Airspace 30 Q3 2015

journal of the civil air navigation services organisation

ISSUE 30 QUARTER 3 2015

journal of the civil air navigation services organisation

ATM DELIVERS ON ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENTS ANSPs outline emissions reduction Noise management solutions Building bridges in the sky

PLUS: Interviews with COCESNA and NANSC, best practice in performancebased navigation, environmental case studies, GBAS transforms operations, the safety process at FAA, DFS harmonisation and the latest news

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CONTENTS services organisation journal of the civil air navigation

ISSUE 30 QUARTER 3 2015

services organisation journal of the civil air navigation

ATM DELIVERS ON ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENTS

ANSPs outline emissions reduction Noise management solutions Building bridges in the sky

eand NANSC, best practice in performanc PLUS: Interviews with COCESNA operations, case studies, GBAS transforms based navigation, environmental harmonisation and the latest news the safety process at FAA, DFS

Front Cover is a composite image: ATC Tower ©Michael Damkier; B757 Aircraft © icholakov

Airspace No. 30 ISSN number 1877 2196 Published by CANSO, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation Transpolis Schiphol Airport Polaris Avenue 85e 2132 JH Hoofddorp The Netherlands Telephone: +31 (0)23 568 5380 Fax: +31 (0)23 568 5389 Editorial content:

Quentin Browell Quentin.browell@canso.org Advertisement Manager:

Gill Thompson gill.thompson@canso.org Telephone: +44 (0)1273 771020 Design:

Mark Chivers

The entire contents of this publication are protected by copyright, full details of which are available from the publishers. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any other means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the publishers. The views and opinions in this publication are expressed by the authors in their personal capacity and are their sole responsibility. Their publication does not imply that they represent the views or opinions of CANSO and must not be interpreted as such.

The reproduction of advertisements in this publication does not in any way imply endorsement by CANSO of the products and services referred to herein.

IN THIS ISSUE Director General

Performance-based Navigation

5 Jeff Poole says the latest ATM environmental initiatives will play a major role in helping the industry achieve its environmental targets.

18 Airways New Zealand’s implementation of performance-based navigation at Queenstown illustrates the benefits of the technology, says Phil Rakena, PBN Project Manager at Airways.

ENVIRONMENT: NOISE

Letter from America

6 Ian Jopson, Head of Environmental & Community Affairs at NATS explains how ANSPs can use a new ACI-CANSO publication to tackle the noise challenge.

22 Teri Bristol, Chief Operating Officer of the FAA’s Air Traffic Organization, examines the safety process.

ENVIRONMENT: LEADERSHIP

FIR BOUNDARY CROSSINGS

10 Michael Gill, Executive Director, Air Transport Action Group says ANSPs have a major role to play in supporting the aviation industry’s environmental mitigation efforts.

25 Seamless transition between neighbouring ANSPs is possible if all partners pursue solutions based on global best practice.

ENVIRONMENT: CASE STUDIES 12 ANSPs have a number of projects in place to help airlines reduce emissions.

SPOTLIGHT: COCESNA 14 Jorge Vargas, President of Central American ANSP, COCESNA, says excellent training and the latest technology makes collaboration a lot easier. Interview by Graham Newton.

SPOTLIGHT: NANSC

GBAS 28 The ground-based augmentation system highlights the pitfalls and potential of introducing new technology. iCAS 31 German ANSP, DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung, is introducing new technology aimed at improved harmonisation and efficiency.

ATM NEWS 32 The latest news from CANSO Members.

16 Egyptian ANSP, the National Air Navigation Services Company, is looking to be the benchmark for its region, says Ehab Azmy, the company’s Chairman.

The CANSO Executive Committee APC3: Asia Pacific CANSO CEO Committee EC3: European CANSO CEO Committee MEC3: Middle East CANSO CEO Committee LAC3: Latin America and Caribbean CANSO CEO Committee AFC3: Africa CANSO CEO Committee

Paul Riemens

Chair, CANSO and Chief Executive Officer LVNL

Micilia AlbertusVerboom

Ehab Azmy

Miroslav Bartos

Teri Bristol

Thabani Mthiyane

Kevin Shum

Ed Sims

Marc Viggiano

Chair, LAC3 and Director General DC-ANSP

Chair, MEC3 and Chairman NANSC

Chair, EC3 and CEO LPS SR š. p.

Member at Large and Chief Operating Officer FAA ATO

Morten Dambaek

Member at Large and CEO Naviair

© Copyright CANSO 2015

Rudy Kellar

civil air navigation services organisation

Member at Large and Executive Vice President NAV CANADA

Chair, AFC3 and CEO ATNS

Chair, APC3 and Director General CAAS

Member at Large and CEO Airways New Zealand

Associate Member Representative and President Emeritus Saab Sensis Corporation

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FROM THE DIRECTOR GENERAL

civil air navigation services organisation

Aviation delivers huge social and economic benefits across the globe. While many governments recognise the value of aviation, the industry has to minimise its negative impacts if it wants to maintain its licence to operate and to maintain the support of governments and the general public. Although the aviation industry has worked hard to develop and introduce new technology and new procedures, there are two major areas where the industry needs to demonstrate clearly that it is reducing its environmental impact: reducing greenhouse gas emissions; and reducing noise.

As noise from aviation affects many people in the vicinity of airports, the industry must do all it can to minimise the nuisance. Aircraft noise has resulted in increasingly influential action groups drawn from those living around some airports to call for measures to limit aircraft operations and for limits to future growth. The aviation industry is committed to addressing these concerns, not just because it is the right thing to do, but also because the issue is a threat to the industry’s future ambitions.

All parts of the industry are making good and measurable progress to manage and reduce the impact of noise.

CANSO and Airports Council International (ACI) have worked together to develop best practice along with industry partners. This is now published (September 2015) as a best practice guide for airport operators and air navigation service providers Managing the Impacts of Aviation Noise. This document describes methods for managing and mitigating the impact of aviation noise. Key to this is collaboration, not only between ANSPs, airports and aircraft operators, but also with local communities.

Collaboration has also been key to the work that the industry is taking to reduce its emissions. CANSO plays an important part in the cross-industry four-pillar environment strategy and we work closely with our industry partners through the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) on whose Board I sit. Over the next twelve months, aviation will be firmly in the spotlight of the world’s governments with the UN climate talks (COP21) in Paris in November and the ICAO Assembly deciding on a climate change framework for aviation in September 2016. For these events, the aviation industry must demonstrate to States that it has a comprehensive plan for tackling its emissions.

Air traffic management (ATM) is playing vital role in reducing emissions with new technology, techniques and procedures that improve the efficiency of airspace. But as we are the less visible part of the aviation value chain, compared to airports and aircraft, we have to work harder to communicate our environmental record to governments and decision-makers. As part of this communications effort, we have been collating best practice on emissions reduction by CANSO Members. Along with contributions from the whole aviation industry, these will be presented to governments at COP21 as part of a cross industry ATAG publication Aviation Climate Solutions.

In addition to this, we need to make it clear to States that they have an important role to play in helping the industry reduce its emissions. States need to invest in infrastructure, specifically ATM infrastructure, as this will improve the efficiency of the entire aviation system, reduce emissions and cater for future growth. Investment in ATM infrastructure not only benefits the environment, but acts as an enabler of aviation connectivity and development, bringing economic and social benefits.

Getting all these messages across to governments, decision-makers and the general public is critical if we are to avoid onerous regulation on the environmental issues of emissions reduction and noise mitigation. So, we need to continue to ensure strong communications on what has already been achieved, the great work on further improvements that is underway, and the compelling evidence that the industry is meeting its challenging environmental commitments.

Jeff Poole CANSO Director General

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Environment: NOISE

Credit: Š Olivier Le Moal

Sounding off about noise mitigation

Ian Jopson, Head of Environmental & Community Affairs at NATS explains how ANSPs can use a new ACI-CANSO publication to tackle the noise challenge.

Aviation is a huge, global industry. There are almost 1,400 airlines operating worldwide using over 25,000 aircraft, large and small, moving 3.3 billion passengers annually through airspace managed by 173 air navigation service providers between 3,900 airports.

Noise experience

At the same time, some $6.4 trillion of goods gets delivered by air annually. With a predicted average growth rate for the industry of 5% per year, these numbers look set to continue growing.

The document, Managing the Impacts of Aviation Noise, was developed by the Environmental Workgroup of the CANSO Operations Standing Committee and international contributors from ACI. It pulls on the extensive expertise and experience of those groups who have first-hand experience of managing aviation noise issues.

But while aviation delivers these immensely positive global outcomes in terms of social and economic benefits, aircraft noise remains a clearly identifiable negative for local communities. This has caused individuals and groups living around some airports to mobilise.

They are calling for constraints to day-to-day operations, even a curtailment of future growth.

The aviation industry recognises these local impacts are causing significant concern and is committed to addressing them, not only because it wants to be a better neighbour, but also because the issue is a threat to future ambitions.

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It is against this backdrop that CANSO joined with Airports Council International (ACI) to develop vital best practice guidance on how to manage and mitigate noise around airports.

Lead authors from Airservices Australia, Boeing, UK NATS, ACI World and noise consultancy HMMH worked in collaboration for over a year to bring together the range of practical and proven measures in the document to help ANSPs. Indeed, it is the collaborative effort that the document seeks to highlight as the vital element to effectively managing noise and working with communities.

Based broadly around the 2001 ICAO-endorsed Balanced Approach to Aircraft Noise Management, the guidance brings

to life the noise management challenges faced by the aviation industry and offers guidance to ANSPs, airport operators and other key stakeholders to understand and reduce the impact of aircraft noise at an airport.

There are core four elements of the ICAO Balanced Approach, which are: 1. A reduction at source (quieter aircraft).

