A Kansas town loses a key navigation beacon, changing local flight paths

The Federal Aviation Administration is changing the flight rules around Smith Center, Kansas. This is because a ground-based radio beacon that pilots used to navigate has been shut down.

Pilots flying under instrument flight rules rely on a network of ground-based radio beacons to navigate, especially in bad weather. The US is slowly decommissioning many of these older beacons as part of a plan to modernize air navigation with GPS. This means local airports and flight paths must be reconfigured, which can change how and where planes fly.