ISSUE 37 QUARTER 2 2017
journal of the civil air navigation services organisation
Flying High – onwards and upwards CANSO Global ATM Summit and 21st AGM
INTERVIEWS
Ed Sims, outgoing CANSO Chair Morten Dambæk, Naviair
SPOTLIGHT
Implementing technology Safety in Latin America China’s modernisation Single European Sky Space management
IT’S TIME FOR A NEW APPROACH TO ATM
With the ever-growing amount of traffic in the sky, air traffic management (ATM) is a critical priority that requires continuous progress. Working together with industry and government organizations, Boeing is committed to an ATM transformation that improves safety, efficiency and the environment for all. At the core of Boeing’s ATM solutions are secure network-centric operations that will incorporate the capabilities of modern airplanes, as well as ensure global interoperability and real-time access to critical information. The time is now, and Boeing is ready to help.
boeing.com/commercial
AIRSPACE 37
IN THIS ISSUE 5 Director General
20 LETTER FROM AMERICA
Jeff Poole argues that space regulation must accommodate all stakeholders and be developed for aircraft and space vehicles alike.
Teri Bristol, COO of the FAA’s Air Traffic Organization, explains new ideas and processes to handle the increasing number of space launches.
6 DENMARK
SpaceX
8 AdobeStock/Sergii Figurnyi
Morten Dambæk, Director General of Naviair – the Danish air navigation service provider – explores the history of the country and air traffic services.
23 CHINA
8 SPACE MANAGEMENT
Ed Sims, former CEO of Airways New Zealand and outgoing CANSO Chair, provides some food for thought on the way forward for the global ATM industry.
Technology must drive the industry forward, not focus on small improvements to existing products. 28 AUTOMATION
6
23
AdobeStock/Stefano Garau
15 ED SIMS INTERVIEW
26 TECHNOLOGY
iStock/c8501089
Space may be the final frontier but for ANSPs it is simply the next step in an increasing diversification of services.
Airspace No. 37 ISSN number 1877 2196 Published by CANSO, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation Transpolis Schiphol Airport Polaris Avenue 85e 2132 JH Hoofddorp The Netherlands
Safety in Latin America and the Caribbean is taking huge strides forward thanks to an innovative model for collaboration.
Telephone: +31 (0)23 568 5380 Fax: +31 (0)23 568 5389 Publisher: Quentin Browell communications@canso.org Editor: Graham Newton communications@canso.org Advertising: Helen Parker helen.parker@canso.org Design:
civil air navigation services organisation
34 ATM NEWS
© World ATM Inc.
20
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
Increasing automation could have a widespread impact on air traffic control. 31 SAFETY
17 SINGLE EUROPEAN SKY A Single European Sky may be a misnomer but the concept of unified European airspace is closer than many realise.
The extraordinary growth of air traffic in China has led to the development of an ambitious plan for airspace modernisation.
34 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. © Copyright CANSO 2017
News highlights from CANSO Members and CANSO.
ISSUE 37 QUARTER 2 2017
journal of the civil air navigation services organisation
FlyiNG HiGH – ONwARdS ANd UpwARdS CANSO Global ATM Summit and 21st AGM
INTERVIEWS
Ed Sims, outgoing CANSO Chair Morten Dambæk, Naviair
SPOTLIGHT
Implementing technology Safety in Latin America China’s modernisation Single European Sky Space management
Front Cover Image AdobeStock/Alan Z. Uster
AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 3
FROM THE DIRECTOR GENERAL
civil air navigation services organisation
Space is becoming busier with a growing number of governments and commercial companies developing innovative ways to access space. There are nearly 1,400 operating satellites but we are about to see a massive increase in both satellite numbers and other space users. For example, SpaceX is building a 4,000 satellite ‘mega constellation’ to provide broadband services and OneWeb is planning a constellation of 650 satellites. At lower altitudes, we are also seeing increasing activity, particularly by companies seeking to deliver Internet services such as Project Loon’s balloons and Facebook’s solar-powered plane. Another exciting development is the advent of space tourism: Virgin Galactic’s new spaceship is undergoing tests; Blue Origin is planning to launch its first human passenger paid flight in 2018; and SpaceX is planning to take two space tourists on a trip round the moon in 2018. The space sector is growing between 5% and 8% annually with over 80 launches a year. The increased use of space-based technologies and the falling cost of launches means that there will be more and more high altitude and space vehicles travelling through airspace. We therefore need to consider what this growth means for the air traffic management industry. At the moment, temporary flight restrictions are imposed to segregate aircraft from rockets during the entire launch window, which can often last hours. But as the amount of launches to and reentry from low earth orbit (LEO) increases, this is not sustainable. Some are asking why civil aircraft traffic should be increasingly disrupted and give way to space vehicles, especially as more and more space traffic is commercial. The time has come for clear rules, developed and agreed by all stakeholders, to accommodate the requirements of both aircraft in traditional airspace as well as space-bound vehicles travelling through that airspace. This will involve close cooperation between organisations responsible for space traffic management (STM), airspace/ space users and ATM; and between the global regulators including ICAO and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs. As an industry, we need to consider how to integrate commercial space operations into the ATM system. Rather than blanket clearance of airspace, our aim should be to minimise the impact of space vehicles on air traffic, while maintaining a high level of safety. This will require the modification of ATM software to process and display space vehicle trajectories, associated hazard areas and no-fly zones. We need the ability to detect and track commercial spacecraft entering airspace. We also need to train ATCOs and ANSPs, including an understanding of the characteristics of space vehicles. It is important we have a full debate in our industry about these issues. The CANSO Global ATM Summit in Copenhagen in June will be doing just that with two sessions on this issue. We have attracted an impressive lineup of speakers from the commercial companies at the cutting edge of accessing space, organisations managing space travel, and ANSPs. Watch this space!
Jeff Poole CANSO Director General
AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 5
DENMARK
Welcome to wonderful Copenhagen!
Credit: Naviair
Morten Dambæk, Director General of Naviair – the Danish air navigation service provider – explores the history of the country and air traffic services.
Wild Vikings, ancient castles and palaces inhabited by real princes and princesses, cobbled narrow streets, old timbered houses, and a certain sculpture of a little mermaid – Copenhagen is your modern-day fairy tale.
A tour in and around Copenhagen Harbour and its canals will take you from the father of fairy tales Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid sitting on her rock at the entrance to the harbour to the modern architectural addition to The Royal Danish Library, The Black Diamond, and Nyhavn Harbour.
Credit: AdobeStock/Sergii Figurnyi
The Danish capital oozes history and effortlessly combines old and new, preserving its 1,000-year old history while always looking to the future with open arms, hearts and minds.
DENMARK
Imagine extending the safety and operational benefits of air traffic surveillance and the cost benefits of ADS-B to every region on the planet, without the investment in ground infrastructure. This is a modern fairy tale about to come true. And though Hans Christian Andersen might not have written a fairy tale about aircraft, flying objects or space rockets, Naviair has started writing its own history. Try to imagine extending the safety and operational benefits of air traffic surveillance and the cost benefits of automatic dependent surveillance – broadcast (ADS-B) to every region on the planet, without the investment in ground infrastructure. This is a modern fairy tale about to come true. In 2018, Aireon LLC will provide the world’s first global flight surveillance system using space-based ADS-B equipment that makes it possible to extend visibility across the entire planet. The technology will enable real-time transmission of ADS-B reports from equipped aircraft to air traffic management automation platforms and air traffic controllers in every flight information region in the world. Naviair is an active and proud partner in space-based ADS-B. But then, Naviair is always looking to take the lead in the matter of providing the best possible service to our customers. With activities in Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, as well as internationally, Naviair is playing a central role as a first mover in the aviation industry, providing safe and efficient service to our customers.