2. Land-use planning and management.

3. Noise abatement operational procedures.

4. Operating restrictions.

The CANSO guidance material also focuses on the need for effective community engagement as an absolutely fundamental prerequisite for building trust and understanding between the diverse needs of the aviation operational groups and the communities where aircraft noise is heard.

Noise reduction methods That community engagement theme runs throughout the document’s consideration of effective noise management, where either separately or jointly, ANSPs and airport operators have a variety of ways to influence aircraft noise levels.

For instance ANSPs can influence aircraft flight paths and their use both in time and geographically. The role of the airport operator is generally to coordinate all stakeholders to ensure implementation of the best combination of all noise mitigation measures.

One example in the guidance material of how an ANSP can help reduce the impact of noise is the tailored arrival (TA). The TA is an efficient, predictable, continuous descent operation initiated from top-of-descent that takes advantage of aircraft automation to fly a specifically defined path. It is an agreement between the ANSP and the flight crew for a type of CDO where the path is ‘tailored’ to current traffic conditions. The TA is well suited to oceanic arrivals and is in use at San Francisco, Los Angeles and Miami.

Then there is the two-segment (double-slope) approach, also referred to as segmented approach. This is a new

THRUST

Credit: CANSO

Non Tailored Arrival

Tailored Arrival

Tailored arrival noise reduction at San Francisco.

concept demonstrated in Germany in 2013 with several commercial aircraft. The concept was first developed in 1973

by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and American Airlines.

In concept, the procedure starts with a descent angle of less than 4.5 degrees flown with aircraft automation that intercepts a standard 3-degree slope at about 500 m (1500 ft).

This keeps the arriving airplane at higher altitudes from about 19 nautical miles to 5 nautical miles, reducing noise 3-5 dB. This may not be suitable as part of normal daily operations, but it may offer significant benefits for early morning or late night arrivals when traffic is lower and nose reduction more important. It also may allow continued use of existing runway infrastructure such as a 3-degree instrument landing system.

Practical advice Overall, the document sets out a list of operational and technical measures that can be used to manage noise impacts, giving practical advice on how to deploy these improvements in concerted campaigns that engage local stakeholders from the outset.

While the guide’s primary focus is airports and ANSPs, it also provides useful information to other aviation stakeholders, including aircraft operators, regulators, and the general public. It highlights the need for broad co-ordination on noise management to enable current operations and future growth, with the establishment of trust at its core.

From its inception, the authors did not want to produce just another document that might sit on the shelf; the objective was to give practical advice and guidance.

THRUST

CDA eliminates the extended low level segments

dBA 65 64 63 62 61 60 59 58 57 56 55

Credit: Boeing

Space Regulations

Continuous Descent Approach Conventional Approach

Continuous descent operations – quieter and cleaner.

Throughout the guide the technical and operational realities of deploying noise solutions are discussed, but importantly they are also brought to life with real world examples and cases studies of successful implementation. The aim is to provide ANSPs and airports worldwide with a template for action.

Since the dawn of the modern aviation age in the 1960s and 1970s, aircraft noise has been a clear issue for the industry to AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 7

TRAFFIC JAM AHEAD. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

Transforming the air traffic management (ATM) system is essential for improving safety, efficiency and the environment around the globe.

Boeing is fully committed and uniquely qualified to help make ATM transformation a reality. It’s the right time and Boeing is the right partner.

Environment: NOISE Aircraft Operational Noise Mitigation Opportunities

Segmented approach (steeper glideslope transition) Steeper Approach

Typical range of aircraft performance

6,000ft 3,000ft

Displaced threshold 200-1000m

Stepped climb

Stepped descent

9nm typical glideslope intercept

6,000ft 3,000ft

RUNWAY

Ground Credit: Sustainable Aviation

CDO Typical 3° Glideslope

6nm typical deployment of landing gear

Continuous Climb

Continuous Continuous Climb zone of climb zone of potential potential benefit dis-benefit

Departures

8 to 16nm approx end 57 dBA leq contour

4 to 0nm reduced landing flap (LPLD)

6 to 4nm delayed deployment of landing gear (LPLD)

Ground 12 to 8nm approx start 57 dBA leq contour

25nm Continuous Descents and managed speeds (LPLD) zone of benefit

12 to 6nm BA B737 at Gatwick delayed deployment of gear

Arrivals

A shopping list of operational noise management opportunities.

address. Through a mixture of impressive noise reductions in airframe and engine technology and operational efforts, the industry has done much to tackle noise. But the problem still exists and local community concerns show no sign of abating.

The industry must continue to work hard to develop solutions that address the noise challenge. The core finding of this

Testing quieter flights Airbus, British Airways (BA), Heathrow Airport and NATS are collaborating to develop operational procedures to reduce the number of people affected by noise around London’s Heathrow airport.

In July 2014, the four partners initiated a three-stage Quieter Flight project. The project utilises the capabilities of the A380 with Airbus ProSky designing various departure and arrival procedures specifically for the aircraft.

The project first identified operational improvements, such as reducing thrust on departure and optimising the height at which the aircraft is flown, which can significantly reduce noise levels shortly after take-off.

These initiatives were then evaluated in a simulator before the partners began a series of demonstration and evaluation flights in early 2015. Once the results are in, any improved procedures will be shared with other operators and airports where the A380 operates.

joint document is that those solutions cannot come from any one player alone. All operational stakeholders need to come together, with communities at the core, to build the trust and mutual understanding as a foundation to developing these important solutions.

And the stakes are high. With promising technologies such as performance-based navigation, point merge, time-based spacing, and advanced continuous descent and climb operations, we have a bright and sustainable future vision. If we do not address the noise issues now there is a clear and present danger that these technologies will not be delivered, and the benefits not realised.

The implementation of this guidance document can be a giant step towards a bright and more sustainable future. It contains a variety of options for airport operators and ANSPs to assess and address the impact of aircraft noise.

The list of noise metrics, the ICAO Balanced Approach, possible noise reducing operations, and methods for effective community interaction, provide the tools to implement positive measures to reduce community noise around airports.

To implement these changes requires government support, both national and local; regulatory agency support; and a broad stakeholder commitment to work together to find the ‘right’ approach for the local situation. One solution will not fit all needs.

The ACI-CANSO publication Managing the Impacts of Aviation Noise can be downloaded from www.canso.org/managingimpacts-aviation-noise AIRSPACE

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Environment: LEADERSHIP

Showing climate leadership Michael Gill, Executive Director, Air Transport Action Group says ANSPs have a major role to play in supporting the aviation industry’s environmental mitigation efforts.

This year promises to be an important one in the world’s efforts to tackle climate change. As I write this article, an extraordinary amount of shuttle diplomacy is taking place, with the United Nations and French Government working hard to bring the nations of the world together in the hope of securing a climate agreement in Paris this December. It is not an easy task, as we know all too well. In the aviation context, we are working on our own agreement, through ICAO, to be decided at next year’s Assembly in Montreal.

Coincidentally, both agreements will hopefully come into effect at the same time – in 2020. Whilst the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change covers a vast majority of the world’s emissions, the ICAO agreement will focus on air transport and cap emissions from aviation at 2020 levels through a global market-based measure. The talks are going well, with governments playing a constructive role in trying to overcome the many political challenges such an agreement requires.

Leading industry As an industry, we have played an unusual part in this process, actually pushing for sectoral goals and smart global regulation, like the market-based measure. Not many other industries do this, but we have recognised that we play a vital role in the

We are publishing the Aviation Climate Solutions as part of this process. It is a compendium of emissions-reduction efforts from across the sector. From the research phase, it was very apparent that a huge amount of work is going on.

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global economy that, in many ways, goes beyond the normal business interests of the private sector. We are an enabler of global connectivity, social development, trade and tourism. Our greatest growth challenges lie in the emerging economies of the world that need to be able to utilise air transport as national strategic drivers. We have to balance that vital growth with the need to cut emissions.

Six years ago, the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) convened industry leaders representing airlines, airports, aerospace manufacturers and air navigation service providers and presented a shared strategic vision for aviation’s response to the climate challenge centred around three ambitious goals: 1. an average annual 1.5% improvement in the fuel efficiency of the world fleet (a goal which the industry is currently exceeding); 2. stabilising net aviation CO2 emissions at 2020 levels through carbon-neutral growth; and 3. halving aviation’s net CO2 emissions by 2050 (when compared with a 2005 baseline).

To meet these goals, the industry has been approaching the challenge through a four-pillar strategy with which everyone reading this article should be familiar: new technology (including alternative aviation fuel); better operational techniques; more efficient use of infrastructure; and a global market-based measure.

As part of our communications with governments in the lead up to both the UN Climate Talks in Paris this December and the ICAO Assembly next year, we wanted to demonstrate the overwhelming efforts being made by the industry and our partners to cut CO2 emissions from our activities.

We are publishing the Aviation Climate Solutions as part of this process. It is a compendium of emissions-reduction efforts from across the sector. From the research phase, it was very apparent that a huge amount of work is going on. Some parts of the world are particularly active. But everywhere, there is a sense of cross-industry collaboration and innovation.

The role of ANSPs Air navigation service providers have a particularly important role to play in helping reduce emissions through the operational and infrastructure parts of our four-pillar strategy. We should work to see new technologies such as ADS-B and performancebased navigation rolled out worldwide as soon as possible.

Continuous descent and climb operations should become the norm at every suitable airport. There are larger projects such as the Single European Sky and NextGen which are, of course, vital. But every opportunity, no matter how small, to save fuel and emissions helps our industry earn its licence to grow.

Not everything requires investment in new technology and infrastructure. Empowering your staff to develop and suggest efficiencies on the routes and in the sectors they know so well is an incredibly effective way of saving 1% here and 2% there. This all adds up.

