Dear Friends and Colleagues,

It was a great honour to be elected President of the International Loran Association last year. I am proud – each of us should be proud – of being part of an incredibly co-operative, supportive, innovative and resilient community.  Our last two conventions have demonstrated just what can be achieved when like-minded people pull together for a common cause.

Let’s get straight to the issue at hand.  At the time of writing, the US has decided to turn off its Loran-C system.  Let me just quote Glen Gibbons, ‘We have to hope that it won’t take the cinematic plagues — locusts, rivers of blood, deaths of first-born children — to correct the gaping security hole in our critical national infrastructure for positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT)’.  You know we are in good company when Dr Bradford Parkinson, the ‘Father of GPS’, describes cancelling the US Loran-C program as a ‘very, very bad decision’.

GNSS vulnerability is real.  In the past month we have heard how a GPS software update is wreaking havoc with some military and civil receivers. We have heard the US Air Force Chief of Staff say that the US must lessen its dependence on GPS and develop alternatives, and we have heard officials confirm that GPS has been jammed or interfered with recently.

Uses need resilient and cost-effective PNT and a systemic backup is the best solution.  Only with a systemic PNT backup can users benefit from short-term of economies of scale, existing networks – technological, business and regulatory - and long-term lower average costs.

At this point, I want to remind you that our Association is truly international and that there is growing support for Loran.  The Marine Director of the International Chamber of Shipping has said that ‘a terrestrial alternative is an important priority’.  IALA has encouraged its members with Loran/Chayka to retain it and make plans to upgrade it to eLoran.  There is growing interest and support in Europe and some fascinating developments in the Far East.  Even in the US, I understand that those elements of the current Loran-C infrastructure that could or would likely be used in an eLoran scenario, will be maintained until the ongoing analysis been completed.                                                                                           
We now need to be clear about our objectives and to pursue them vigorously.

Is it our objective to foster the international growth of eLoran?  Yes.

Is it our objective to promote co-ordination between nations and institutions to increase co-operative activities, to establish uniform standards, and to optimise benefits to all users?  Most definitely.

Finally, is it our objective to retain Loran or is it to retain an existing 100kHz system that provides a cost-effective systemic backup to mitigate well-known GNSS vulnerabilities with all the associated benefits?  I would argue for the latter.  After all, what's in a name?

We now need the ILA more than ever.  It is the only international forum for the exchange of ideas and information regarding eLoran and its integration with GNSS.  Europe and the Far East need to learn from the work that has been done in the US.  In the future, I fully expect the US to return to Loran and it will then need to take on board developments in Europe and the Far East.

More importantly, the ILA needs you more than ever.  You are the World’s critical mass of skill, knowledge and experience on Loran.  We now need to pull together and to hold on to our values: be co-operative and mutually supportive, seek opportunities for innovation and, above all, be resilient.  Please contact the ILA Secretary and find ways of supporting your Board of Directors.

Finally, I urge you to support the US Loran Industry Working Group as it seeks ways of creating eLoran from the ashes of Loran‑C in the US.

Best regards

Dr. Sally Basker
President, ILA

 
 

 


For the Very Latest....
Crossrate Technology, among other organizations around the world, has been following closely the decision-making process in the US regarding Loran and eLoran. Visit Crossrate's web site for late news.
Current News
On February 7, 2008, the United States Department of Homeland Security announced that eLoran is adopted as the national backup system to GPS for position, navigation, and timing. Click here for the Press Release 

Visit the News page for other recent Loran news/announcements.
Learn About eLoran
The Enhanced Loran (eLoran) Definition Document was developed in 2006 at the United States Coast Guard Navigation Center by an international team of authors and was published by the ILA in 2007. Click here for the Enhanced Loran (eloran) Definition Document.
Become a Member Today
The ILA was formed to provide a forum for those individuals who have a common interest in Loran, and who are committed to the system's growth and advancement. If this describes you, become an ILA member today by clicking here.
Visit Our Library
If you are interested in reading papers about Loran, viewing recent presentations by our members, or researching the ILA Archives, please visit our Library. Please note file size when you begin downloading, some files may be large and require some time to download.