Garmin 3600a Installation Instruction

The Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) is an 

FAA-funded project to improve the overall integrity 

of the GPS signal and increase position accuracy for 

users in North America. 
The system is made up of satellites and approximately 

twenty-five ground reference stations positioned 

across the United States that monitor GPS satellite 

data. Two master stations, located on either coast, 

collect data from the reference stations and create a 

GPS data correction message. 
According to the FAA’s Web site, testing in September 

2002 of WAAS confirmed an accuracy performance 

of 1–2 meters horizontal and 2–3 meters vertical 

throughout the majority of the continental United 

States and portions of Alaska.
WAAS is just one service provider that adheres to the 

MOPS (Minimum Operational Performance Standard) 

for global Satellite Based Augmentation Systems 

(SBAS). Eventually, there will be several services of 

worldwide geostationary communication satellites and 

ground reference stations. 

All SBAS systems use the same receiver frequency. 

Therefore, any operational SBAS system should be 

capable of providing your GPS unit with increased 

accuracy at any location in the world. 
Currently, enabling WAAS on your Garmin iQue 

3600a in regions that are not supported by ground 

stations may not improve accuracy, even when 

receiving signals from an SBAS satellite. In fact it 

can degrade the accuracy to less than that provided by 

GPS satellites alone. For this reason, when you enable 

WAAS on your Garmin GPS receiver, the receiver 

automatically uses the method that achieves the best 

accuracy. To enable WAAS, refer to 

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