Hughes Aerospace Corporation

Last updated
Hughes Aerospace Corporation
Company typePrivate
IndustryAviation, Navigation Services
Founded2008
FounderChris Baur
Headquarters Houston, Texas, U.S.
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Chris Baur (President & CEO)
ServicesInstrument flight procedure design, validation, maintenance
Website www.hughesaerospace.com

Hughes Aerospace Corporation is an American air navigation service provider that specializes in the design, validation, and maintenance of instrument flight procedures. The company is noted for work in Performance-based navigation (PBN) and rotorcraft operations.

Contents

History

Hughes Aerospace was established in 2008 by Chris Baur, a former pilot with the U.S. Army, Coast Guard, Air Force, the US Customs Service and Continental Airlines. [1] The company was created to address growing demand for advanced navigation procedure design and expanded its operations to work with airports, commercial operators, government agencies, and international aviation authorities. [2]

Hughes Aerospace is headquartered in Houston, Texas. It holds certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a Part 97 Public Service Provider and is endorsed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and other sovereign nations as an air navigation service provider. [3] [2]

Regulatory status

The FAA has approved Hughes Aerospace as a Part 97 Public Service Provider, authorizing it to develop and maintain public instrument flight procedures in the United States. [3] ICAO endorsement allows the company to provide similar services internationally, including China. [2]

Operations and services

Hughes Aerospace designs and maintains instrument flight procedures, with a focus on PBN and helicopter operations. Services include: [1]

In 2025, Hughes Aerospace collaborated with Garmin to introduce guided visual approaches that support autopilot-coupled visual procedures for WAAS-equipped aircraft. [5] [6]

The company designs and maintains performance-based navigation procedures, including RNP and RNP AR instrument flight procedures. [7]

In addition to fixed-wing procedures, the company has been involved in extending performance-based navigation concepts to rotorcraft and emerging vertical-lift operations, including satellite-based instrument procedures for heliports and vertiports and development work on guided visual approaches in partnership with avionics manufacturers. [8] [9]

Projects

Helicopter PBN development

Between 2015 and 2017, Hughes Aerospace worked with Bell Helicopter to develop procedures for helicopter operators in China. [2] In 2019, the company validated an IFR helicopter network using RNP 0.3 and RF segment coding. [1]

Naples Airport noise mitigation

In 2024, the Naples Airport Authority awarded Hughes Aerospace a contract to develop noise mitigation procedures. Aircraft altitudes were increased before descent, with testing beginning in 2025. [4] [10]

Alaska

Hughes has participated in several Navigation Projects, supporting General Aviation (GA) in Alaska. A key and historic GA airport supporting the state's General Aviation network is Merrill Field in Anchorage. Hughes developed and published several GPS Instrument Flight Procedures at Merrill Field that are aligned with its runways. [11]

Leadership

The company's founder, Chris Baur, serves as chief executive officer. Baur is an aviator with experience in military, law enforcement, and commercial aviation, including military service with the U.S. Army, Coast Guard, and Air Force. [1]

In a 2025 interview, Baur said he began flying helicopters in the U.S. Army in 1983 and later served in the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Air Force (Air National Guard and Reserve). [12] He said that during his Air Force tenure his civilian job included serving as a pilot and criminal investigator for the U.S. Customs Service, and that he later became an airline pilot. [12] A profile republished by the U.S. Helicopter Safety Team describes him as a Customs pilot assigned to the New York Aviation Unit and a Captain in the New York Air National Guard, and states that he flew a HH-60G Pave Hawk during a December 1994 search-and-rescue mission following the sinking of the Ukrainian freighter MV Salvador Allende in the North Atlantic. [13]

He also worked as a criminal investigator and pilot with the U.S. Customs Service and later as a captain with Continental Airlines. He holds degrees from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Brown University, and IE Business School and is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society. [5]

Baur participated in the 1994 Salvador Allende helicopter rescue mission, recognized as one of the longest over-water helicopter rescues in history. [14] [15] [16]

Since 2023, he has served as Industry Co-Chair of the U.S. Helicopter Safety Team (USHST), a regional member of The Vertical Aviation Safety Team (VAST), and in 2025 he was elected to the Board of Directors of Vertical Aviation International. [17] [18] [19]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Bellamy III, Woodrow (February 1, 2019). "Airliner-Style PBN for Helicopters". Avionics Magazine. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Trautvetter, Chad (April 10, 2015). "Bell Helicopter and Hughes Aerospace Developing PBN for China". AIN Online. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 "Hughes Aerospace PBN Executive Summary" (PDF). FAASafety.gov. Federal Aviation Administration. January 1, 2024. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Layden, Laura (April 1, 2024). "Naples Airport Authority hears update on Hughes Aerospace study". Naples Daily News. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  5. 1 2 Langfield, Mandy (March 4, 2025). "Interview: Supporting safety from every angle (Chris Baur, CEO of Hughes Aerospace)". AirMed & Rescue. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Garmin and Hughes Partner To Develop Guided Visual Approaches | AIN". Aviation International News. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  7. ↑ Independent source here
  8. ↑ "Hughes Aerospace PBN Executive Summary" (PDF). FAASTeam. January 2024. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  9. ↑ Thurber, Matt (July 21, 2025). "Garmin and Hughes Partner on Guided Visual Approaches". AINonline. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  10. ↑ Layden, Laura (May 1, 2025). "Naples Airport to start testing new flight procedures". Naples Daily News. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  11. ↑ Stagnito, Kollin (2025-01-04). "How it's made". www.aopa.org. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  12. 1 2 Langfield, Mandy (4 March 2025). "Interview: Supporting safety from every angle". AirMed&Rescue. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
  13. ↑ Isom, Joe. "The Valley of the Shadow". U.S. Helicopter Safety Team. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
  14. ↑ "2 Crewmen From Sunken Ship, 7 Bodies Recovered". Los Angeles Times. December 11, 1994. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  15. ↑ "106th Rescue Wing Celebrates Milestones in 2000" (PDF). New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs (Guard Times). 2000. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  16. ↑ "First Person: The Salvador Allende Rescue". Vertical Aviation International. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  17. ↑ "USHST Names Chris Baur as its Next Industry Co-Chair" (PDF). U.S. Helicopter Safety Team. March 1, 2023. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
  18. ↑ "Baur Steps In as New USHST Industry Co-chair". Aviation International News. March 6, 2023. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
  19. ↑ Vertical Aviation International Board Elections Enhance Industry Representation (PDF) (Report). Vertical Aviation International. March 13, 2025. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
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