Air traffic management and planning are not areas where the industry can act alone. With issues of airspace sovereignty and military restricted airspace, not to mention the fact that most air navigation service providers are state-owned, governments must also play a key role in this evolution. While a lot of the work that the industry can do by itself is technology- and procedure-related, much of the significant change can only occur when the institutional arrangements that govern air traffic control are reformed.

Current governance restrictions and regulatory capabilities in many parts of the world are holding back the ability of air navigation service providers to respond to change. In turn, the ability for aviation to grow and help support national economies is also being constricted. It is no coincidence, I suggest, that a lot of the most innovative thinking in airspace efficiency is driven by ANSPs that have been corporatised (and in some cases completely privatised), or at least given autonomy to run their business.

Greater collaboration

and collaboration. Every day, around 100,000 flights across the world take off and each of those departures is an act of co-ordinated activity — between airlines, airports, air traffic controllers and the manufacturers who make the aircraft and engines… and a lot more people besides.

It’s a simple fact that our industry would not function without co-ordinated action by all parties working to help the 3.3 billion passengers we serve every year, or indeed to make their flights more efficient. Very few of the Aviation Climate Solutions are the result of one industry partner’s efforts; nearly all relied on a team of businesses working together.

The examples and case studies in Aviation Climate Solutions provide not only evidence of climate action taking place across the sector, but also a set of suggestions to those industry partners looking for inspiration on how to improve the efficiency of their operations. We urge everyone in the industry to strive to be the best they can be, but let’s also share with each other the lessons learned and scale up our ambition where possible. Education can flow both ways too – the largest and most well-resourced ANSPs have just as much to learn from smaller, simpler operations.

Already, much is being done sector-wide by all partners. We should all be so proud of the leadership our industry is showing in meeting our part of the climate challenge. Let’s now raise our game again and take our success to every part of the world.

Our future could very well depend on it.

Credit: ©Africa Studio

It is important for the whole aviation sector that we earn our right to future growth. Our industry is all about co-operation

While a lot of the work that the industry can do by itself is technology- and procedure-related, much of the significant change can only occur when the institutional arrangements that govern air traffic control are reformed.

The right regulatory framework will be essential to achieving industry targets.

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ENVIRONMENT: CASE STUDIES

The business of going green ANSPs have a number of projects in place to help airlines reduce emissions.

In November 2015, governments will meet in Paris for the UN climate talks (COP21) and in September 2016, the ICAO Assembly will look to recommend a climate change framework for aviation.

For these events, the aviation industry must demonstrate to States that it has a comprehensive plan for tackling its emissions. CANSO has been working with its industry partners as part of the cross industry Air Transport Action Group (ATAG)

to produce a publication for politicians that highlights the steps that the industry is taking to reduce emissions.

Aviation Climate Solutions includes case studies from CANSO Members, several of which are featured in this article and we will publish others in subsequent issues of Airspace.

The ATAG publication Aviation Climate Solutions can be downloaded from www.enviro.aero/climatesolutions

The Asia and Pacific Initiative to Reduce Emissions (ASPIRE), Airways New Zealand, FAA, Airservices Australia, Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and Japan Civil Aviation Bureau ASPIRE was established in 2008. It takes a collaborative approach to air traffic management along key Asian and Pacific routes.

Working with government agencies, airlines, regulators and other aviation industry stakeholders, ASPIRE aims to accelerate the development of gate-to-gate operational procedures to reduce fuel burn and emissions for all phases of flight.

The air traffic management best practices utilised for this programme include ‘User-Preferred Routes’, ‘Dynamic Airborne Reroute Procedures’ and ‘30/30 Reduced Oceanic Separation’, which allows pilots to take full advantage of

atmospheric conditions, such as prevailing winds, to reduce separation between aircraft and shorten flight time. ‘Time-based Arrivals Management’ and ‘Arrivals Optimisation’ allow aircraft to fly with engines set at idle mode in continuous descent from a high altitude during SAVINGS 805 MT fuel + the landing phase of the flight, thus 2,536 MT CO2 reducing fuel burn. Between 2011 annually and 2013, the Los Angeles-Singapore flight saved 758 tonnes of fuel and 2,385 tonnes of CO2.

ATM case studies submitted • Aireon, NAV CANADA, ENAV, Irish Aviation Authority, Naviair, Iridium Communications: Space-based ADS-B • Air Services / Qantas: RNP and user preferred routing • Airways New Zealand, FAA, Airservices Australia, CAAS and JCAB: The Asia and Pacific Initiative to reduce Emissions (ASPIRE) • Airways New Zealand: Queenstown PBN • Avinor and others: Harmonisation of OSL Procedures and the Environment (HOPE) • DFS: Free Route Airspace Maastricht and Karlsruhe (FRAMaK) • DSNA, Sustainable Aviation: Continuous climb operations • EUROCONTROL: Free Route Airspace in Europe • FAA / Fedex: Reducing separation • FAA, The Boeing Company/Jeppesen and others: Greener Skies over Seattle • FAA: NextGen • HungaroControl: Free Route Airspace (HUFRA)

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• Latvijas Gaisa Satiksme (LGS), Airbus Prosky and others: AMBER – Arrival Modernisation for Better Efficiency in Riga • NATS / Sustainable Aviation: Programme for Optimised Aircraft Operations and Air Traffic Management • NATS and Lockheed Martin: Time Based Separation, • NATS: Top Flight • NATS and NAV CANADA: Gander Automated Air Traffic Systems (GAATS+) COAST • NATS: CDO campaign • NATS: Flight Efficiency Partnership • NATS: Environmental awareness programme • NAV CANADA: ENGAGE Project • NATS / BA: XMAN • NATS / London Heathrow: Cross air partnership for sustainability • skyguide, SWISS and Zurich Airport: Greener Wave and Tactical Steering.

Free Route Airspace in Europe

In Europe, the Network Manager launched the Free Route Airspace Implementation Project in 2009 to support the achievement of the environment and flight efficiency targets set by the Single European Sky (SESII) at network level and to support the airspace users in operating more efficient and flexible routes. Europe is the first region that allows airspace users to freely plan SAVINGS their routes without being limited 20 million NM + 500,000 MT CO2 to a fixed route network. It does not annually require any additional equipment on the aircraft and is based on the preferences of airspace users.

DFS: Free Route Airspace Maastricht and Karlsruhe (FRAMaK) FRAMaK was a joint project of DFS, EUROCONTROL and Lufthansa 2012-2014. The project demonstrated the efficiency and environmental benefits of cross-border direct routing options and user preferred trajectories supporting seamless

routings ranging across boundaries in the very dense and complex airspace of Karlsruhe Upper Area Control and Maastricht Upper Area Control (UAC).

The project designed 466 crossborder direct routing options of which 46% are operationally available 24 hours a day. As well as creating new routes, the project took existing direct routes and linked them across borders, expanded others, and optimised them.

SAVINGS 1.5 million NM + 300,000 MT CO2 annually

HungaroControl: Free Route Airspace (HUFRA) In 2015, HungaroControl abolished the entire fixed flight route network, enabling airplanes to use the airspace freely, without any restrictions. Planes can take the shortest possible flight path between the entry and exit points in Hungary’s airspace, without inserting any unnecessary SAVINGS navigation points.

HUFRA optimises the capacity of the air navigation service provider and reduces the load on air traffic controllers.

81,000 NM + 16,000 MT CO2 annually

UK Sustainable Aviation Programme for Optimised Aircraft Operations and Air Traffic Management In 2012, Sustainable Aviation (SA) published a CO2 roadmap detailing the activities that UK aviation, working with UK government, could implement to reduce emissions. Its aim is to reduce CO2 emissions from aircraft operations and air traffic management by 9% which is equivalent to at least four million tonnes a year in 2050.

SA promotes best practice in take-off and landing cycle operations through the publication, in partnership with others, of two industry Codes of Practice: The Departures and Ground Operations Code of Practice addressing ground power use, reduced engine taxi, continuous climbs (CCO) and airport collaborative decision-making (A-CDM); and The Arrivals Code

of Practice promoting CDO and low power/low drag approaches.

SAVINGS In addition Continuous Climb 6,176 MT fuel + Operations (CCO), to 10,000ft in the 19,600 MT CO2 UK increased from 55% in 2006 to 2006-2014 67% in 2014. The current Sustainable Aviation CDO Campaign intends to deliver a similar scale of benefits again over the coming years. Launched in July 2014, the campaign aims to increase CDOs across the UK 5%; deliver over 30,000 individual quieter flights; and save an additional 10,000 tonnes of CO2.

ENGAGE Project, NAV CANADA (For SESAR Joint Undertaking) NAV CANADA led a group of ANSPs and airlines collaborating on using variable Mach and variable flight level in unsurveilled, procedural airspace over the North Atlantic (NAT) from 20112014. As a flight transits the ocean, fuel is consumed and the weight of the aircraft decreases, resulting in the most efficient flight level becoming higher (assuming zero wind).

Therefore, an efficient flight profile would include a progressive or continuous altitude change and/or change in Mach. But being constrained by a fixed speed and altitude for the entire time a

flight transits that airspace limits the ability of air traffic controllers to offer more efficient routes.

SAVINGS 525–1,050 kg CO2 per flight

ENGAGE therefore tested the viability of progressive or continuous altitude change; and corresponding change in aircraft speed (Mach) in place of the more traditional single speed, single altitude flight profile over the Ocean.

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Credit: ©Janceluch

Free route airspace is a specified airspace within which users may freely plan a route between a defined entry point and a defined exit point, with the possibility to route via intermediate waypoints, without reference to the ATS route network, subject to airspace availability. Within this airspace, flights remain subject to air traffic control.

SPOTLIGHT: COCESNA

Setting the course for Central America Jorge Vargas, President of Central American ANSP, COCESNA, says excellent training and the latest technology makes collaboration a lot easier.

Interview by Graham Newton COCESNA was established over 50 years ago. What was the inspiration behind an idea ahead of its time?