Price sensitivity All Danes have a little Viking blood in them. From around 800 AD to 1000 AD, Vikings – explorers and merchants, warriors and pirates – walked and sailed their way through Europe. Today, the Vikings do not travel by foot or sea; they travel more than ever by plane. The aviation industry is changing fast as demand for air travel increases, particularly in terms of leisure travel where margins are lower and price sensitivity higher. Aviation is a vital part of Scandinavian infrastructure and its major airline, SAS, is keeping the region connected through a far-reaching network and smooth transfers. Its membership of Star Alliance takes that connectivity even further. SAS connects small regional airports with large hubs, maintains a high frequency of departures to and from Scandinavia and, as a part of Star Alliance, flies customers to more than 1,300 destinations in 190 countries worldwide, offering close to 18,500 departures every day. Such an increase in traffic is being made possible by a generational shift in ATM technology. New technology opens new possibilities. By combining professional know-how within the technological and operational areas we can develop entirely new solutions for airspace users. The CANSO AGM will involve some key discussions about these new possibilities and where we collectively want to go. We are looking forward to being your host at the CANSO AGM 2017 and wish you a wonderful stay in Copenhagen. The CANSO Global ATM Summit and 21st Annual General Meeting runs from 12-15 June 2017, in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Credit: SAS Group
Together with our partners in the COOPANS Alliance, Naviair is a pioneer within harmonisation and standardisation of
ATM systems in Europe, for example. COOPANS Alliance has uniquely implemented harmonised systems in seven control centres in five European countries. Today, they are run with the same technical software and hardware, which reduces costs and creates efficiency for the end user.
SAS keeps Scandinavia connected through a far-reaching network.
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QUARTER 2 2017 7
SPACE MANAGEMENT
Credit: AdobeStock/Rawf8
Flying high
Space may be the final frontier but for ANSPs it is simply the next step in an increasing diversification of services. Above and beyond: the level and diversity of activity to be accommodated by new space regulations is set to increase.
It may look empty but there is an awful lot going on in the Earth’s upper atmosphere and beyond. And this activity is set to increase. There will be more objects, more vehicles and more operational profiles with which to contend. The result will be a complex section of airspace that needs a comprehensive, yet flexible, set of rules. The amount – and diversity – of activity that will need to be accommodated by new space regulations is huge. Alongside such passenger-based ventures as Virgin Galactic and SpaceX, there will be balloons and drones galore, as well as the everpresent danger of space debris, which is far more common than many people realise.
SpaceX has been contracted to take two private citizens on a trip around the Moon in 2018. The trip will make use of the Dragon 2 spacecraft – which is being tested again in 2017 – and a Falcon Heavy rocket, which has 5 million pounds of lift-off thrust, more than double the thrust of the next largest launch vehicle currently flying. Dragon 2 is contracted to fly an average of four times a year to the International Space Station, three trips carrying cargo and one carrying crew. By also performing private operations, the cost to NASA and governments is reduced and more flight data is generated, improving safety. Dean Fulmer, Portfolio Manager, Commercial Space Transportation, MITRE, meanwhile notes that balloons are changing in size and mission. “One is the size of the Eiffel Tower and has a gondola with paying passengers and a parafoil that will be dropped from 100,000 ft,” he explains. Then there is Facebook’s Internet-providing project, Aquila. It will use solar-powered planes that take-off and land in a conventional manner. But they will stay aloft for months at a time, travelling at around 70 knots at 60,000 ft at night and moving up to 90,000 ft by day to charge the batteries.
Credit: Facebook
David Hansell, Global Aviation Policy Lead at Facebook, accepts that “other traffic may have to vector around” Facebook’s aircraft, which will be communicating with each other via lasers. He also notes that the aircraft take-off and land automatically while one pilot will handle multiple planes once they are airborne.
Facebook’s Aquila project will use solar-powered planes.
8 QUARTER 2 2017
AIRSPACE
“No regulatory framework speaks to that,” he says. “It is not the usual flying profile so can we make airworthiness right now? I do not know. Clearly, though, we do not want to endanger safety or impact commercial operations.”
SPACE MANAGEMENT
Managing space traffic through civil airspace into low earth orbit is done on a case-by-case basis. But with space traffic growing fast, it is clear that this approach will not scale up to demand. Aquila is planned for a highly competitive sector. Google Loon and OneWeb both promise to bring high-speed Internet access to the world too. Google Loon will do it via high altitude balloons while OneWeb plans to launch more than 2,000 satellites. And in March 2017, SpaceX announced plans to launch more than 7,500 satellites to provide commercial communications services. The idea is to use an electromagnetic spectrum that has not previously been employed in this field. This so-called V-band low-Earth orbit (LEO) constellation would come hot on the heels of 4,425 satellites that are proposed to function in Ka- and Ku-band. Indeed, the number of satellites in orbit will increase substantially. The Indian Space Research Organization recently squeezed 104 satellites on a single rocket launch, almost 70 more than the previous record. It included satellites from India, the US, the Netherlands, Israel, Kazakhstan and Switzerland. Eighty-eight satellites belong to the US-based company, Planet. Known as Doves, they measure just 12 inches long by 4 inches wide by 4 inches high (30 by 10 by 10 centimetres). By 2025, it is estimated that there will be three times as many satellites in space as today. Space debris also has to be a serious consideration. It is estimated that 21,000 pieces of debris more than four inches (10 centimetres) in length orbit the Earth, as do some 500,000 smaller pieces. In low-Earth orbit, these objects travel at four miles per second. If they hit something, it is the equivalent of a 550lb object doing 60 miles an hour. Put simply, they could cause a devastating accident.
Commercial decisions Managing space traffic through civil airspace into LEO is done on a case-by-case basis. But with space traffic growing fast, it is clear that this approach will not scale up to demand. Arriving at a comprehensive space traffic management system will not be easy, however. Before even getting into the technical details, there are commercial considerations to deliberate.
Besides the commercial concerns, diverting aircraft every time there is a trip to space will not be operationally viable in the
Credit: SpaceX
When looked at from the commercial perspective, it does not appear fair that a space vehicle take-off should force civil aircraft to divert to ensure safety. Aircraft diversions cost airlines money as journeys take more time and use more fuel. Airlines would argue that it is not a level playing field if they incur cost so that another commercial entity can make money. In 2016, 25% of launches were commercially oriented. That percentage will only increase. Companies such as SpaceX are pushing the boundaries of ATM.
AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 9
SPACE MANAGEMENT
Non-technical considerations include the environment and crisis management. Spaceports are being constructed in diverse locations which brings such environmental issues to the fore as sonic booms.
future. The number of diversions each take-off causes and the size of the airspace closed down is too large to be scalable as space travel flourishes. Other non-technical considerations include the environment and crisis management. Spaceports are being constructed in diverse locations which brings such environmental issues to the fore as sonic booms. ANSPs might be involved in measures to mitigate the noise impact of space operations and horizontal take-offs will be an especial concern in that regard. There is also the question of what happens in a space vehicle emergency. Spacefaring vehicles will be moving quickly; they will cross flight information regions in an instant. If routine civil air traffic needs to be moved out of the way, the aircrafts’ limited speed and the limited time involved will need to be managed carefully.
