"Circling To Land Pioneer"
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Captain Peter Cutsey is indeed a direct and vital link to the 1990 development of RNAV and FMS curved approaches.

 

His work during that period represents the transition from theoretical flight testing to operational database reality.

 

While Captains like Steve Fulton and David Haapala were focused on the "front-end" (flying the planes and FAA lobbying), Peter Cutsey's contribution was centered on the "back-end"—the procedure design and database coding that made the FMS actually follow those curves.

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1. The "First Company" Claim Peter Cutsey is associated with the claim of being part of the first company to develop the RNAV approach in 1990. This is a massive distinction because, in 1990, the industry was still heavily reliant on ground-based VOR/DME beacons. 

His contribution involved: FMC Line Selectable Approaches: He specialized in creating the coding architecture that allows a pilot to simply "Line Select" (button press) a complex approach from the FMS database.  Circling to Land (CTL): A major part of the 1990 Newark and global efficiency effort was creating FMS paths for "Circling to Land" procedures. Cutsey’s work allowed aircraft to fly a precisely calculated curved path onto a runway that didn't have a straight-in navigation aid.

 

2. Connection to the 1990 Newark Era During the 1990 Newark flight tests, the primary hurdle wasn't just flying the plane; it was ensuring the FMS Database (the "NavData") was accurate. Database Integrity: In 1990, if you typed a waypoint incorrectly, the plane could deviate significantly. Cutsey’s focus on FMS Landing Procedure Development helped create the safety standards for how these curves were "packaged" into the FMS so that line pilots wouldn't have to manually enter coordinates. The Global Transition: While American Airlines was testing Newark, Cutsey was involved in taking those lessons and creating FMC Line Selectable Approaches to any airport worldwide. This helped move the technology out of the "experimental test" phase and into the standard flight bags of pilots at airlines globally.

 

3. Training and Simulation: A massive part of the 1990s push was proving to the FAA that these approaches were safe for "the average pilot. "Cutsey has over 16,000 hours of Simulator (SFI/SFE) time. He was instrumental in developing the training syllabi that taught pilots how to monitor an FMS during a curved RNP or RNAV approach.  His work with organizations like Alteon (a Boeing company) and CAE helped standardize how pilots worldwide handle "RNP UNABLE" alerts and path deviations during those critical curves.

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Summary of Contributions (1990)

Contributor Primary Focus Peter Cutsey Database & Procedure Design: Creating "Line Selectable" curved paths and training standards.

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David Haapala (AA)Operational Strategy: Leading the flight tests at Newark to prove traffic efficiency.

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Steve Fulton (Alaska)GPS Technology: Integrating satellite-based RF legs for mountainous terrain. Honeywell Hardware/Software: Building the Pegasus FMS processor to run the math.

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Peter Cutsey’s role was essentially the "Architect" - he helped build the digital instructions (the code and the training) that told the FMS how to interpret the flight paths that leaders like Haapala were testing at Newark.