ILA Statement of Radionavigation Policy

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	Statement of Radionavigation Policy (Amended 4/2001)
The International Loran Association (ILA) consists of organizations and individuals who advocate the continued implementation and use of the LOng RAnge radio Navigation system Loran-C¹throughout the world.
Since its inception in 1972 as the Wild Goose Association, (renamed the International Loran Association in 1994) the Association has followed the charter that states:
"The International Loran Association was formed to provide an organization for individuals who have a common interest in Loran and who wish to foster and preserve the art of Loran, to promote the exchange of ideas and information in the field of Loran, to recognize the advances and contributions to Loran, to document the history of Loran, and to commemorate fittingly the memory of its members."
As a stand-alone system, loran has served the international radionavigation community for more than half a century, first as Loran-A and subsequently as Loran-C. Other loran systems such as the military Loran-D and commercial versions, Pulse8²and Accufix², have been effective in serving local communities throughout the world.
In accordance with its charter, the ILA encourages the ongoing development and use of loran by providing a forum at its annual Convention and Technical Symposium for the interchange of ideas and discussion of technical and administrative matters.
More recently, the ILA has identified the complementary and supportive use of Loran-C and associated data communications technologies as necessary and critical components of the future mix of radionavigation and precise time distribution systems. The ILA’s focus has thus broadened to address integrated systems that employ Loran-C in a mix of satellite and terrestrial technologies, recognizing the benefits that accrue when these systems are used in concert.
The ILA also recognizes the pervasive use of satellite technology for positioning and precise time distribution, and is totally supportive of satellite-based systems when they are employed within their technical and operational limitations and in conjunction with complementary terrestrial systems. The Association strongly advocates the concept of diverse and dissimilar systems for critical applications that involve safety of life or protection of national infrastructures. The ILA advocates an orderly progression towards a diverse and dissimilar mix of satellite and terrestrial systems in all countries to provide a dependable service under adverse conditions.
The ILA is a professional technical organization that represents the service provider, manufacturers and users. In support of manufacturers and users, the Association advocates that all radionavigation and time distribution systems for use by the civil sector have transmitted signal specifications and signal availability formally published in appropriate international and/or national instruments and that the longevity of the service provided is clearly defined. Further, the ILA advocates that dynamic notice of signal condition and availability are broadcast to users in a timely manner.
The ILA supports the doctrine of the prudent navigator, which requires the availability of more than one system for navigating with safety and integrity. The ILA also supports precise time users, who require more than one source of precise time to maintain the integrity of the services they provide.
The ILA actively participates in national and international radionavigation and time distribution planning and practice by providing comments and suggestions for the generation of international and national plans, through the encouragement of its members to contribute to committees and associations, and by offering a professional forum for the interchange and discussion of ideas and data.
The ILA recognizes that there is a substantial amount of development work to be completed with Loran-C and associated technologies as the system spreads to worldwide use, and campaigns for the continued political, technical, and financial support of these activities.
¹In the context of this policy statement "Loran-C" is used generically to include the Russian equivalent system "Chayka". ²Pulse8 and Accufix are trademarks assigned to Megapulse, Inc.