Key considerations Christian Arbinger, Head of Operations at DLR GfR, speaking at World ATM Congress 2017 in Madrid in March, summed it up: “The technology for space operations is there but we need the rules.” He suggests there are some key principles at play when it comes to establishing space regulations.
Low Earth-orbit (LEO) ranges from about 100 miles (160km) to 1,200 miles (2,000km) above the Earth’s surface. The majority of piloted spacecraft will be operating in this range. The International Space Station, for example, orbits at 248 miles (400km). Iridium’s Next constellation will orbit at 476 miles (780km). The larger navigation and communication satellites usually orbit much further out, some 6,000 to 12,000 miles above the surface while some weather satellites in geosynchronous Earth orbit are over 22,000 miles high. In terms of space debris, objects in LEO can experience rapid orbital decay, while those operating at 22,000 miles or above can remain aloft for millions of years. A safe de-orbiting strategy for satellites in low earth orbit is essential.
its space-based automatic dependent surveillance – broadcast (ADS-B) system has the ability to manoeuvre around an object the size of a small bolt. A unit of NORAD monitors space debris and informs Iridium if it needs to move the satellites out of the way of something. Then there is the need to know about space weather. Ionospheric disturbances and solar flares can cause problems. All Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) services can be affected, including ADS-B, ground-based augmentation systems and satellite-based augmentation systems. Cyriel Kronenburg, Vice President, Aviation Services at Aireon, says that the Van Allen belt helps deflect a lot of solar activity, but he accepts that “ionospheric interference in equatorial region is a challenge”. Another important regulatory cornerstone is environmental compliance. This clean space approach is equivalent to the work being done in civil aviation and will drive towards the same desired outcome – a licence to grow.
Credit: Virgin Galactic.
The first is the need for space surveillance. Knowing where everything is in space, down to the tiniest pieces of debris, is essential. The Iridium constellation used by Aireon to power
Orbital ranges
Virgin Galactic’s spaceport and launch aircraft.
AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 11
SPACE MANAGEMENT
Arguably most critical of all is the need for inclusivity and cooperation. Space traffic control needs to be integrated properly with terrestrial ATC.
Space tracking In the US, the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Office of Commercial Space Transportation has developed the Space Data Integrator (SDI) to track space vehicles through the US airspace system. Ultimately, the technology will be enhanced to facilitate international tracking too. SDI feeds information to controllers via the Traffic Flow Management System so they can act on that information as necessary.
Cross-training will be vital so that terrestrial air traffic controllers know the requirements of a suborbital space vehicle, for example. These vehicles travel at high speeds and may not exhibit normal aircraft behaviour even at lower levels. Even Concorde needed special handling and special training for air traffic controllers. Other elements that feed into this integration include repeatable processes so authorities can reach similar decisions from similar criteria; shared situational awareness; automated interfaces; and the ability to manage performance variations. Arbinger believes that all shareholders must be involved in putting the rules together, from the United Nations through ICAO to individual ANSPs, airports and operators. In Europe, a Roadmap Towards European Space Traffic Management has been produced, the work of many partners, including Austro Control. The document talks about managing manned and unmanned suborbital space vehicles in near Earth space.
Growing the business
This may be a good opportunity for ANSPs. By successfully integrating space operations into existing commercial ATM, there is the possibility of growing the business beyond national boundaries and thereby improving revenues. In short, ANSPs must consider what the future will bring. There are effectively three systems in play. In addition to traditional air traffic management for civil aircraft with known operational parameters, ANSPs will soon have to provide guidance for drones at low level – so-called unmanned aviation systems traffic management or UTM – as well as services for space traffic operating beyond 60,000 ft. The final frontier has arrived.
Credit: SpaceX
As the rules take shape, the responsibility for overseeing them also needs to be decided. The United Nations’ Office of Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) has authority for everything that happens in LEO and beyond. But ICAO regulations for commercial air travel go up to FL650. It leaves a significant region of airspace unmanaged – and it is a region that could be extremely active with commercial ventures in the years to come.
SDI has near real-time error detection so controllers will also know instantly if air traffic needs to be diverted. SDI has already been successfully trialled. In August 2016, it monitored SpaceX’s CRS-9 Dragon capsule returning to Earth after supplying the International Space Station.
SpaceX plans to take two paying passengers on a trip around the Moon in 2018.
AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 13
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2017-03-21 05:40
Ed Sims Interview
The top 10 of everything Ed Sims, former CEO of Airways New Zealand and outgoing CANSO Chair, provides some food for thought on the air traffic management industry.
According to my 20-year-old daughter, an active user of Twitter and Instagram, being read and received is all about sound bites and lists. Apparently, we live in an age of “tops”, from top bucket lists to top playlists. My wife, on the other hand, is equally adamant that I can recite a top 10 football World Cup finals list quicker than my children’s names. She insists lists are a male thing. I am not so sure. Yet when an invitation came to jot down some parting thoughts on my views about the ATM industry, it was a personal collection of top 10 lists that instantly sprang to mind. Let me see…a top 10 of the most overused ATM buzzwords would have to include: strategy, transformation, vision, disruption, system, platform, optimised, predictive, seamless, and collaborative. Go on – write your next Board paper without any of them. I dare you. How about a top 5 of overused phrases? • Safety is our number one priority • This technology will genuinely transform the industry • Our industry is at a crossroads • The answer will be collaboration • The only constant is change (see above instruction and reference your last Annual Report). Ah, this is too easy and too much fun. But as I look to step out of ATM and leave so many great colleagues behind, I do not want to be remembered just for poking holes. As industry commentators demonstrate time after time, it is so much easier to break something down than to build something enduring. So, let me instead list 10 aspects I would love to see in the global ATM industry of the future. Remember, this is my personal wish list. Not as CANSO Chair. Not as Airways New Zealand Chief Executive. But just me. I wish you all safety and success and thank you very much for letting me share in your journey.
1
An industry characterised by mutual respect and humility. I have huge respect for the technical skills and unflappable aptitude of our controllers. I have not always sensed that respect flow back to corporate roles like my own. I am realistic and humble enough to know I do not possess the skills to do their job, but I would love to see more controllers rise through the ranks to be able to do mine.
2
More time is spent demonstrating ATC relevance than striking over legacy entitlements. We all recognise that our salaries reflect our training and capability. Can we please collectively spend more time demonstrating our worth?
3
ANSPs become businesses not just organisations. You can be safe and profitable. I would go further and say the best assurance of long-term safety is being profitable. They are inextricably linked.
4
The four Cs of the private sector – customers, competitors, cash registers, and commercial acumen – finally feature in our predominantly public sector world.
5
If the future belongs more to users of data rather than owners of capital, our funding models have to be built on the value we create, not the capital we accumulate.
6
Our technical and engineering capability takes as high a profile as our operational air traffic control. Software skills are far more likely to be enduring and less likely to be disintermediated than separation and conflict avoidance.
7
We become a genuine aviation eco-system of mutual value, not simply a supply chain subject to airline decision making. We will simply never stop behaving like victims otherwise.
8
Visuals other than a control tower are used to represent us. They are not sexy, they are not beautiful, they consign us to caricatures of our role. We have to become an industry built on brains not bricks.
9
We actually embrace gender diversity. Really. At times, many of our most important industry gatherings can feel as male dominated as the recent photo shoots of a certain world leader.
