London City Airport to install UK’s first remote air traffic control tower

TINNews |

TIN News: London City Airport is set to launch the first digital air traffic control tower in the UK with an aim to enhance the country's air traffic management (ATM).

The airport has collaborated with the UK's air navigation service provider (ANSP), NATS, to approve plans for the new Saab-developed digital air traffic solution, which will be operational in 2019.

London City Airport CEO Declan Collier said: “A pioneering new digital air traffic control system will enhance safety and improve resilience, setting a new standard for the global aviation industry to follow.

“With London City Airport’s plans to grow and an existing tower which is reaching the end of its operational lifespan, this cutting-edge proven technology futureproofs London City Airport’s air traffic control for the next 30 years and beyond.”

The 50m digital control tower will be equipped with 14 high-definition (HD) cameras and two pan-tilt-zoom cameras.

The cameras will offer new viewing tools and a highly detailed, 360° view of the airfield.

Images of the airfield and data will be transmitted using independent and secure super-fast fibre networks to a newly-built operations room at the NATS control centre in Swanwick, Hampshire.

"A pioneering new digital air traffic control system will enhance safety and improve resilience, setting a new standard for the global aviation industry to follow."

Air traffic controllers at Swanwick centre will have access to live footage displayed on the 14 HD screens, which will display a seamless panoramic moving image, in addition to the audio feed from the airfield and radar readings from the London airspace.

These will be used to instruct aircraft and oversee air traffic movements.

While construction work on the tower is slated to commence later this year, it is due to be completed in 2018.

Controllers will be able to use several viewing tools to observe airfield activities, including pan-tilt-zoom cameras that can magnify up to 30 times for close aircraft inspections.

The tools used in the digital tower are expected to enhance air traffic controllers' situational awareness, allowing them to take quick and informed decisions