Plain English Meaning

RNAV systems let an aircraft fly directly between any two points in space, instead of being tied to flying overhead a ground-based radio beacon. The system figures out where the aircraft is, where the next waypoint is, and gives the pilot or autopilot steering guidance to get there.

Full Definition

Airborne navigation systems that allow an aircraft to fly any chosen course within the coverage of station-referenced navigation aids, within the limits of self-contained system capability, or a combination of both. Rather than requiring flight directly to or from a ground-based navigation station, RNAV systems compute the aircraft's position from sensor inputs (such as , , or inertial ) and guide the aircraft along a defined path between stored in the .