The US, the EU and its Member States have concluded an initial phase of consultations affirming user interoperability and enhanced performance of combined GPS and Galileo receivers.
Consultations under the auspices of the 2004 Agreement on the Promotion, Provision & Use of Galileo and GPS Satellite-Based Navigation Systems & Related Applications discuss matters regarding bilateral cooperation in the use of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS).
A working group designed to enhance cooperation for the next generation GPS and Galileo completed an assessment of the global, combined performance for GPS Space-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) receivers using the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) and the GPS Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) supporting safety-of-life applications. The results confirmed improved availability for a wide range of aviation services in both hemispheres and significantly improved robustness to GPS satellite outages.
The working group also completed an assessment of receivers integrating planned interoperable GPS III and Galileo open civil services.
The study compares GPS, Galileo, and GPS/Galileo combined performance for three receiver types using four study cases. The combination of GPS and Galileo services provided noteworthy performance improvements particularly in partially obscured environments, where buildings, trees or terrain block large portions of the sky.
Dual-frequency receivers provide additional improvements in most environments. This study illustrates benefits expected from future broadband signals on GPS and Galileo and other future GNSS systems.
The US and EU are starting a new phase of coordination focused on improving safety-of-life services, through the evolution of SBAS and ultimately using GPS and Galileo open signals with advanced receiver techniques for integrity monitoring. These activities may lead to new capabilities on future satellites in order to enable the best approach to achieve integrated integrity.
Both the US and the EU are members of the International Committee on GNSS (ICG), and will continue working together on compatibility and civil interoperability - not only between GPS and Galileo, but also with other global satellite navigation systems.