Can I install a TACAN receiver in my plane and use it to fly approaches under IFR?

RussR

RussR

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I'm a little ashamed, given my background, that I don't know the answer to this, but a coworker and I were discussing it. Can somebody who owns any normal GA airplane, let's say a Cessna 172, install a TACAN receiver and actually use it to fly TACAN approaches under IFR?

TACAN approaches, of course, are primarily a military thing. However, there are some civilian airports with TACAN approaches as well, most often joint-use airfields like Scott AFB/MidAmerica St Louis Airport but some others as well.

TACANs are only mentioned once in Part 91, and it's not a pertinent mention. Are there VOR-like TACAN checks (30 days or otherwise) referenced somewhere else?

Further background - I actually do fly "regular civilian" planes (King Airs) for work that are equipped with TACAN receivers, and we fly TACAN approaches all the time for inspection purposes under VFR. But we are specifically prohibited from flying them in IFR according to our OpSpecs, which is what brought up the question as the other pilot and I talked about it during an enroute leg last week. But, we're a very specialized-use, government aircraft. I do not know what level of approval installing a TACAN receiver in a "normal" civilian airplane would entail.
 
I’d guess if you picked up a BK TACAN receiver, there would be some info in the ICA that would shed light on the necessary calibration checks.
 
RussR said:
I'm a little ashamed, given my background, that I don't know the answer to this, but a coworker and I were discussing it. Can somebody who owns any normal GA airplane, let's say a Cessna 172, install a TACAN receiver and actually use it to fly TACAN approaches under IFR?

TACAN approaches, of course, are primarily a military thing. However, there are some civilian airports with TACAN approaches as well, most often joint-use airfields like Scott AFB/MidAmerica St Louis Airport but some others as well.

TACANs are only mentioned once in Part 91, and it's not a pertinent mention. Are there VOR-like TACAN checks (30 days or otherwise) referenced somewhere else?

Further background - I actually do fly "regular civilian" planes (King Airs) for work that are equipped with TACAN receivers, and we fly TACAN approaches all the time for inspection purposes under VFR. But we are specifically prohibited from flying them in IFR according to our OpSpecs, which is what brought up the question as the other pilot and I talked about it during an enroute leg last week. But, we're a very specialized-use, government aircraft. I do not know what level of approval installing a TACAN receiver in a "normal" civilian airplane would entail.
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I dunno but my guess is no, they don't want civilians to. SCATANA (google it) might have some provision for shutting down all the VHF and LF/MF stuff and just leave the TACANS on the air. Probably not a big deal in the GPS era, but it would prevent someone from homing in on a ship. Do you do Flight Checks? Is the FAA contracting that out now?
 
luvflyin said:
I dunno but my guess is no, they don't want civilians to. SCATANA (google it) might have some provision for shutting down all the VHF and LF/MF stuff and just leave the TACANS on the air. Probably not a big deal in the GPS era, but it would prevent someone from homing in on a ship. Do you do Flight Checks? Is the FAA contracting that out now?
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Yes, and no.

I am familiar with SCATANA from my time in ATC, but always thought it was more of an ATC function, not a limit on what you can install in your own plane.
 
RussR said:
Yes, and no.

I am familiar with SCATANA from my time in ATC, but always thought it was more of an ATC function, not a limit on what you can install in your own plane.
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Yeah. Point I was making is that maybe because of what it is about, it wouldn’t surprise me that there is some law/rule/reg that says civilians maybe shouldn’t be having TACAN. You said yes and no to my is Flight Check being contracted out question. Can you elaborate?
 
A triển of mine had a socata tb-30 that came with tacan. We just used it for dme.
 
luvflyin said:
You said yes and no to my is Flight Check being contracted out question. Can you elaborate?
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Sorry, I was being too brief and clever on my phone.

Do you do Flight Checks? Yes.

Is the FAA contracting that out now? No.
 
Military does its own flight checks as well for tactical gear. Depends on how the system will operate. We had an FAA Flight Check for our ATC gear in Thailand because it was going to be used for IFR ops. We also had military Flight Check for small scale exercises for VFR only ops.

Actually flew a Flight Check once in Kosovo. Picked up a CW5 from Skopje, he sat in the back with a fancy laptop with an antenna and we flew two PARs. One no gyro. Dropped him back off in Skopje, he hoped into a UC-35 and flew back to Germany. PAR was good to go for another year.
 
RussR said:
I'm a little ashamed, given my background, that I don't know the answer to this, but a coworker and I were discussing it. Can somebody who owns any normal GA airplane, let's say a Cessna 172, install a TACAN receiver and actually use it to fly TACAN approaches under IFR?

TACAN approaches, of course, are primarily a military thing. However, there are some civilian airports with TACAN approaches as well, most often joint-use airfields like Scott AFB/MidAmerica St Louis Airport but some others as well.

TACANs are only mentioned once in Part 91, and it's not a pertinent mention. Are there VOR-like TACAN checks (30 days or otherwise) referenced somewhere else?

Further background - I actually do fly "regular civilian" planes (King Airs) for work that are equipped with TACAN receivers, and we fly TACAN approaches all the time for inspection purposes under VFR. But we are specifically prohibited from flying them in IFR according to our OpSpecs, which is what brought up the question as the other pilot and I talked about it during an enroute leg last week. But, we're a very specialized-use, government aircraft. I do not know what level of approval installing a TACAN receiver in a "normal" civilian airplane would entail.
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Sounds like not much bang for the buck. The number of dual civil / military airports where you could land after the approach are rather limited.
 
Velocity173 said:
Military does its own flight checks as well for tactical gear. Depends on how the system will operate. We had an FAA Flight Check for our ATC gear in Thailand because it was going to be used for IFR ops. We also had military Flight Check for small scale exercises for VFR only ops.

Actually flew a Flight Check once in Kosovo. Picked up a CW5 from Skopje, he sat in the back with a fancy laptop with an antenna and we flew two PARs. One no gyro. Dropped him back off in Skopje, he hoped into a UC-35 and flew back to Germany. PAR was good to go for another year.
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Air Force did the Flight Check at Nam Phong in a C-140, aka Lockheed Jet Star. It checked the ASR and the PAR and probably the TACAN, I don’t remember. I dunno if it reached that far west of Saigon but, the FAA did run the Center there abouts.
 
It's always interesting to check your own reality. I'm based at/near a public airport with TACAN. I had never thought about it being rare. :rofl:
 
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