It really was an advanced idea for its time and Central America is very proud about that.

The Central American Corporation for Air Navigation Services (COCESNA) dates back to 1959. Directors from across Central American aviation had a meeting in Guatemala during November of that year and determined a need for their respective countries to establish an intergovernmental body to address the problems of aviation modernisation, including communications and technological specialisation.

It was also necessary to ensure there was sufficient capacity in the region as air traffic was growing strongly. Furthermore, it was clear that co-operation would help the ANSPs avoid duplicate investment and reduce costs for the end user.

The Articles of Agreement of COCESNA were actually agreed on 26 February, 1960 in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

This agreement was later ratified by the Central American Legislative Assemblies and the various legal instruments, statutes and regulations that run COCESNA. The COCESNA member states that first participated in the agreement were Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Belize joined COCESNA in late 1996.

Why have you remained a single entity for upper airspace management only?

COCESNA has a long history in the region and that history has shown that the organisation has always achieved its objectives.

And that success comes from controlling the upper airspace.

By controlling the upper space, COCESNA is able to promote the development of lower airspace in each of the COCESNA 14 QUARTER 3 2015

AIRSPACE

member states through various projects – but at the same time ensure that these projects are tailored to their specific needs.

Do you deliberately employ people from each individual state or are you free to hire the best people available?

COCESNA hires the best people regardless of their nationality, as it seeks to have the best human resources to assist in the development of COCESNA and Central America.

Its employees are considered Central American officials with responsibility for providing their knowledge for the development of Central America as a whole.

How do you encourage co-operation among the individual ANSPs that make up COCESNA? We do it simply by addressing the needs of aviation and encouraging COCESNA member states to use the newest technologies and the best trained human resources. That ensures the benefits of co-operation are realised.

In recent years, we have implemented new control centres in the Central America region that have promoted the automation of air traffic control, for example. Improvements include maintaining the co-ordination of aircraft en-route between Cuba and Mexico.

These are automated through the North America region’s protocol (ATS Interfacility Data Communications – AIDC) and, by the end of 2015 we plan the automation of COCESNA states in Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala to the internal protocol of the Central America region.

These systems will facilitate the transfer of information through the latest technology available to ANSPs. It makes co-operation much easier.

How do you deal with the different capabilities of each ANSP? At the Central American level, COCESNA drives the standardisation of technologies in all CNS / ATM areas.

Similarly, it seeks to standardise knowledge and procedures in human resource operations to become more efficient in that area too. And as mentioned, the technology and standardisation of protocols have allowed the sharing of data between control centres.

Additionally, COCESNA provides aeronautical messaging services through infrastructure, technology and applications that are owned by COCESNA. It also shares radar data with adjacent flight information region (FIR) control centres, such as Cuba, Mexico, Panama, and Grand Cayman.

What projects do you have lined up and how will they affect COCESNA performance?

COCESNA has a portfolio of investment planned for the next few years aimed at improving the technological infrastructure and services available in Central America.

We have established a strategic plan until 2020, with the objective of homogeneous development in the region and with the idea that all Central America control centres are equipped with the latest technology, world-class communications and the ability to provide users with the best possible service.

Is there any one technology that you would like to implement at COCESNA immediately?

Actually, COCESNA is at the forefront of technology right now.

We have new control centres with the latest technology and with the right tools to develop air navigation further into the foreseeable future. We have a new telecommunication network and we have satellite networks with state-of-the-art equipment.

Of course, we are always looking to develop and implement new technology such as satellite automatic dependent surveillance – broadcast, which would be a powerful tool for tracking aircraft and provide many other benefits.

We understand that technology and its attendant features allows COCESNA to increase security and provide the best service to our end users.

Tell us about your regional programmes. Does COCESNA work closely with its neighbours?

COCESNA works very closely with adjacent FIRs, boosting efficiency, safety in operations and supporting the development of Latin America generally.

COCESNA has regional development plans in all CNS / ATM areas that would not only affect the management of air traffic but also the operations of the member states of COCESNA. Just recently, for example, COCESNA completed a renovation project at four control centres in the area: ACC CENAMER, APP Nicaragua, APP El Salvador and APP Guatemala.

The structure of COCESNA COCESNA is led by the Board of Directors of the Corporation, which is formed from the Directors of the COCESNA member state ANSPs – Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.

There are three different divisions, dealing with: • Air Navigation (Headquarters, Honduras) • Aviation Training (Headquarters, El Salvador) • Aviation Security (Headquarters, Costa Rica).

Each division is responsible in its respective area to create, develop and implement new ideas and initiatives.

Each of these control centres has the very latest technology and they are in the process of implementing and harmonising their automated systems with internal and external ANSPs adjacent to Central America.

And there are plans to upgrade the control centres of Costa Rica, Belize and Honduras in the near future.

Not so long ago, COCESNA officially deployed the radar data Mode-S for en-route control operations in the Central American FIR and has plans to update that with ADS-B capability in 2016.

Our new telecommunications network has just come into operation and we are currently renovating a VSAT telecommunications network to act as backup for COCESNA. Additionally, we are working on the implementation of automatic dependent surveillance – contract / controller pilot data link communications, for the South Pacific area of the Central American FIR to provide our users with better service.

COCESNA is also very active at the ICAO level. What are the benefits of being involved in the ICAO working groups?

COCESNA, through the ICAO working groups, understands, and participates in, the development of aviation in the region.

All of Central America aligns its objectives according to regional goals and this allows us to have a common vision.

COCESNA has placed its CNS / ATM experts at the disposal of the ICAO working groups to support ICAO activities.

Why did you join CANSO? What are the advantages?

COCESNA recognises the overall management of air traffic provided by CANSO and by being one of its permanent members we are allowed to have greater contact with our associates, sharing expertise and aligning the goals of Central America with global goals and targets.

CANSO provides the right environment to address issues of common interest to its members, allowing us to recognise the best approach for COCESNA in a variety of matters. Contact with other parties will enrich our knowledge and aid in the development of COCESNA. AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 15

SPOTLIGHT: NANSC

Setting the standard

Egyptian ANSP, the National Air Navigation Services Company, is looking to be the benchmark for Arabian air traffic management, says Ehab Azmy, the company’s Chairman.

Ehab Azmy, Chairman of Egyptian ANSP, the National Air Navigation Services Company (NANSC), is very experienced in air traffic management, having done many of the jobs that make up the modern business. He started as an air traffic controller before moving into administration and working his way up the ladder to achieve the top job.

It meant that two years ago, when he was appointed Chairman, he had some very firm ideas about what he wanted to accomplish under his leadership.

“I had a target when I took over to modernise both the systems being used and the airspace,” he says. “We quickly signed contracts to install upgrades at Egypt’s international airports to show our intent to make a meaningful difference to the existing situation.”

Work at these international airports is continuing. Each is benefitting from an enhanced radar set-up and significantly improved communications. A €100 million loan from the Arabian Investment Bank has financed the work, which will complete later this year at some airports and in early 2016 at the remainder.

The perfect forum When NANSC engages with its neighbours – a regular occurrence – one of the most important parts of the conversation is CANSO membership. “If we are all CANSO Members then it is much easier for us to work together,” says Azmy. “CANSO provides the forum and the expertise that allows each Member to discuss opportunities with other Members and to share that knowledge in the right environment.

“We need more CANSO Members in the Middle East region,” he adds. “I am a firm supporter and proud to serve on the CANSO Executive Committee.”

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AIRSPACE

The domestic gateways in Egypt are not being ignored and will also be upgraded as money and resources allow. For example, for a replacement radar at Taba Airport NANSC has secured a €7 million loan from France. The work on this project is due to start shortly.

The company is in the process of launching tenders for upgrades at the other airports. These tenders – and subsequent bids – will be heavily scrutinised to ensure NANSC gets full value, says Azmy, because the ANSP is effectively operating as a commercial entity in a fiercely competitive arena.

Although, the company is government-owned, it is determined to set it own course and be self-financing. In 2014 NANSC managed to post a $10 million profit.

“We are doing well,” says Azmy. “But we need to because we will have to achieve our targets using our own resources.”

Partnerships While NANSC is relying on its own merits, it is nevertheless engaging with partners worldwide to further improve its service offering.

Transparency has aided the Egyptian ANSP’s work with the military, for example. Each side has been clear about its requirements and working methodologies, which has revealed some obtainable efficiency improvements. As a result, NANSC has been able to shorten a number of routes and this, in turn, has meant that its clients – the airlines – have used a lot less fuel, saving them money and, just as importantly, reducing their carbon emissions.

There has also been an enormous amount of collaboration with fellow ANSPs on a regional basis, which has been particularly important for such a dynamic area. Azmy acknowledges that the Arab Spring and other geopolitical issues have caused instability in the region, creating a challenge for NANSC. “The traffic coming into our flight information region is up about 70% as airlines are avoiding overflying other areas,” he says. “It

is good for business, of course, but it is a challenge when you have to cope with nearly double the traffic that you are to set up to handle.”

A large part of the new traffic involves flights between Europe and Africa that need to negotiate their way around or through Libyan and Sudanese airspace. But Azmy reveals that NANSC is also working closely with its counterpart in Jordan to deal with flights that need to bypass the conflict zones in Syria.

“We have also been talking a lot with airports and airlines in the region,” says Azmy. “We want to understand their plans and how best to co-operate with them and serve them.”

The secret to success in such a collaborative approach, says Azmy, is to ensure that there is always forward momentum despite the many viewpoints and aims of the different partners involved. No one gets left behind but neither does the strategy stagnate.

The policy of NANSC is to break down projects into a series of attainable, incremental steps. “We simply concentrate on taking the next step, which is an achievable goal, while making sure that we keep sight of our ultimate aim, which is to introduce the most sophisticated and useful technologies available to ensure greater safety and efficiency,” Azmy reveals.