10
We reduce Euro centricity. History and the past dominates too many agendas – the future looks pretty bright in some other parts of the world, believe me. AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 15
SINGLE EUROPEAN SKY
One for all A Single European Sky may be a misnomer but the concept of unified European airspace is closer than many realise. The idea of a Single European Sky (SES) has been around for many years. Its critics suggest it will be two decades more – at least – before the industry and government partners get even close to achieving it. But there are perhaps some assumptions at play that are clouding judgement. The most obvious, and most damaging, is that the Single European Sky necessarily means one provider, one regulator, and one technology.
Massimo Garbini, Managing Director of SESAR (SES ATM Research) Deployment Manager, accepts that much of the history of SES implementation has been about a failed attempt to drive the project through a top down implementation of regulation. But, he insists, that history also explains why the industry has now moved into the SES era. “You need to understand where we have come from to know where we are today,” he says. “Look at the level of interoperability across Europe. Look at the collaborative projects on the drawing board, being tested, being
SESAR 2020 offers an important platform for the next generation of development, bringing together the ATM community to facilitate performanceoriented solutions.
Credit: AdobeStock/viperagp
When European airspace is criticised for its fragmentation, the US Federal Aviation Administration is lauded as its counterpoint. One controller for a similarsized airspace, compared with Europe’s 37. The comparison is redundant, however, in the sense that interoperability across borders is what matters.
Technology is making SES a reality.
implemented. We can see seamless operations in action in Europe today. And that is how a Single European Sky should be defined.” The change in momentum came when the European Commission decided to involve the industry in kick-starting the SES project, Garbini suggests. Because ATM is an industry that is predicated on delivering. And SESAR – the technology arm of the SES project – supported by the ANSPs, airlines, airports and technology providers, is the primary delivery method. The drive behind SES is to improve ATM performance and that is being achieved. “Technology is the enabler and ANSPs have a great understanding of the capabilities of new technology,” Garbini says. “The EC is aware of that knowhow. It is continuing to push and the industry is continuing to deliver. At this point in time we have no less than 30 modernisation projects finalised and 220 ongoing.”
Secure funding In parallel to the SESAR Deployment Programme, research and innovation continues through the SESAR 2020 programme. Run by the SESAR Joint Undertaking, SESAR 2020 offers an important platform for the next generation of development, bringing together the ATM community to facilitate performance-oriented solutions. The significant funding set aside for research, innovation and testing represents a serious investment in Europe’s aviation future. Co-funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020, EUROCONTROL and industry members, the SESAR Joint Undertaking is delivering a stream of innovative technologies responding to the world’s pressing ATM needs and achieving the SES vision. Two of the three major funding strands under SESAR 2020 came online in 2016. Some €20.4 million has been AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 17
See You in Madrid!
Madrid, Spain IFEMA, Feria de Madrid worldatmcongress.org #WorldATM
Future Dates: 2018: 6 - 8 March 2019: 12 - 14 March 2020: 10 - 12 March
18 QUARTER 2 2017
AIRSPACE
SINGLE EUROPEAN SKY
Credit: AdobeStock/M. Schuppich
secured for 28 projects in such areas as automation and robotics, data and information management, meteorology and the environment, and economics and regulatory issues. And more than €220 million in EU funds has been set aside for 25 projects that will develop, validate and prepare platforms that demonstrate the effectiveness of SESAR 2020 solutions to a wider stakeholder community. Meanwhile, a call for very large-scale demonstration projects, worth about €18 million, closed in March 2017. “The timescale for the implementation projects is right,” Garbini notes. “We can’t put technology into operation without testing it but we are also aware of the need to maintain momentum.” New ideas are being promoted all the time. Garbini points to datalink recovery as the cornerstone of future development. “That is the only really revolutionary technology. Most of the time we are improving on what we have. But this idea takes us in a new direction.”
Balancing act As the technology arm of SES – the enabler for the project as Garbini would say – forges ahead, the question is whether the regulatory side can keep pace. There are three years to go on Reference Period 2 (RP2) – a regulation stipulating economic and performance targets – but attention has already turned to Reference Period 3 (RP3). Preparations have included an analysis of Reference Period 1 (RP1), a workshop
Two of the three major funding strands under SESAR 2020 came online in 2016. Some €20.4 million has been secured for 28 projects in such areas as automation and robotics, data and information management, meteorology and the environment, and economics and regulatory issues.
More than €220 million in EU funds has been set aside for 25 projects.
in November 2016 organised by the Performance Review Body and a hearing hosted by the European Commission to obtain views on concrete actions to improve the performance and charging scheme regulations for RP3. A balancing act is critical to success. Cost effectiveness must accommodate the need for investment in SESAR deployment. An additional complication is that an update of the SES rules, known as SES2+, hasn’t yet been agreed. SES2+ aims to refine the performance-oriented model of economic regulation set down in the SES2 package. It means RP3 will likely have to adhere to SES2 guidelines. Nevertheless, Mark Scott, Principal Consultant, Helios, says that “there is a broad desire to simplify the schemes – and particularly the process so that the delayed approval of some performance plans is not repeated.” He also notes the need to reduce the burden on stakeholders, particularly ANSPs, while maintaining performance improvements is common ground and unlikely to be fought over. “RP3 will almost certainly place additional downwards pressure on cost, but it is the method of economic regulation that has been debated widely in recent discussions,” he continues. “The incentivisation of performance and risk-sharing models are central to this debate. Among other solutions, a pure price cap regime has been proposed, which would transfer all cost and traffic risk to the ANSP – at a cost to the airspace user. “This would simplify the scheme, but is not common in the transport sector where providers are more vulnerable
SES benefits Compared with 2004, the Single European Sky could: • Triple airspace capacity • Halve the costs of ATM • Increase safety tenfold • Reduce the impact of aviation on the environment.
than other regulated industries to prolonged downturns in demand. At this critical time, any change must also protect investment in SESAR.” The European Commission will release drafts of RP3 later this year, which should provide some hints about the structure and direction of the performance plan. The aim will be to drive performance in such a way that improvements are also accelerated. Henrik Hololei, Director General of DG MOVE has noted that if the industry is to meet the targets set for the future performance of the European air traffic management system, it will have to ensure that it is at the start, not the end, of a new era of aviation collaboration. And speaking at World ATM Congress 2017 in Madrid, he concluded: “Today I think that togetherness is reflected in our work on the Single European Sky and approach to international cooperation. “Sometimes the process of moving forward can be slow and frustrating and it might be tempting to go it alone. But we should remember that while alone we move faster, together we go further.” More information on SESAR Deployment Manager and SESAR Joint Undertaking can be found at www.sesar.eu AIRSPACE
QUARTER 2 2017 19
LETTER FROM AMERICA
Meeting innovation head-on Teri Bristol, Chief Operating Officer of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Air Traffic Organization, explains new ideas and processes to handle the increasing number of space launches.
I know it is often said that we are ushering in a new age of something or other. But there are some new and exciting aviation-related activities that make that more true now than ever before. We all know about the challenges unmanned aerial systems or drones are placing on us, for example, and the pressure from industry for us to find ways to allow their use over populated areas and beyond line-of-sight. But that is just one of many new and innovative impacts on aviation. Remote air traffic control towers and highaltitude balloon operations are also on the cusp of true implementation.
Another new entrant that is at the forefront right now in the FAA is the integration of commercial space launches with civil airspace. We are currently seeing unprecedented commercial space launch activity and the outlook is for rapid growth for the foreseeable future. Commercial trips around the moon and manned missions to Mars are not just conceptual any more. Companies are planning trips around the moon next year, and Mars missions within the next decade. From an airspace perspective, adding to the challenge is the various types of space vehicles that will be launched in the next few years.
