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ANTENNAS
Each one on your aircraft has a different function
By Paul Novacek
Those poor antennas, they live a terrible life. Out in the wind, rain, ice, and sludge. Any postal worker could identify
with them. They are probably the most overlooked part of an avionics system, yet the most important. Except for a
few boxes (such as autopilots), avionics rely on antennas to talk with the outside world. Knowing the position,
function, and limitations of antennas may help explain some weird problems that may appear.
Most pilots can be dated by their terminology for these protrusions and lightning rods. The old-timers call them
aerials, but the term is gaining strength again. Today they come in many different shapes and sizes. Different antenna
manufacturers use slightly different shapes, but each antenna is basically formed by its function. Often, a wellequipped airplane will have an antenna farm on the belly, and trying to figure out what each antenna does can be
confusing. But taken one by one, those antennas are easier to understand. The frequencies at which they operate and
directional qualities usually determine their shape and placement.
Communication antennas
Loran antennas
The loran antenna is similar in size to the com antenna and sometimes the exact same shape, but it is different inside.
Most modern loran antennas have an amplifier built into the base to boost the signal, while some older systems use a
small amplifier mounted just inside the skin. A loran antenna can be either top- or bottom-mounted, but the receiver
must be configured for the antenna position. Often a loran signal problem can be isolated by bumping the antenna
slightly with your hand (no baseball bats here) while watching the signal levels on the loran display. A drop in signal
levels signifies a defective antenna or amplifier.
Loran systems are also susceptible to P-static interference, caused by a buildup of electrical charge as the aircraft flies
through rain or dust in the atmosphere. P-static can be greatly reduced by proper bonding of antennas and airframe
structures, especially the grounding straps between a control surface and the structure. Those static wicks on the wing
tips and tails are used to dissipate the static buildup, but are susceptible to bonding and deterioration problems. They
may not look deteriorated to you, but to an electron, a little bit of corrosion can render them useless.
Those vinyl stickers on the vertical fin are another little-known problem that often sends an avionics technician into
the aspirin bottle. The stickers have a tendency to attract static buildup and cause all kinds of interference.
Loop antennas
M
arker beacon antennas
Marker beacon signals are highly directional, which means you have to be almost directly over the transmitting
ground station to receive them; therefore, marker beacon antennas need to be on the bottom of the aircraft. There are
a few different types of marker antennas; the more common types look like little canoes about 10 inches long (Figure
3). These antenna systems are relatively simple and reliable, but they have the same delaminating problems as other
antennas.
For some installations, Cessna has used flush antennas that appear to be flat plates under the empennage. It also has
used an antenna that consists of a thick wire that protrudes straight down out of the empennage and then makes a
turn toward the tail (Figure 4). Both of those types have very few problems.
U
HF antennas
UHF antennas are commonly used for transponders and DMEs and are always found on the bottom of the aircraft.
They are about four inches long, and the same antenna is often used for both systems because the transponder
frequency is in the middle of the DME frequency band. Two types are commonly used, spike (Figure 5) and blade
(Figure 6) antennas. The spike should only be used for transponders, because the antenna length is tuned to one
frequency, the transponder frequency. The blade antenna is also called a broadband antenna because it is tuned for a
range of DME frequencies. A spike would not work very well for a DME; the blade antennas are preferred because the
radiation pattern is better and ice formation is less likely to break them.
The spikes are prone to caking up with oil, reducing the transmitting range. Often, just cleaning a spike antenna
doubles your transponder range and gets rid of those intermittent Mode C problems. The reason is that the ground
secondary radars need only one sweep to determine your squawk code (Mode A), but they need two good sweeps to
determine altitude information (Mode C). Hence, a dirty antenna may not conduct a good signal reliably. This goes
for all antennas; a dirty antenna does not perform up to its potential.
Nav antennas
The cat whisker antenna is poor at receiving signals from the side, and was developed for aircraft that fly low and
commonly track either directly to or from a station. The dual blade is just that, two blades, one on each side of the tail
(Figure 10). Thy towel bar resembles the common bathroom fixture, one on each side of the tail. The blade and towel
bar antennas are both "balanced loop" designs, which have equal receiving sensitivity from all directions. A balanced
loop antenna is required for area navigation (RNAV) systems, which rely on receiving stations much to the side of the
aircraft.
A single nav antenna almost always feeds both nav receivers and sometimes the glideslope as well. Therefore, a failure
in the nav antenna system would cause both systems to go down. In rare instances this same antenna also feeds the
marker beacon, but problems are created when the horizontal tail shadows the antenna from the marker beacon
transmitter.
GPS antennas
The GPS satellites transmit less than five watts of power, so by the time the signal reaches you, it is very, very weak.
Because of this, the GPS antenna has a built-in amplifier to boost the signal for the receiver. Additionally, the GPS
frequency is so high (in the gigahertz band) that the signals travel in a line-of-sight manner. This makes receiving the
signal susceptible to airframe shadowing, thus mandating that a GPS antenna be mounted at the very top of the
fuselage.
The communications radios can cause a lot of interference with GPS as a result of the proximity of the panel units or
their antennas. The reason is that GPS signals are so weak, and com signals are so very powerful (in relation). In fact,
an approach-approved GPS is tested for com interference during installation. Most barely pass. Therefore, it is
important that the com and GPS antennas be mounted as far apart as possible. Sometimes a com antenna must be
relocated to the bottom of the aircraft.
Suction-cup antennas, common with handheld GPSs, are shadowed by the aircraft structure when placed in the
window. Even if enough satellites are being tracked in level flight, a turn may cause some satellites to drop out. The
suction cup also tends to fall during turbulence. This is just one of the many reasons why IFR certification with a
handheld GPS will be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve (but the future is always surprising).
Radar altimeters
Radar altimeter antennas are simple, comprising either a single or dual antenna system. They look like plates about
six inches square and live on the bottom of the aircraft. The radar signal is transmitted straight down to bounce off
the ground. The time between transmitting and receiving the signal is measured and used to determine the distance
above the ground. Because of the high frequencies involved, a good electrical bond with the aircraft skin is important;
a poor bond may allow the system to talk to itself, which causes false readings.
The exceptions
There is always the exception to the rule when it comes to antenna shapes and their mounting, especially in the
kitbuilt aircraft arena. There are some interesting innovations for hiding antennas under those fiberglass skins. Real
estate is very scarce on an aircraft, and sometimes there is very little left for antennas. Helicopters and seaplanes have
precious little area to work with and antenna placement is very important. Every antenna location is a compromise
between a solid mounting, shadowing, other antenna interference, ground planes, and aerodynamics. But with a little
knowledge of their limitations and some care, they will live a life that any postal worker would envy.
So if you're contemplating a new avionics installation, don't skimp on the antennas; they're your link to all those good
waves out there in the atmosphere.