A large part of the new traffic involves flights between Europe and Africa that need to negotiate their way around or through Libyan and Sudanese airspace. NANSC is also working closely with its counterpart in Jordan to deal with flights that need to bypass the conflict zones in Syria.

“On a practical level, what that means is that we implement new technologies and processes in an acceptable timeframe while not over-extending our financial and manpower resources.”

Single sky The intensive collaboration on a number of fronts has enabled Azmy to develop some clear ideas about airspace management at the regional level.

“We need to move to be a single sky, much like the Single European Sky,” he suggests. “There used to be a single FIR for the Middle East based in Bahrain but that has fragmented. We need to get back to that idea of a single control point.

“We need one computer system, one regulation. There is no doubt that this would be an enormous challenge but I am a positive person and I think we can achieve this.”

And NANSC can lead the way, affirms Azmy. “We would like the Egyptian ANSP to be a benchmark for the Arabian community.”

For such an elevated position, skilled staff will be vital. The company is improving the training of its staff in alignment with the ICAO Global Air Navigation Plan and is ensuring that staff are fully aware of the need to adhere to the ICAO Aviation System Block Upgrades programme.

Credit: ©iStockphoto/Sergei Butorin

This, in turn, enables NANSC employees to understand the progress it is looking to make and guarantees that international standards become the norm. Azmy explains that NANSC is also investing in bringing in international experts to assist the team that is working on NANSC’s performancebased navigation projects.

Backing up all this work, the company has also achieved ISO certification in a number of areas. For Azmy, this clearly illustrates NANSC’s determination to maintain international standards and to be a benchmark for the Arabian ANSP community. It creates a virtuous circle.

ATM is being upgraded at all Egyptian airports.

“If we are at the cutting-edge of international performance then we are in a position to run a sustainable business that offers a great service to our customers,” the NANSC Chairman concludes. “And if we do that, we can continue to invest in new technologies and processes.”

AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 17

Performance-based Navigation The clean sheet approach to PBN

Credit: ©Airways

Airways New Zealand’s implementation of performance-based navigation at Queenstown illustrates the benefits of the technology, says Phil Rakena, PBN Project Manager at Airways.

Over a million people a year fly into Queenstown – the New Zealand tourist and ski resort town set on the edge of a lake among a series of spectacular mountain ranges. Its location in the middle of the South Island of New Zealand relies heavily on air transport.

Aircraft passenger numbers have increased 30% in the past three years, and a 40% increase in visitors in the next 10 years is predicted.

Airlines are increasing the frequency of flights and are looking at ways to access Queenstown at night as the current activity is confined to daylight hours. And before November 2012, aircraft were experiencing significant holding delays.

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Queenstown also has some of the most challenging terrain in the world – the high terrain, extreme weather and significant local tourism-related traffic flows call for unique air traffic management (ATM) solutions.

The ATM challenge As air traffic continued to build into Queenstown, it became clear that a ‘clean sheet’ approach was needed to enable sustained development.

In response to the town’s strong growth and to ensure Queenstown’s skies remain safe and can cope with the larger numbers, Airways New Zealand

established a project in 2010 to redesign the entire Queenstown ATC system using a full suite of performance-based navigation (PBN) tools and procedures.

The challenge was to deliver a safer and more efficient ATM system in extreme terrain-rich airspace with only limited surveillance services available.

By redesigning the airspace and implementing PBN-based Required Navigation Performance Authorisation Required (RNP AR) procedures, Airways aimed to reduce TCAS events within the control zone, simplify the task of controllers, provide consistent and predictable flight paths, and improve air traffic flow and efficiency.

Airways also sought to provide a number of benefits as a result of implementing PBN in Queenstown.

These comprised: enabling airline operators to make use of high-tech avionics equipment on their aircraft; improving efficiency and save costs for their business and their passengers; improving payload and associated efficiencies for airlines; reducing Airways’ pending navigational aid replacement programme costs; and improving traffic capacity at Queenstown Airport, particularly in adverse weather conditions.

The application of PBN procedures allows aircraft to fly very precise flight paths with a high level of accuracy – improving efficiency and safety and enabling jet operations to continue in a range of weather conditions.

Surveillance data of actual Queenstown traffic, with arrivals and approaches (STARs/APCHs) depicted in red and departures in blue. Very accurate flightpaths are flown, with only an occasional flight being given more direct by ATC under surveillance.

The Airways solution

Airways’ PBN implementation team created a completely new and fully integrated ATM package, making use of GE Naverus’ RNP AR design expertise for instrument flight procedures below 10,000ft, among the mountains. Airways’ aeronautical design and development team created all other elements of the IFR procedures.

It took more than two years from the concept being proposed in its first draft to the go-live date of 15 November 2012.

Over this time intense consultation took place between the Airways project team, led by Airways PBN Implementation Manager Kevin Bethwaite, and key contributors and users.

Airways engaged a wide group of stakeholders during the project including key airlines, New Zealand’s regulator the Civil Aviation Authority, the Queenstown

Credit: ©Airways

In November 2012, Airways introduced new RNP AR approaches with fullyseparated standard instrument departures and arrivals (SIDs and STARs).

Stand-alone RNP AR approaches had been introduced in Queenstown more than a decade earlier, which significantly improved jet aerodrome access, reduced diversions and saved airlines millions of dollars per year in associated costs.

These did not deliver good airspace capacity however.

The Queenstown RNP AR approach concept, involving separated arrivals/approaches and departures (STARs/APCHs and SIDs) was put together by Airways PBN architect Kevin Bethwaite in consultation with a wide range of stakeholders. RNP AR designs were then prepared by GE Naverus.

Airport Company, general aviation users, operational ATCs and GE Naverus.

The new concept required Airways to lead and drive the project. Airways became an architect and conductor that initially sold the concept and then kept all parties focused on the outcome and facilitated the myriad of interconnecting needs.

Trials and training Extensive trials and staff and pilot training were required during the project. The use of Airways’ Total Control simulator allowed the concept to be trialled and developed to its final state, and played a

critical part in training the Queenstown ATC staff to the point where the cutover could happen with complete confidence.

Airline pilots who would use the RNP AR procedures, particularly those from Air New Zealand, Airways’ largest customer, simulated the concept and provided useful feedback. This trial feedback was critical to refining the procedures, and numerous versions were tested.

The turbo prop operators using Queenstown needed to upgrade their navigation capability, and significant coordination was necessary between these groups and the regulator.

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QUARTER 3 2015 19

345°

0°

15° 30 °

0° 33 DLT1445 B777 410 490

31 5°

° 45

JFH6752 B738 390 450

° 60

30 0°

OPG3256 A388 400 520

YGD1723 A350 380 425

75°

285°

CKR8976 B744 350 415

APH6388 A321 370 485

XVX6211 B748 300 490

90°

270°

MAG7521 E190 270 410 PVP0786 A320 310 400

AQP6800 BCS3 280 400

ZTV3309 A332 360 420

12 0°

5° 22

13 5°

MKJ5509 B789 390 470 KNH2006 B748 400 500

0° 15

21 0°

165°

180°

195°

0° 24

255°

105°

YGD1723 A350 380 425

Performance-based Navigation Airways staff were also provided with training and knowledge of the aircraft navigation systems was incorporated into their training modules.

The implementation of PBN procedures into Queenstown has reaped enormous benefits to the aviation sector and the local economy. In the two years the procedures have been operational, Queenstown Airport’s capacity has increased to 12 aircraft per hour, compared with the previous five per hour in poor weather, in extremely mountainous terrain.

Airways can safely manage more than double the traffic with no requirement to tactically separate arrivals from departures while pilot and ATC workload has reduced in complexity, and the ATC pass rate at Queenstown Airport has improved from 40% to 80%.

All airlines operating in Queenstown are benefiting from dramatically reduced delays – from 2,000-2,600 minutes a month to around 330 minutes a month.

The reworked RNP AR departures have provided a large increase in take-off payload – up to 1,700kg off runway 05 for A320 aircraft.

Airline operators’ on-time performance has improved, and there have been significant reductions in holding delays, fuel burn, and CO2 emissions (see table).

Capacity (movements/ hour)

Holding delays (minutes/year)

Fuel burn (kg/year – approx)

CO2 emissions (kg/year approx)

Passenger Value of Time

Pre November 2012

5

28,800

1,100,000

3,500,000

967,000

Post November 2012

12+

3,900

150,000

480,000

113,000

Total benefits

7+ per hour

24,900 mins

960,000

3,000,000

$854,000

*Holding fuel burn is based on cruise fuel-flow. PVT is based on FAA 2002 calculation, corrected for inflation to 2015.

project. Airways was also the first ANSP in the world to receive the endorsement of ICAO as an instrument procedure design organisation for PBN and conventional designs.

Key customer support Air New Zealand gave its full support and backing for the project from the outset. Captain Philip Kirk, PBN Programme Manager for Air New Zealand, had this to say about the project: “Air New Zealand has a significant interest in the Queenstown (ZQN) and associated Southern airports, Dunedin and Invercargill; however, it is ZQN that has shown significant growth over the last 10 years and is a key destination for the airline.

“ZQN could only be classed as a difficult environment to operate scheduled jet passenger transport operations,” he continues. “The high terrain, challenging weather and significant local tourism related traffic flows call for unique ATM

Credit: ©Airways

In February 2013, Airways won the prestigious Jane’s ATC Award for Operational Efficiency, for the Queenstown PBN implementation

Queenstown PBN implementation

The entire Queenstown ATC system has been redesigned using a full suite of PBN tools and procedures.

solutions. PBN is the key enabler here, in particular RNP AR. RNP AR procedures have been in use at ZQN since 2003. But previous RNP AR approach and departure procedures were considered ATM unfriendly as they had been designed in isolation from the total ATM system.