We are currently seeing unprecedented commercial space launch activity and the outlook is for rapid growth for the foreseeable future. Commercial trips around the moon and manned missions to Mars are not just conceptual any more. Yes, the traditional vertical launches will continue but we have already seen one variation of that; controlled fly backs of the booster rockets to land on a barge at sea. This has been accomplished several times already providing a very good indication that it is a viable business model.
Credit: Virgin Galactic
This year we will see the return of captive carry operations where a space vehicle is launched from a carrier plane at altitude. Horizontal launches where a space vehicle departs from a runway and then does a rapid sub-orbital or orbital ascent are also planned. Smaller rockets that can launch mini or micro satellites, rocket launches by colleges and universities, and requests for spaceports located throughout the country are not things of the future, they are here.
Spaceport America, New Mexico – many more such facilities are already being planned.
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Cities and municipalities anxious to get in on the front end of the commercial space market are realizing the economic benefit of a spaceport and we’ve already seen an upward trend in license requests.
LETTER FROM AMERICA
Aircraft hazard areas It is all very interesting and exciting stuff but we must determine how to safely and efficiently integrate all these entrants into the airspace system. Typically, when people see space vehicle launches on television and in the news, the general reaction is how fascinating it is. What is usually lost in the conversation is the fact that those vehicles have to get safely through our airspace that contains airplanes that those same people are flying on! So how do we do it? Is it possible to allow commercial space vehicle launches without closing enormous blocks of airspace for entire launch windows that can sometimes be 2-3 hours? The answer is yes, but with caveats. First, there will always be sections of airspace, or aircraft hazard areas (AHA) that will need to be protected during a launch. The key is to put controls in place to minimize the effect and duration of the AHAs while continuing to meet an acceptable level of safety.
Controls in place
Some of the controls that we can implement now include setting criteria for the number of launches in a particular area, controlling the number of aircraft affected by each launch, setting minimum speed and heading criteria for aircraft in the vicinity of aircraft hazard areas, and working with launch operators to streamline pre-flight processes and reduce the duration of the launch windows. Implementing controls such as these will help us in the short term but as commercial space launches continue to increase we will also need to look at new processes and technologies to ensure safety targets are met and the impact on efficiency is tolerable. One technology the FAA is investigating is a tool that will provide a moving aircraft hazard area that follows the space vehicle throughout its launch. This would have the effect of reducing the overall size of the protected volume needed to ensure safety.
Credit: AdobeStock/Stefano Garau
The FAA’s Air Traffic Organization and Office of Commercial Space have been working effectively on these challenges.
Commercial space launch activity is at unprecedented levels.
Ready for the future These are challenging but exciting times, and I am sure there are more to come in the form of space vehicles we have yet to see. I seem to be hearing the same things a lot lately: “this is something new”; “there really is no precedent for this”; “we have to do things differently than we have done in the past”. One thing we know for sure is that innovation never stops and we must match that innovation. We must be ready for the future and we always make aviation safer for everyone, everywhere, every day.
There will always be sections of airspace, or aircraft hazard areas (AHA) that will need to be protected during a launch. The key is to put controls in place to minimize the effect and duration of the AHAs while continuing to meet an acceptable level of safety.
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CHINA
Thinking big
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The extraordinary growth of air traffic in China has necessitated an ambitious airspace modernisation programme.
Shanghai (pictured), Beijing and Guangzhou are China’s three main hubs, together accounting for one-fifth of total traffic.
The aims of China’s Civil Aviation ATM Modernization Strategy (CAAMS) are straightforward: strengthen safety and accelerate the development of Chinese airspace management.
take-offs and landings. China has 217 certified airports to handle the traffic, 28 of which cater to more than 10 million people annually. In 2016, 480 million people used the country’s air system.
Not so straightforward is the sheer scale of the challenge. There are 11 flight information regions covering 10 million square kilometres of airspace. Every day sees 23,000
Equally interesting is the rate of growth. In 2005, there were 2.89 million aircraft movements. Just over a decade later that number had ballooned to 8.39 million. By 2020, it will reach 11.5 million. Not surprisingly, around the middle of the next decade, it is predicted that China will overtake the US as the largest aviation market in the world.
In 2005, there were 2.89 million aircraft movements. Just over a decade later that number had ballooned to 8.39 million. By 2020, it will reach 11.5 million...around the middle of the next decade, it is predicted that China will overtake the US as the largest aviation market in the world.
The fourth dimension Mr. Che Jinjun, Director General, Air Traffic Management Bureau (ATMB) of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) recognises that handling both the massive volume of traffic and the rate of increase in that volume will be a challenge. An additional complication is that the three main hubs – Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou – together account for oneAIRSPACE
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CHINA
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There are four dimensions to the objectives contained within CAAMS – safety, capacity, service, and efficiency – and targets are linked to these. The goal for safety is to reduce air traffic control-induced accidents by 90% compared with 2015. fifth of total traffic. Five-runway configurations at these major gateways, and the complexity of airspace management that implies, may be implemented sooner rather than later. “There are nearly 2,000 flights in a single day at Beijing despite the airport having just three runways,” he says. “That is comparable to the busiest airports in the world and demonstrates there is already reliable and efficient air traffic management.” Alongside this, second-tier airports, such as Kunming, Chengdu, Shenzhen and Xi’an, are experiencing phenomenal increases in passenger numbers. But there is also a wide disparity in the infrastructure and technology base among many Chinese airports and regions. While infrastructure across the country has been steadily improved, in some places, even basic communication equipment is not yet at US or European levels. The CAAMS has plenty to achieve therefore and, accordingly, contains many different ideas and projects. Airspace organisation and management, collaborative flow management, civil-military cooperation and performancebased services are all on the agenda. System-wide information management, 4D trajectories, enhanced weather reporting and automatic dependent surveillance – broadcast (ADS-B) technology are also included in an $8 billion aviation investment strategy. The amount of money, says Mr. Che, “should be a sign of confidence that China is doing what it can.” There are four dimensions to the objectives contained within CAAMS – safety, capacity, service, and efficiency – and targets are linked to these. The goal for safety is to reduce air traffic control-induced accidents by 90% compared with 2015. Capacity will need to treble, also compared by 2015, with minimising flight separation a principal driver. Service delays must be shortened to an average of five minutes and an ontime performance record of more than 80% should be achieved by 2020. In 2016, on-time performance was close to 77%, the best to date but still short of where China wants to be. These gains in operational efficiency will help to cut carbon emissions 10%.
Talent pool The undertaking is considerable but then so is the platform for success. The goal to provide comprehensive ATC services to air transport has many supporting elements.
Second-tier airports, such as Shenzhen, are growing rapidly.
The huge population combined with ever improving educational standards means there is excellent pool of talent to draw on in the future. Already, more than 1,000 controllers are certified every year. CAAC also supports about 200 doctorate degrees for management trainees. “We are building up a professional team, all of whom have proficiency in English,” Mr. Che confirms. “It is not just controllers, but also engineers and every other area of staffing.” Additionally, years of heavy investment in research and development are bearing fruit. A nationwide ADS-B programme is in progress. The plan is to finish 308 ADS-B ground stations by end 2017 to cover the whole country. Meanwhile, performance-based navigation at major airports is included in the latest five-year plan, which began in 2016. A pilot project looking at a number of new technologies is currently taking place at Guangzhou. Ground-based augmentation systems, air traffic flow management and collaborative decision making are also starting to take shape at a national level. By 2020, CAAC hopes to expand airspace in the east of the country, optimise traffic flows in the west, straighten routes in the north and regroup traffic in the south. The Air Traffic Management Bureau is being restructured to help drive these developments. Optimising the administrative aspects will transform the ATMB into a modern, performancebased organisation.
