purposes in the 1940's.

RADUX
- measuring the phase difference of radio signals to compute a location solution

After experimenting with various frequencies,

he settled on a phase stable, 10 kHz transmission in the 1950's.

"OMEGA"
- last letter of the Greek alphabet

1950s

Ambiguity errors

Inertial Navigation System (INS) Transistor

1963

Omega Implementation Committee (OIC)

charged with designing the new navaid and, on the basis of their experiments, took the decisions about how Omega would work - the choice of frequencies, location of transmitters, power levels, etc.

Due to the high cost of constructing VLF antennas (Omega antenna towers were more than 1,200 feet in height), the first experimental transmissions were actually existing VLF communications stations that were modified for Omega transmissions

 Omega stations used

very extensive antennas in order to transmit their extremely low frequencies. Specifically, they used grounded or insulated guyed masts with umbrella antennas, or wirespans across fjords. Some Omega antennas were the tallest constructions on the continent where they stood or

1968

the U.S. Navy authorized full scale implementation of the Omega System transferred from the U.S.Navy to the U.S. Coast Guard Omega Navigation System Operations Detail (ONSOD)

1971

1983

Omega achieved full eight station implementation in 1983 and was used by several airlines flying long range routes over water as well as by military forces

OPERATION
Each

Omega station transmitted a very low frequency signal which consisted of a pattern of four tones unique to the station that was repeated every ten seconds. Because of this and radio navigation principles, an accurate fix of the receiver's position could be calculated. OMEGA employed hyperbolic radio navigation techniques and the chain operated in the VLF portion of the spectrum between 10 to 14 kHz.

By receiving signals from three stations, an

Omega receiver could locate a position to within 4 nautical miles using the principle of phase comparison of signals.

OMEGA STATIONS

 Trelew, Argentina - tallest construction in South America. On June 23, 1998

it was demolished after the OMEGA service was shut down.

Woodside, Victoria, Australia This mast is the highest construction in the southern hemisphere. Since the shutdown of OMEGA it is used as a transmitter for orders to submarines at 13 kHz

Due

to the success of the Global Positioning System the use of Omega declined during the 1990s, to a point where the cost of operating Omega could no longer be justified. Omega was permanently terminated on September 30, 1997 and all stations ceased operation.

Some of the stations, such as the LaMoure

station, are now communications.

used

for

submarine