“As traffic built through ZQN, it became evident that a clean sheet approach was needed to enable continued growth, hence a project was commenced to redesign the entire ZQN ATC system using a full suite of PBN procedures. Air New Zealand worked closely with the Airways team throughout the project, providing many flight simulator trials at various stages to test and prove the design. The use of RNP 1 based STARs into RNP AR approaches to low RNP levels are a key component of the design. Likewise, a combination of RNP AR departures, with accompanying Engine Out SIDs combined with RNP 1 legs again provides for an optimum departure solution.

“The key safety benefits are clear,” concludes Kirk. “The controller can now issue a SID to a departing aircraft and know that this flight will be separated from all arriving traffic with no further input. From an operator’s perspective, the crew are no longer asked to comply with difficult to interpret procedural separation requests. Likewise on the arrivals, all arriving traffic is separated from departing traffic. This again makes for a safe and efficient ATM system, which reduces pilot workload.

“The safety benefits are clear, hence the airline’s support and backing for this key project.”

AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 21

Letter from America

Collect; find; fix Teri Bristol, Chief Operating Officer of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Air Traffic Organization, examines the safety process.

As Chief Operating Officer of the FAA’s Air Traffic Organization, I’m very proud to lead our proactive safety efforts.

Our approach can be summed up in three words: collect; find; fix. We collect safety data, analyze it to find potential hazards, and then fix these problems through corrective actions.

As part of this proactive safety effort, we generate a Top 5 Hazard list.

We gather data from many sources, including voluntary safety reports submitted by controllers, automated air traffic data gathering tools, operational skill assessments, runway safety reports and surface risk analysis, and accident investigations from the

National Transportation Safety Board, among others.

Armed with these data streams, we conduct a sophisticated risk analysis to identify potential safety hazards, classify them according to their severity and likelihood of occurrence, and determine their causal factors.

From this analysis, the Top 5 Hazard items are determined, and we assemble a risk management panel to identify corrective actions that could include changes in policy, air traffic procedures, and training.

Corrective actions Thus far, we’ve developed 26 corrective actions for these hazards, 23 of which

The FAA 2015 Top 5 Hazard list includes the following items:

1. Not meeting requirements for weather information dissemination.

2. Lack of, incorrect use of, or ineffective procedure for surface memory aids.

3. Misapplied visual separation.

4. Inadequate vectors to maintain separation associated with Opposite Direction Operations.

5. Misjudgment of aircraft rate of climb, descent, or closure associated with Opposite Direction Operations.

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We developed six corrective activities, including incorporating recovery as part of our Recurrent Training program.

This marks a huge shift toward our proactive safety culture. We’ve never had training requirements for recovery before.

have been completed to date. The following are some examples.

Controllers use surface memory aids to remember important things like a maintenance truck operating on a closed runway. In this case, surface memory aids could range from a red dot on a map of the airfield, to a laminated picture of a truck clipped over the flight strip drop tube, to an electronic marking on an ASDE-X display. Our data showed that a potential hazard existed because of a lack of, incorrect use of, or ineffective procedure for surface memory aids.

We convened a taskforce that included non-managing air traffic controllers.

This team helped determine which air traffic operations required the use of

memory aids and what elements must be included in an effective memory aid. This topic will also be included in our January 2016 Recurrent Training program, a labor-management led effort to provide controllers with a way to maintain and update their core skills and address local safety topics at their facilities.

Another corrective success involves the use of Opposite Direction Operations (ODO). An ODO occurs when aircraft are landing and departing on the same or parallel runways – operating in opposite directions from one another.

This configuration can be hazardous if it is not applied correctly. We know ODO is an essential operation in certain circumstances at some airports, so we couldn’t just terminate the procedure.

We completed the development, testing and training of new, enhanced ODO procedures at 550 out of 553 airports, 99.5%. The three remaining facilities will require more time because of unique geographical constraints affecting their operations.

One hazard on last year’s list involved the need to make on-the-job-training instruction (OJTI) more effective. We identified several causal factors that could lead to a safety event.

These include on-the-job training instructors using inadequate techniques, being unaware of a developing safety event, not catching a read-back error, failing to intervene in a situation that led to a safety event, intervening too late to save the situation, intervening but with inadequate actions to maintain separation or allowing the situation to deteriorate too far to recover.

For this hazard, we developed five corrective activities, one of which included incorporating these causal factors into an OJTI supplemental workshop – a forum where instructors can exchange ideas and best practices for on-the-job training. This will enable greater awareness of, and solutions for, these causal factors.

One of the five hazards on the 2013 list had to do with recovery: how quickly we re-establish a margin of safety after a loss of separation. Our data showed that 73% of all high risk events that occur in

FAA’s proactive safety management approach.

the US airspace system are associated with recovery.

We developed six corrective activities, including incorporating recovery as part of our Recurrent Training program. This marks a huge shift toward our proactive safety culture. We’ve never had training requirements for recovery before.

Implementation For each year’s list, our goal is to implement 80% of all corrective activities by the end of the fiscal year on 30 September, knowing that some changes may take longer than a year to implement. We monitor all corrective activities for two years to ensure they are reducing safety risk, as intended.

If necessary, we’ll make additional corrections as appropriate.

In closing, the Top 5 Hazards list ensures that we target the most pressing risks in the US airspace system. We’re

determined to mitigate these risks so we can prevent accidents long before they can happen.

I look forward to exchanging safety insights with our international partners so we can make global aviation safer.

One of the five hazards on the 2013 list had to do with recovery: how quickly we re-establish a margin of safety after a loss of separation. Our data showed that 73% of all high risk events that occur in the US airspace system are associated with recovery.

AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 23

NAVCANatm is a subsidiary of NAV CANADA

Building bridges in the sky

Seamless transition between neighbouring ANSPs is possible if all partners pursue solutions based on global best practice.

To foster a continuous and seamless transition across flight information region (FIR) boundaries it is necessary that similar procedures, services and separation standards are used by adjacent FIRs. This can best be achieved by ensuring surveillance hand-offs when flights cross FIR boundaries. This enables flights to ‘fly smarter’, optimising their speed, course and altitude. Moreover, the safety levels in a continuous surveillance environment are higher than those in a procedural environment.

This rarely happens, however. Surveillance services are often terminated prior to the boundary and a procedural hand-off is used transfer the aircraft to the neighbouring ANSP. Kapri Kupper, Operations Programme Manager, CANSO, says there are two major reasons why this is the case. “First, the receiving ANSP might not have surveillance capability due to a lack of appropriate equipment or due to such geographical limitations as oceanic or remote airspace,” she notes. “And second, if surveillance services are provided on both sides of the FIR boundary, incompatible systems may make procedural hand-offs necessary.

Improvements in the areas of crossboundary co-ordination, harmonisation, collaboration, communications, and integrated systems will drive benefits for the aviation industry as a whole.

The CANSO Best Practice Guide to Flight Information Region Boundary Crossings (FIRBX Guide) provides global, best practice solutions to overcome these challenges.

Best practice Building surveillance capability is the obvious starting point. Kupper points out the key in this regard is ensuring neighbouring ANSPs collaborate to identify and minimise gaps in surveillance coverage and to ensure compatible technology and procedures are in place.

ICAO has identified automatic dependent surveillance – broadcast (ADS-B) and multilateration surveillance (MLAT) as appropriate systems for the application of surveillance-based separation between aircraft. A major benefit of these systems over traditional primary and secondary radar installations is that they are generally less expensive to install and maintain while providing similar levels of surveillance coverage.

Some ANSPs have used ADS-B and MLAT to increase surveillance coverage in areas that have traditionally been nonsurveillance areas. For example, ICAO reports that ADS-B trials run as part of the Gulf of Mexico (GOMEX) Route Redesign project, demonstrated an increase in efficiency and cost savings to the user, and indicated that further benefits would accrue once ADS-B was fully implemented in GOMEX airspace.

Kupper notes one clear advantage of providing surveillance data to controllers in remote airspace is the ability to reduce separation between aircraft to as little as five nautical miles.

Other benefits include less air to ground communications, improved operational flexibility and ‘safety net’ alerting tools, such as short-term conflict alert.

AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 25

Credit: ©iStock.com/Stephen Schwartz

FIR Boundary Crossings

Registration Opens October 2015

Make the future of ATM your business.

BROADEN YOUR

HORIZONS

WorldATMCongress.org

FIR Boundary Crossings Shared surveillance data can also provide additional situational awareness. ADS-B data from the Timor Sea is currently shared between Airservices Australia and AirNav Indonesia to improve controller situational awareness.

Although a surveillance separation service is not provided in this case, controllers use the surveillance data to apply nonsurveillance separation, which provides such benefits as the ability to cross-check information against observed surveillance data. This can reduce the likelihood of incorrect co-ordination and ensure that flight plan data is consistent between FIRs.

Seamless transfer If technology upgrades are not possible and neighbouring ANSPs do not both enjoy surveillance capability, then ANSPs must tackle the challenge of flights moving across an FIR boundary from a surveillance to a non-surveillance environment.

In essence, the problem is the disparity in systems covering such areas as airspace structure and communication. This necessarily involves an increase in minimum separation standards – in some cases going from five nautical miles to as much as 120 nautical miles or 15 minutes.

The problem is further compounded if flight plans have not been received or are incomplete. Take three flights that are cruising at optimal altitude and a longitudinal separation of 32 nautical miles and that cross to a non-surveillance flight information region. If the receiving ANSP did not receive flight plans for all three flights and requires at least 50 nautical miles separation then the middle flight would need to change altitude to a non-optimal level.

“The recommended practices in the FIRBX Guide mitigate such an occurrence and would make it possible for all three flights to transition from a surveillance-capable FIR to a non-surveillance FIR without a flight level change,” says Kupper.