Global contribution The overarching goal is to have the best airspace management in the region and the world by 2030,” Mr. Che explains. “There are proactive measures to cooperate with all other stakeholders under the leadership of CAAC. We will fulfil the strategy.” Cooperation is also extending to CANSO, which Mr. Che suggests is a significant move for both parties and for the industry at large. It will allow CAAC to understand and assimilate global practice, while CAAC’s logical yet multifaceted strategy could make a considerable contribution to ATM development. Not least for both parties is a greater understanding of change management and what it takes to manage airspace safely and efficiently even as air traffic grows. AIRSPACE
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TECHNOLOGY
Back to front
New technologies must drive the industry forward rather than focus on small improvements to existing products. The digital transformation of the industry will make an enormous difference to all aspects of airspace, from those that regulate it to those that manage it and those that use it. But change is a difficult process in an industry that always puts safety as its highest priority. When safety performance is so good, the obvious and understandable temptation is to promote business as usual and be extremely cautious about any developments that affect the status quo. Todd Donovan, Vice President, Strategy and Marketing, Air Traffic Management at Thales, speaking at World ATM Congress 2017 in March, consequently put the following timelines on adopting new technology in the industry:
Common tools, methods and operational procedures throughout the system life cycle maximise benefits. And common procurement for all major programme steps – development, integration, deployment and maintenance – has a significant impact on reducing expenditure. Helping hands
• 5 years if the technology is not safety critical • 10 years if the technology is safety critical • 15-20 years if the technology requires global harmonisation.
New technologies therefore need a helping hand. As Donovan puts it: “We don’t have a technology problem, we have a mindset problem.”
The long lead times look even worse when much of the development is designed to mimic old processes, albeit in an electronic format. In other words, technology development in ATM is backward-focused. The starting block for any new product or system is the traditional processes and the existing business structure.
Reframing regulations to ensure they are performance-based rather than prescriptive would be a start. Crystal Kim, Technical Officer at ICAO, already sees the performance-driven concept at work in ICAO’s Aviation System Block Upgrades (ASBU) programme. “ASBU is an idea that incorporates the need for change but allows ANSPs to move at their own speed and implement technologies that are appropriate to their needs,” she says.
As Martin Rolfe, CEO of NATS, put it on the Information Technology and the Culture of Collaboration panel at World ATM Congress, “if you spend $500 million and nothing changes then you would not be happy”. ANSPs nevertheless often “try to second-guess the regulator”, meaning new technologies are also deliberately designed to conform to existing rules as much as possible.
The next edition of the Global Air Navigation Plan, due out in 2019, is likely to feature an expansion and improvement in the ASBU recommendations, Kim says. In addition, to facilitate a nimbler industry, prescriptive provisions will give way to performance-based provisions. “We work closely with other recognised standard-making organisations in the industry and will develop a roadmap in line with global plans,” Kim explains. “And there will be closer coordination with ATM stakeholders through various workgroups and multidisciplinary teams. CANSO has an important role to play here.” ICAO is building performance-based regulatory frameworks for system wide information management (SWIM) and air traffic flow management (ATFM).
Credit: DFS
Innovative collaboration
The DFS Control Centre in Langen.
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A second, vital aspect to facilitating a more forward-looking industry is achieving the right balance in collaboration. This is not necessarily about absolute equality in terms of the financial incentives or benefits on offer. Partners must be transparent and aligned on the desired outcomes. If partners know each other’s objectives and all achieve them then there is a case for collaboration. A gain in technological development can be vital for one partner even as other partners enjoy the lion’s share of any financial benefits.
TECHNOLOGY
“ATM is a complex ecosystem, where each stakeholder has its own priorities and plans, but without strong partnerships ATM modernisation is impossible,” notes Florian Guillermet, Executive Director, SESAR Joint Undertaking. COOPANS – the ANSP alliance between Austro Control, Croatia Control, Irish Aviation Authority, LFV and Naviair – is an example of how collaboration can drive development. COOPANS has been a long journey but finally the five ANSPs are essentially using the same software and hardware in the same configuration. Common tools, methods and operational procedures throughout the system life cycle maximise benefits. And common procurement for all major programme steps – development, integration, deployment and maintenance – has a significant impact on reducing expenditure. Tellingly, COOPANS cuts across three European functional airspace blocks, and so could push the boundaries of cooperation even further.
ATM has gone from pilots looking down to see if they can spot an airport’s name written on its roof to the imminent arrival of aircraft automatically looking up to a space-based satellite. Change is something the industry can do well. Embracing change The Information Technology and the Culture of Collaboration panel concluded that change in ATM is therefore not just about implementing the latest technology. That can often be the last piece of the jigsaw. First, the industry must change its mindset and look at new ways to collaborate, new business structures and a new regulatory environment that is centred on performance.
It is a similar situation for the ANSPs cooperating under the iTEC banner – ENAIRE (Spain), DFS (Germany), NATS (UK), LVNL (Netherlands), AVINOR (Norway), PANSA (Poland) and Oro Navigacija (Lithuania). Powered by Indra systems, iTEC ANSPs account for 31% of European traffic.
Part of that mindset should acknowledge that this is not an industry that is resistant to change. In little more than 100 years, ATM has gone from pilots looking down to see if they can spot an airport’s name written on its roof to the imminent arrival of aircraft automatically looking up to a space-based satellite. Change is something the industry can do well.
“We are in a system where an individual organisation cannot win the game by itself,” says Thales’ Donovan.
World ATM Congress 2018 will be held on 6-8 March. Visit www.worldatmcongress.org to find out more.
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AUTOMATION
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Rise of the machines
Increasing automation could have a widespread impact on air traffic management.
Automation seems straightforward – get a machine to do the routine work of a human or at least support a human in his or her efforts. From the industrial revolution onwards, the concept has been working well. In air traffic management terms, benefits range from safety to efficiency and capacity. Already, automation is enabling planes to safely reduce separation minima and is taking responsibility for such core controller functions as conformance monitoring – ensuring aircraft are doing what they were authorised to do. It is driving efficiency through advanced flow management and optimising airport arrival and departure management. Other positives include the facilitation of data sharing, thereby forging closer partnerships across the aviation value chain. That ultimately translates into safer skies and a better passenger experience. Such benefits will proliferate as technology advances. In the foreseeable future, automation can be expected to contribute to predictive decision making, accounting for a wider range of safety and efficiency needs. And it will develop to fully utilise cockpit technologies and integrate them with increasingly advanced ground based systems. The refinement of the decision-making process will, in other words, continue. Costs will reduce as a result. This is not necessarily through fewer controllers 28 QUARTER 2 2017
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Automation is often cited as improving productivity. But the elements that go into making a worker productive are numerous and includes experience in the job and an understanding of the bigger picture. being needed – rare or unanticipated events will still require human intervention – but simply because resource usage will improve.