The Arabian Sea Indian Ocean ATS Coordination Group (ASIOACG) provides an example of one of these recommended practices. Co-operation between individual ANSPs and across ICAO regions has achieved a standard for procedural separation. ASIOACG partners have agreed the implementation of standard and uniform procedural separation as below: Year

RNP Status of ASIOACG airspace

Horizontal separation lateral/ longitudinal

2015

RNP 10

50/50 Nm

2016

RNP 4

30/30 Nm

2020

RNP 2

20/20 Nm

The FIRBX Guide encourages ANSPs to introduce RNP-4 airspace to cater to high traffic volumes as this allows the 30/30 nautical mile separation standard to be implemented in non-surveillance, oceanic and remote airspace. It also suggests ANSPs include contiguous airspace design as an agenda item during bilateral negotiations.

The North American (NAM) Common Coordination Interface Control Document (ICD) – which facilitates the transfer of current flight plan (CPL) data via automation – is another example of a valuable tool that ensures accurate and consistent CPL data across boundaries.

The FAA uses this to interface with such ANSPs as NAV CANADA, Instituto de Aeronáutica Civil de Cuba (IACC), and Mexican Airspace Navigation Services (SENEAM).

“Implementing automation interfaces with adjacent FIRs to supplement or replace manual voice co-ordination is a positive move,” says Kupper.

Safety first Where surveillance capabilities already exist on both sides of the FIR boundary, compatibility is paramount. Migrating from region-specific standards, such as Australian Area Navigation Operations to internationally recognised PBN standards, will help align separation standards with adjoining FIRs. “When applying separation standards for crossing FIR boundaries, the aim should be to provide maximum benefit to the operators,” believes Kupper. “But we must always think safety first.”

So though reducing separation standards to ensure an optimal flow of traffic through the airspace minimises fuel burn and CO2 emissions, ANSPs must also consider the impact on safety management systems as well as airborne and groundbased capabilities.

The final word The FIRBX Guide states that “improvements in the areas of cross-boundary co-ordination, harmonisation, collaboration, communications, and integrated systems will drive benefits for the aviation industry as a whole”.

These benefits may include reducing the number of air traffic incidents, improving the flow and accuracy of information, and improvements in flight optimisation by reducing overall flight times, fuel-burn, CO2 emissions, and the associated workload of operators and airspace users.

“Small changes can have a big impact on improving efficiency and safety when a plane crosses a FIR boundary, such as the alignment of procedures, separation standards, and airspace classifications on either side of the boundary,” concludes Kupper. “The fewer the changes required by flight crews when crossing a FIR boundary, the greater the contribution to the safety and efficiency of the flight.”

In turn, that will allow the ATM system to meet elevated traffic volumes and facilitate aviation’s contribution to the global economic and cultural environment.

To download the CANSO Best Practice Guide to Flight Information Region Boundary Crossings, go to www.canso.org/publications AIRSPACE

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Ground-based Augmentation

From idea to implementation The ground-based augmentation system highlights the pitfalls and potential of introducing new technology.

A component of the ICAO Aviation System Block Upgrades (ASBU) Block 0, the ground-based augmentation system (GBAS) is available technology, ready now to improve the performance of ANSPs and their airline clients.

GBAS is a satellite-based precision approach aid for aircraft landings. Data from global positioning satellite (GPS) navigation is corrected at a ground station to provide greater accuracy and sent back to an aircraft, providing it with an optimised path into the airport.

GBAS is also easily combined with required navigation performance (RNP) – with the mode change to precision final approach occurring as far as 23 nautical miles out from the airport. So once RNP has provided its smooth, efficient curved approach, GBAS takes over to provide a precision all-weather landing; including autoland if desired by the flight crew.

And it is precise, accurate to around 50cm with horizontal and vertical guidance on aircraft all the way to the runway threshold.

But it is not just the exactitude of GBAS that makes it better than the commonplace instrument landing system (ILS), it is more cost-effective too. The maintenance is easier and there is no need for regular testing and calibration.

Other benefits include the potential for a capacity increase thanks to the accuracy and flexibility of the system while a stable signal promises enhanced safety.

Jim Jackalone, Honeywell’s Director of Flight Efficiency Products and Services, describes GBAS as a “transformative technology” and likens it to the advent of digital TV. “GBAS is basically more flexible than previous technologies,” he says.

“When TV went from analogue to digital, all manner of new techniques became possible, such as picture-in-picture. It is similar with GBAS. There is far more control and flexibility.”

But perhaps the most amazing thing about GBAS is the fact that it is derived from a 1980s technology. Most experts at the time predicted it would replace ILS by the 1990s.

GBAS is not just a different technology – it is a new way of operating. ILS dates back to 1938 and has become an integral part of the air transport system. GBAS disrupts the existing paradigm.

And like any disruptive technology it forces ANSPs to rethink their traditional processes, to assess the regulatory framework and to decide on an appropriate implementation timetable.

So why has GBAS taken so long to gain a foothold in ATM and what lessons can be learned from its long journey from idea to implementation?

New thinking Much stems from the fact that GBAS is not just a different technology – it is a new way of operating.

ILS dates back to 1938 and has become an integral part of the air transport system. GBAS disrupts the existing paradigm.

Credit: ASA

And like any disruptive technology it forces ANSPs to rethink their traditional processes, to assess the regulatory framework and to decide on an appropriate implementation timetable.

GBAS autoland at Sydney Airport.

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Breaking the institutional mind-set is not easy and driving a project like

GBAS forward requires a combination of internal champions, a master plan commitment, an open mind and plenty of time.

Jackalone suggests that implementing any new technology is necessarily a journey and not a single event. That means ensuring the simple things are working well, perhaps even relying on mixed mode operations before starting on more complex procedures.

Fortunately, the technology’s inclusion in ICAO Annex 10, Standard and Recommended Practices (SARPs) is a big step forward because this eases the pressure on national regulators, which may not have the resources or technical ability to properly assess GBAS. It also opens up the opportunity for the mutual recognition of regulations between States.

EUROCONTROL is also doing advanced work on GBAS, including the development of a concept of operations and guidelines for an operational safety assessment. Phraseology and flight plan issues are also under review.

Credit: EUROCONTROL

Putting in the correct regulatory framework is also a difficult process.

Global standards and interoperability are vital to the success of GBAS. Assessing interoperability is hard work, however, especially in the case of GBAS. GBAS is a satellite-based precision approach aid for aircraft landings.

between 2020 and 2025, over 50% of flights will have everything necessary to use GBAS. The Boeing 787 and 747-8 include GBAS equipment as standard and it is an option on entry into service on the Airbus A350 and A380.

For Fraport, working in conjunction with German ANSP, DFS, that has tipped the balance of the business case and it is now committed to using GBAS approaches.

A ground station has been constructed west of runway 18.

GBAS has come a long way since the first version of the technology. It is now an advanced system, welldefined, interoperable and commercially available.

Adoption is increasing accordingly. About 40 countries are now actively investigating GBAS implementation. The next steps for the technology are segmented, curved and steeper approaches and in 2019, CAT III operations.

Broad acceptance of the technology is also a boon for manufacturers. It allows for extensive stakeholder engagement to perfect the product and the ability to sell across the market.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has not yet approved plans for federal GBAS acquisition, although the system can be purchased by airports and installed as a non-Federal navigation aid.

“It establishes the value of the project for the developer and creates a vested interest for all stakeholders,” Jackalone sums up.

Nevertheless, it is conducting research and development on the technology and working to assess the technical risk in support of ICAO SARPs.

GBAS on the move There is also the question of what it means to be a prime mover or a fast follower. At Singapore, for example, it is estimated that around 10% of flights have the requisite on-board equipment and trained pilots to use GBAS.

Additionally, the FAA is working towards international GBAS implementation and interoperability by sharing technical expertise, operational experience and approval processes via the International GBAS Working Group (IGWG). The FAA and EUROCONTROL co-chair the IGWG.

interoperable and commercially available. Adoption is increasing accordingly. About 40 countries are now actively investigating GBAS implementation. The next steps for the technology are segmented, curved and steeper approaches and in 2019, CAT III operations.

At Frankfurt in 2013, that figure stood at just 4%. The airport operator, Fraport, estimates, however, that at some point

GBAS has come a long way since the first version of the technology. It is now an advanced system, well-defined,

GBAS technology has finally arrived. And if its history is anything to go by, it is here to stay for a while yet.

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civil air navigation services organisation

icas

One for all

German ANSP, DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung, is introducing new technology aimed at improved harmonisation and efficiency.

DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung is part of the Interoperability Through European Collaboration (iTEC) project, which brings together the air navigation service providers of Spain (ENAIRE), Germany (DFS), the UK (NATS) and the Netherlands (LVNL) – alongside systems provider Indra.

It was established to develop a common next-generation flight data processing (iTEC-FDP) system and the common iTEC controller working position (CWP).

These initiatives also feed into a separate project being undertaken by DFS and LNVL, known as iCAS (iTEC Centre Automation System). iCAS aims to create a common air traffic services system for all German control centres as well as for the control centre at Amsterdam. The project is fully aligned with the SESAR Master Plan and FABEC development. It is also fully compliant with all trajectory-based management systems and, as such, fits in well with ICAO’s Aviation System Block Upgrades programme.

Andreas Pötzsch, Head of the Business Unit Centre at DFS, says historically, each DFS centre grew organically, developing its own system. With the need to improve safety, airspace capacity and cost efficiency, having disparate systems was no longer acceptable. It was also the case that getting spare parts for older systems was becoming increasingly difficult with many parts no longer available.

“The iCAS implementation allows DFS to replace ATS systems at all DFS control centres with a common modern ATS system,” says Pötzsch. “The iCAS system provides a list of new, modern features, such as fully-automated co-ordination support (OLDI 4.1 compliant), 4D trajectory prediction, flight path

iCAS aims to create a common air traffic services system for all German control centres as well as for the control centre at Amsterdam. The project is fully aligned with the SESAR Master Plan and FABEC development.