Data analysis Kevin Shum, Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore says automation has the potential to make ATM safer and increase capacity. “Artificial intelligence and machine learning can make ATM safer, as systems can identify potential conflicts and surface them to controllers for immediate attention,” says Shum. “Predictive analytics can help us to identify potential hot spots and safety risks. We can then design new procedures to avert such risks.” Shum believes the ATM environment must be fully digitised. Data needs to be collected, harmonised and a common
format agreed to analyse the information. This would convert data into meaningful outputs, helping to prevent incidents or accidents, optimising airspace and developing performance benchmarking metrics. “We are only in the early days of automation,” says Shum. “In particular, I believe that there will be a quantum leap in ATM automation when unmanned aircraft systems traffic management (UTM) solutions are fully developed. “By its nature, UTM will have to be highly automated, as it would not be practical for human controllers to manage UASs the same way we manage manned aircraft today. Separation distances and reaction times will have to be much shorter.”
Counter-intuitive But just as there are many benefits, so too are there many challenges. Automation in as complex an environment as civil airspace necessarily has an impact across all aspects of ATM. Critical to this understanding is the definition of automation. Automation means technology performing a function – in part or in full – previously carried out by a human. Electric windows on a car are an example although these are no longer viewed as automation as the word continues to evolve along with technology.
AUTOMATION
One plus point for technology’s increasing influence is the fact that millennials will make up 50% of the workforce by 2020. This is a tech-savvy generation, far more in tune with the capabilities and limitations of technology.
Evolution is not so advanced, however, that automation should be confused with autonomy. Automated systems are not yet truly independent and therefore guidance on how human and machine can successfully integrate is essential. Because of the continued need for human involvement, automated systems, almost counter-intuitively, must be designed and deployed with the human in mind. Users need to be fully aware of the system state at all times and any decisions the system is making on the user’s behalf. This is a critical aspect of the transition to automation, noted Brendan Mulligan, Director of Human Resources at the Irish Aviation Authority and Chair of the CANSO Human Resources Workgroup, speaking at the CANSO Global ATM Operations Conference 2017 in March. Automation blindness can quickly set in, where a user over relies on the system information and forgets to continually question or contextualise the data. Training must deal with this as well as user response to system failures or unusual events. It is critical to be able to spot what is known as “system drift” as early as possible. The training of controllers will need to reflect a deeper understanding of the technology so this knowledge can be applied whenever there is an error or system failure. There are two aspects to this: the need to redefine contingency plans; and the gradual eroding of job demarcation lines. Business continuity is now heavily reliant on technology. The end user is unlikely to have the skills to successfully repair a system and so must ensure more traditional skills are kept up-to-date. Meanwhile, engineers need to be included in emergency response planning.
Alongside this, old responsibilities are being blurred. Consider data-link technology connecting the ground and the cockpit in the first instance with voice acting as back-up only. How will this affect situational awareness and workload? Automation will inevitably redistribute the accountability of pilot, air traffic controller and engineer.
Workforce impact Consequently, Mulligan noted, managers will need to work harder to build greater trust among the workforce as technology will be disempowering for some, dominating for others. Indeed, how automation will affect the workforce is an intensely-debated topic. The foundation for this discussion has shifted from technology supporting humans to humans supporting technology. Automation is often cited as improving productivity, for example. But the elements that go into making a worker productive are numerous and includes experience in the job and an understanding of the bigger picture. This could also be described as creative thinking, something a machine cannot replicate.
involvement and wildly different airspace environments. Automating specific aspects at one ANSP may create a disjointed ATM system overall and introduce inefficiencies back into the ANSP. It should be remembered, for example, that more data does not necessarily mean more control. Information from automated systems needs to be filtered appropriately so that the right information is presented at the right time. This is especially true as automation grows and integration – and therefore interdependencies – become the norm. This will call for careful management and far greater cooperation. Any discussion on automation also needs to account for the regulator. New systems need to fully account for, and even exceed, existing safety requirements. It is likely that an automated system needs to be compatible with larger industry programmes such as the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) project and ICAO’s Global Air Navigation Plan. Automated systems by their nature will be innovative and therefore the problems and challenges may be new too.
And there is one other thing a machine will never do; take responsibility. Accountability will always rest with the human. Admittedly, the industry is already heavily reliant on technology to arrive at the right decision and system wide information management (SWIM) is deepening this reliance. But all systems are human-designed and human-maintained.
But crucial to their success is the need to understand the human element. Automation suggests that no operators are needed but in fact, the transition to a technology-dependent environment is centred on humans. The system must be designed with humans in mind, and humans must assess the quality of data and decisions and be ready to take control in an emergency.
One plus point for technology’s increasing influence is the fact that millennials will make up 50% of the workforce by 2020. This is a tech-savvy generation, far more in tune with the capabilities and limitations of technology.
The rise of the machines is a uniquely human phenomenon.
The challenge for an employer in ATM will be to keep them once they have been fully trained. As well as being technically capable, millennials are judged to be more transient and unlikely to be tied down to an single employer.
Disjointed system Automation therefore needs to be seen in the wider ATM context, which has disparate levels of maturity and human
Information from automated systems needs to be filtered appropriately so that the right information is presented at the right time. This is especially true as automation grows and integration – and therefore interdependencies – become the norm.
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SAFETY
Two heads are better than one Safety in Latin America and the Caribbean is taking huge strides forward thanks to an innovative model for collaboration. The Regional Aviation Safety Group – Pan America (RASG-PA) is the successor of the Pan American Aviation Safety Team. The latter was formed in 2001 by the ICAO North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACC) Regional Office in a ground-breaking cooperation with the industry. That spirit of innovation has stayed with the RASG-PA. Melvin Cintron, Regional Director, NACC Regional Office says that what makes the RASG-PA unique is the co-chairmanship between ICAO States, international organisations, including CANSO, and the industry. “RASG-PA is led by the ICAO NACC Regional Office as the Secretariat for the Group; it was able to bridge the three ICAO regions – North America, South America and the Caribbean – to create the hemispheric group we see today,” he continues. “This model was copied by other ICAO Regions with certain variants, and today it represents the standard under which all regions operate.” The RASG-PA was established in 2008 and uses ICAO’s Global Aviation Safety Plan (GASP) and Global Aviation Safety Roadmap (GASR) as the basis of its work. From those plans, a set of Global Safety Enhancement Initiatives (SEIs) are created, giving the RASG-PA achievable targets. Detailed Implementation Plans (DIPs) support the SEIs and ensure that the different stakeholders are able to work together cohesively.
ICAO Member States with the tools they need to better assist them in complying with the internationally recognised ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs).” He accepts that different countries experience different complexities due to their national laws and diverse cultures but insists that groups like the RASG-PA have acted as the ties that bind together these differing cultures. “RASG-PA is a key element for addressing the differences in the development and complexity of civil aviation across the regions,” he suggests. “For example, compliance with Annex 19 - Safety Management – and the use of proper analysed data are effective tools for ensuring that information leads to safety enhancements within the States. “Because of the unique relationship within the RASG-PA, critical safety issues, once identified, can be addressed more quickly than in other fora, thus giving States the ability to take the work of the group and implement safety initiatives into their systems in a more expeditious manner,” he adds.
Credit: AdobeStock/sunsinger
Cintron is convinced that collaboration – even across a region as varied as the Americas and the Caribbean – is a positive step. “Aviation is a global activity,” he says. “The movement towards harmonisation of standards under ICAO’s umbrella, has provided
By leveraging the data sharing concept, RASG-PA was able to monitor unstable approaches at select airports within the region and evaluate the effectiveness of mitigating actions. The unstable approach rate at these airports has been reduced about 50% in the last four years.
The region’s geographical challenges provide extra impetus for safety initiatives.
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SAFETY
Data delivery The RASG-PA already boasts several key developments that have contributed to the improvement in safety numbers in the region. There are four major areas of work: controlled flight into terrain (CFIT); loss of control – inflight (LOC-I); runway excursions (RE); and mid-air collision (MAC) avoidance. Perhaps the most important achievement to date has been to collate and share data with such groups as the US Commercial Aviation Safety Team, the Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing System and the Flight Data Exchange that has furnished the experts with the information to address critical safety issues. Unstable approaches, loss of control (overbank and stall), Traffic Collision Avoidance System Resolution Advisories (TCAS-RAs), Terrain Awareness Warning System alerts and large height deviations have all benefitted from the data that has been brought to bear on the topics. Three types of data are used. Reactive data involves safety analyses based upon accidents and incidents; proactive data involves the analyses of States’ existing conditions (ICAO SARPs implementation, traffic variations) and service providers (IATA Operational Safety Audits, ramp inspections); and predictive data involves the analyses of Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) de-identified data, oriented towards identifying potential future hazards for initiating corresponding mitigation actions. By leveraging the data sharing concept, RASG-PA was able to monitor unstable approaches at select airports within the region and evaluate the effectiveness of mitigating actions. The unstable approach rate at these airports has been reduced about 50% in the last four years. In addition, TCAS-RA hot spots have been identified that RASG-PA is actively addressing while airspace has been improved to de-conflict airspace around airports.
The membership of the Executive Safety Committee is composed of 16 representatives: • Four States from the Caribbean and North American regions • Four States from the South American region • Eight international organizations/industry bodies, including ICAO NACC, CANSO and South America Regional Offices.
Last but not least, the RASG-PA continues to publish its Annual Safety Report (ASR) and as needed, publishes Regional Safety Aviation Advisories (RSAs) for the user community.
Looking ahead The RASG-PA’s vision is to remain ahead of any risks to commercial aviation, seeking to achieve the highest level of safety in the Pan American region. The target is to reduce fatality risk in Latin America and the Caribbean 50% by 2020 compared with 2010. To achieve that, a comprehensive strategic plan is in place. An RASG-PA Strategic Plan Task Force (RSP-TF) is in place, comprising Chile, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Honduras, United States, ALTA, Boeing, CANSO, IATA and ICAO. The task force is working on two deliverables: an RASG-PA Procedural Handbook and an RASG-PA Strategic Plan Document. There is also a risk management strategy. This will ensure SEIs are prioritised and target high-risk areas. Their effectiveness will then be measured against precursor trends in FOQA data. “As the fatal accident in Colombia has shown us, it is important to concentrate the RASG-PA’s future activities on expanding its scope, not just to commercial fleets, but to smaller operators, whose fleets are dominated by aircraft with less than 30 passengers,” concludes Cintron. “We also would like to engage with academia, where the safety message can be taught to future generations of aviation personnel.” More information can be found at: www.icao.int/RASGPA
Credit: RASG-PA
The Group has also been assisting the Regional Safety Oversight Organizations (ROOs) to implement its safety activities. The RASG-PA Executive Steering Committee (ESC) recently supported the establishment of an Accident and Incident Investigation (AIG) Regional Cooperation Mechanism, for example, which is aligned with the ICAO Regional Accidents and Incident Investigation concept.
Executive Safety Committee
RASG-PA uses different types of safety data/information.
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ATM
NEWS
The world’s largest ATM exhibition, World ATM Congress, attracted a record-breaking 7,757 registrants and 230 exhibitors from 131 countries in 2017. Opened by Íñigo de la Serna Hernáiz, Spain’s Minister of Public Works and Transport, keynote speakers at the two-day Conference were Violeta Bulc, EU Commissioner for Transport and Willie Walsh, Chief Executive Officer of IAG and Chair of the Board of Governors of IATA. In addition, five theatres featured over 120 hours of education, including panel discussions, technical presentations, and product demonstrations and launches, from nearly 100 leading aviation professionals from industry, government, labour, and educational institutions.
Think-tank promotes liberalisation The ATM Policy Institute – founded by the ANSPs of New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and the Czech Republic in partnership with CANSO – will provide research on ATM policy issues and make the case for the benefits of enabling ANSPs to compete for the provision of ATM services.
Sundsvall expanded An extension of LFV’s remote tower centre in Sundsvall, Sweden, will provide the capacity to manage air traffic remotely at more airports. The existing control centre has places for two air traffic control positions for remote control. With the extra 430 square metres, there will be space for another three positions.
UAE GCAA selects Snowflake Software Snowflake Software is working with the United Arab Emirates General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) to share consolidated and authoritative flight information across the UAE Flight Information Region (FIR) and with its neighbours. 34 QUARTER 2 2017
Snowflake will deploy the Laminar Data Platform to manage flight data in compliance with the System Wide Information Management (SWIM) concept for the GCAA SWIM Gateway.
Enhanced timebased separation NATS is developing the time-based separation (TBS) concept further with the arrival of Enhanced TBS. Heathrow will be the first airport to have this additional runway resilience in operation, utilising the European Wake Vortex Re-categorisation programme (RECAT EU).
Standing up for the EU Stakeholders from across the entire spectrum of aviation, including CANSO, have signed a united declaration to support the European Union. The nine associations behind this initiative represent the aerospace industry, airlines, airports, business aviation, helicopter operators, air navigation service providers and trade unions.
AAI implements advanced ATFM Airports Authority of India (AAI) has implemented advanced air traffic flow management capabilities
AIRSPACE
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Aviation leaders from over 130 countries participate in World ATM Congress 2017
World ATM Congress 2017 posted record-breaking numbers.
through a contract with Atech Negócios em Tecnologias S/A. The SKYFLOW solution has been supplied, installed, tested and commissioned at the Central Air Traffic Flow Management - Command and Control Centre in New Delhi.
INDRA upgrades in Central America The Central American Corporation for Air Navigation Services (COCESNA) has awarded INDRA a contract to upgrade seven air traffic surveillance radars spread across Honduras, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala and the Cayman Islands. The upgrade will feature cutting-edge digital features that promote flexible maintenance and optimise costs.
Aircraft lands using satellite For the first time, a passenger aircraft has landed in at Bremen Airport in Germany using a new satellite-based precision approach procedure, without the aid of the conventional groundbased navigation infrastructure. DFS made it possible using EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service), a satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS) that supplements GPS and other satellite navigation systems.
Transforming Singapore aviation The Civil Aviation Authority in Singapore has launched a new air transport Industry Transformation Map (ITM) that outlines plans to create better jobs and career opportunities for workers in the aviation sector. It will also support the sector’s growth and competitiveness over the coming years, including the development of air traffic control operations.
Malaysia Airlines gets 100% global flight tracking SITAONAIR, Aireon and FlightAware have announced that Malaysia Airlines will be the first SITAONAIR airline customer to benefit from a revolutionary flight tracking partnership. Under the agreement, all Malaysia Airlines aircraft will have access to minute-byminute, 100% global, flight tracking data.
Dutch Caribbean in harmony Dutch Caribbean Air Navigation Service Provider (DC-ANSP) announced that it will deploy Metron Aviation’s Harmony Horizon to provide better situational awareness of air traffic demand and capacity and to support related flow management decisions.
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AIRSPACE