(conformance) monitoring and it is completely interoperable. iCAS will provide one system for DFS at all centres.”

Pötzsch accepts that unique local requirements may justify the development of specifics but “these specifics should be kept to a minimum to reach maximum system commonality.”

Working processes iCAS is the biggest investment and innovation programme ever undertaken by DFS. Its core team consists of about 80 engineers and project management experts and around 25 operational experts.

Pötzsch says the plan is to introduce iCAS step by step at the various control centres, starting with the upper area control centre in Karlsruhe. iCAS will replace the current VAFORIT system in use at Karlsruhe in 2017 with lower airspace centres coming online in 2018/2019, Bremen being the first.

Working processes will change as a result of the project and this must be carefully managed, says Pötzsch. To fully exploit iCAS capabilities, especially in terms of capacity optimisation, air traffic controllers will need to be re-trained as a far higher level of automation is involved. For airlines and pilots, working processes will not necessarily change, but they will have the option of a higher level of automation with air/ground datalink.

Controllers will also be involved in mitigating any risk associated with the switchover to iCAS from older, proprietary systems.

“We will involve future users as early as possible, use a harmonised operator concept in which all centres will be involved, and we will start validation and prototyping early in the process,” informs Pötzsch.

If all goes to plan, iCAS will generate a number of benefits for DFS. Maintenance divisions for centre ATS systems can be consolidated, for example, and overall iCAS will enable about a 20% reduction in staff.

The VAFORIT 4D trajectory system for upper airspace at the control centre in Karlsruhe has also provided clues about the significant capacity gains achievable under iCAS as well as the potential productivity of air traffic controllers.

Pötzsch concludes that DFS stands to gain enormously from implementation of iCAS. AIRSPACE

QUARTER 3 2015 31

ATM NEWS CANSO Members share practical steps to strengthen ATM performance Over 230 delegates from the ATM industry met in Durban, South Africa, for the CANSO Global ATM Summit and 19th AGM, as well as a series of meetings that addressed key ATM issues in Africa and globally.

The theme of the Summit was ’Strengthening air traffic management’ and its aim was to share lessons learned and experiences from what is currently being achieved in ATM.

Credit: CANSO

Speakers presented six innovative ATM case studies: OneSKY in Australia; remote air traffic control towers; converging runway operations; time-based separation of aircraft; GBAS (ground-based augmentation systems); and how ANSPs effectively cooperate in the COOPANS project. The case studies demonstrated clearly what can be achieved through innovation and strong partnerships.

The Honourable Ms. Sindisiwe Chikunga, Deputy Minister of Transport, keynote guest speaker at the CANSO Global ATM Summit and 19th AGM.

IDS and TTCAA to improve traffic flow and coordination in the Caribbean The Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority (TTCAA) chose IDS Ingegneria Dei Sistemi S.p.A. to implement its latest air traffic flow management (ATFM) solution for the Piarco FIR. A flow management unit will be established in the Piarco ACC with flow management positions in Piarco tower and Tobago airports.

The Piarco FIR is surrounded by nine FIRs and contains six terminal areas belonging to different States/Territories.

The project is expected to be operational by the 2016 summer Olympic Games.

Aireon and Isavia to investigate surveillance over North Atantic and polar regions Aireon LLC and the Icelandic ANSP, Isavia are exploring the implementation of space32 QUARTER 3 2015

based automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) surveillance over the Reykjavik Flight Information Region and the Reykjavik Oceanic Control Area.

With the implementation of space-based surveillance, all ADS-B equipped aircraft will be visible to air traffic control, including over polar and oceanic airspace, where current surveillance is limited or does not exist.

Airbus ProSky to deploy required navigation performance in Mexico Airbus ProSky will assist in deploying performance-based navigation (PBN) airspaces at Tijuana and Guadalajara International Airports.

Required navigation performance will be deployed through a holistic approach – the design of the procedures along with specific tailored training are part of a national initiative driven by the Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil (DGAC) of Mexico and Servicios a la Navegación en el Espacio Aéreo Mexicano (SENEAM).

AIRSPACE

Read CANSO Director General Jeff Poole’s speech on the CANSO website.

Record environmental savings reported

by NATS NATS has enabled a reduction of more than 600,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions thanks to more efficient air traffic control procedures, improved use of airspace and innovative technology in the last financial year.

NATS has reduced the average ATM related CO2 emissions by 4.3% per flight, compared to 2006, exceeding its 4% target for 2014. In 2008, NATS became the first ANSP in the world to set itself targets on the environmental performance of its airspace, including to reduce average ATM related CO2 emissions by 10% per flight by 2020.

Television signals a possible alternative to radar Standard TV signals could be used for tracking aircraft, following a proof of concept trial led by NATS in conjunction with Thales ATM UK and Roke Manor.

The two-year trial demonstrates that not only can TV transmissions be used to locate aircraft; they can do it well enough to meet the standard separation requirements for air traffic control of three or five nautical miles.

That makes TV signals a potentially viable alternative to radar. The trial also demonstrated that the signals were seemingly less susceptible to the interference wind turbines cause to traditional radar.

A6 Alliance and EUROCONTROL collaborate on NewPENS The A6 Alliance of ANSPs and EUROCONTROL are collaborating to define the provision of the New PanEuropean Network Services.

NewPENS is the panEuropean ground-to-ground network infrastructure that will underpin the European Commission’s Single European Sky initiative.

It will be used for both voice and data communications between ANSPs, and will

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Commitment is a BIG word at Frequentis. A commitment to air safety and those who manage it. A commitment to innovation and cutting-edge solutions. A commitment to the responsibility that comes with a market-leading reputation earned through decades of successful ATM projects. We bring you world-beating expertise, a strong user focus and the experience gained from installing more than 25,000 operator positions in over 115 countries. As a result, our solutions meet your performance and operational objectives while protecting your investments. That‘s why 80.000+ users rely on our systems.

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QUARTER 3 2015 33

Credit: CANSO

ATM NEWS

(From left to right) Boni Dibate, Director Africa Affairs, CANSO; Thabani Mthiyane, Chief Executive Officer, ATNS; Jeff Poole, Director General, CANSO; Mpho Mamashela, Chairman, ATNS

provide a common, secure IPbased network service across Europe, making it easier to share information while also reducing costs.

COOPANS ATM system upgraded at seven ACCs in two weeks The COOPANS partners (Austro Control, Croatia Control, Irish Aviation Authority, LFV and Naviair) have upgraded their common ATM system in just 14 days across all seven area control centres (ACCs).

The upgrade includes enhancements to controller– pilot data link communications (CPDLC).

The system significantly increases capacity and the ability to handle traffic increases without delays.

The COOPANS ATM system has also facilitated improvements in ANSP safety and environmental performance by, for example, enabling performance-based navigation which allows more precise departure and arrival routes.

34 QUARTER 3 2015

Centre of excellence for ATM in Singapore The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) inaugurated the ATM Research Institute (ATMRI) and MITRE Asia Pacific Singapore (MAPS).

CAAS is developing Singapore as a Centre of Excellence for ATM to improve the efficiency and safety of ATM. ATMRI and MAPS will conduct distinct yet complementary advanced research and development activities. ATMRI will nurture talent in the ATM domain and translate academic-based research into ATM solutions.

MAPS serves as the premier collaboration space for regional ATM harmonisation.

It will deliver solutions to meet the ATM needs of Singapore and the region.

Remote towers in Europe The Irish Aviation Authority signed a contract with Saab to deliver a remote tower centre to Dublin Airport.

Co-funded by the EU’s Single European Sky ATM Research Joint Undertaking (SESAR

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JU), remote tower installations at Cork and Shannon will be operated from Dublin Remote Tower Centre and will be trialled through 2015 and 2016.

DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung signed a contract with Frequentis to equip Saarbrücken Airport with its remote tower solution.

From 2017, DFS intends to operate aerodrome control services at this airport from a remote tower centre in Leipzig.

Saarbrücken will be the first German airport under remote control. The airports of Erfurt and Dresden will follow.

Asia Pacific leads the world in global aircraft tracking Flights across the Pacific Ocean between Australia, New Zealand and the United States will be tracked more frequently due to close cooperation between Airservices Australia, Airways New Zealand and the United States’ Federal Aviation Administration.

Since the end of June, air traffic controllers have used existing automatic dependent surveillance-contract (ADS-C)

technology to track aircraft across the Pacific Ocean every 14 minutes, more than halving the previous tracking interval of every 30-40 minutes. This means flights in this region will meet the intent of the ICAO recommendation of tracking oceanic flights every 15 minutes or less.

Dubai Air Navigation Services and MITRE create Centre of Aviation Innovation Dubai Air Navigation Services (DANS) and the MITRE Corporation are creating a Dubai-based aviation innovation centre, ‘The Centre of Excellence’.

It aims to improve the aviation infrastructure in the UAE by enhancing safety, security, efficiency, and capacity of aircraft operations.

In addition, DANS seeks to engage local talent from technology institutes and universities to develop young innovative minds by providing them the opportunity of working in activities in the centre.

In association with

MITRE

civil air navigation services organisation

Comprehensive and Integrated Training

Aviation System Block Upgrade (ASBU) Methodology and Best Practices for ASBU Implementation

CANSO_AD_216x303mm_AD_012915.indd 8/05/2015 1

More Information and Registrations http://mai.mitrecaasd.org

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Millions of critical decisions are made every day in aerospace. Thales is at the heart of this. Our TopSky-ATM solutions are trusted by key ATM professionals across 180 nations and our components, systems and services are integral to the SESAR and NextGen programmes. With an impressive two out of every three planes around the world landing and taking off with the help of Thales, we give decision-makers the information and control they need to make more effective responses in critical environments. Every moment of every day, wherever safety and security are critical, Thales delivers.

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