At Aerospace Tech Week, Marouan Chida, Head of ATM Transformation, EUROCONTROL joined to discuss the changing air traffic management (ATM) landscape, looking at key challenges and opportunities. Summarising the responsibility of ATM, Chida explained:
“ATM is delivering a service, its about letting everybody fly at the best possible trajectory.”
Reflecting on the main drivers of change in the ever-evolving landscape, Chida noted a few developments that have forced ATM systems to look critically at itself and modernise. Firstly, it has been a bottleneck for growth. Secondly, its crucial role to play as the industry prioritises sustainability. Thirdly, the changing requirements of “new entrants” that have joined the game. To continue delivering an effective service, ATM systems will have to take advantage of all the latest tech so as not to downgrade the potential of new aircraft.
Thinking about what the ATM landscape will look like a decade from now, Chida discussed the Digital European Sky and SESAR’s role in innovating and accelerating its delivery. In particular, Chida highlighted the need for scalable systems to support aviation’s exponential growth and the importance of cooperation as new players like air taxis and drones join conventional aircraft.
For all this as well as Chida’s observations on the challenges involved with integrating emerging technologies into existing frameworks, watch the full interview now.
Questions asked include:
How have we seen the air traffic management landscape develop in recent years and what do you think have been the main drivers of these changes?
What role is technology playing in the landscape’s evolution?
How do you tackle integrating emerging technologies into existing frameworks?
What will the landscape look like in the next 10 years?
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“We have an analogue airspace in a digital age designed nearer a time Yuri Gagarin reached for the stars. The moment for change is now.”
The UK airspace infrastructure, originally developed in the 1950s, has become outdated as the industry’s challenges, technological needs, and goals have evolved significantly. Combatting this, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has launched its plan for modernising UK airspace by 2040.
The ‘Airspace Modernisation Strategy, Part 3: Deployment Plan’ sets out a vision for how airspace will change over the coming seven years and serves as a benchmark for measuring the industry’s progress and alignment with the UK CAA’s Airspace Modernisation Strategy. Released in January 2023, the strategy laid out “a vision for the future of UK airspace to deliver quicker, quieter and cleaner journeys.”
With tech evolving rapidly, the industry scaling up, emerging players like drones and vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft joining, and sustainability targets looming, the UK CAA is laying the foundations for an extensive overhaul of the UK’s aviation infrastructure. Addressing this ongoing transformation, Aviation Minister Mike Kane said:
“The world of aviation is undergoing a technological revolution and it’s crucial our airspace evolves alongside this. The Civil Aviation Authority’s plan to modernise our airspace will help ease delays, support efforts to decarbonise and reduce noise. Through continued collaboration with industry, this plan will ensure these innovations are safely and effectively integrated into our skies.”
Rob Bishton, Chief Executive of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, added:
“Overhauling our airspace is a long-term and complex endeavour, requiring concerted efforts and collaboration from the aerospace industry. It is key to enabling new and innovative technologies to thrive in UK aerospace. […] It not only outlines our strategic priorities, but also is a blueprint for industry to engage and contribute towards the vision of a modernised airspace for the UK.”
Described as a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to modernise UK airspace, the plan must pave a way for a more efficient, sustainable, and technologically advanced future.
At Aerospace Tech Week, Franc Sanmartí, Director of Sustainability & Aeropolitical Affairs, Vueling Airlines joined to share his insights on the industry’s progress towards the net-zero by 2050 target. This five-minute conversation looked at key targets within the airline, the vital role of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and other emission-cutting initiatives, and Sanmartí’s perspective on the Single European Skies agreement.
Emphasising the importance of SAF, Sanmartí noted that when reducing emissions, 60-70 per cent will come from SAF, compared to 20 per cent from new aircraft technology, 10 per cent from operational efficiency, and the rest from innovations like carbon capture. This highlights that although SAF is critical for the industry’s decarbonisation journey, other efficiency-based tech innovation also has its part to play.
Touching on the Single European Sky agreement, Sanmartí explained that effective digitalisation and innovation can achieve the same emission reduction that the agreement initially proposed. To unlock this, collaboration within the industry and across the value chain will be crucial.
Watch the full interview below for more.
Questions asked include:
Do you think the industry is where it needs to be to hit the net-zero by 2050 targets?
What balance are you striking between investment in SAF and investment in sustainability focused technologies?
Are you satisfied with the Single European Sky agreement’s ability to drive meaningful progress with regards to sustainability?
From 2025, Heathrow will use digital twin technology developed by NATS to tackle emissions at the airport. The Demand Capacity Balancer (DCB), ‘digital twin’ already predicts and models operational performance in near real-time at the airport but will soon be used to reduce CO2 emissions.
The DCB is a predictive decision-making tool developed by NATS and Frequentis Orthogon that accurately forecasts demand, capacity, and performance metrics from the day of operations and up to six months in advance.
Rolling out a new series of environmental performance-based features, NATS is supporting Heathrow in understanding the most efficient operating plan to reduce emissions. The press release revealed this these improvements would reduce airborne holding and fuel burn and could result in CO2 savings up to 30,000 tonnes a year.
Kelly Stone, Head of Airport Operations, Heathrow said:
“It is fantastic to see the DCBs use extended to environmental performance. Small incremental steps like this are vital to reduce ‘in the air’ emissions to reach Heathrow’s goal of net zero by 2050. I am grateful for NATS’ ongoing commitment in bringing world first technology to Heathrow helping us be an extraordinary airport, fit for the future.”
Guy Adams, Managing Director of NATS Services, said:
“DCB is a proven success at Heathrow, helping save several millions of pounds a year by reducing delay, so it makes perfect sense to harness that same analytical technology to include environmental performance. No other airport in the world has this capability, and NATS is proud to be supporting Heathrow’s ambition.”
2023 was the highest year in a decade for serious runway incursion events per one million airport operations. With runway incursions on the rise, Honeywell has accelerated development of its Surface Alert software. The alert system leverages GPS data, automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) equipment, and advanced analytics to detect the accurate location of potential hazards.
Thea Feyereisen, Senior Technical Fellow, Honeywell Aerospace Technologies, described pilots as “the last line of defence” against runway incursions and Surface Alert, or SURF-A can act as their “third set of eyes” in the cockpit of aircraft.
Helping to improve situational awareness and reduce risks of runway incursions, SURF-A gives pilots real-time aural and visual alerts if they’re on a trajectory to collide within 30 seconds, accessing data directly from the ADS-B Out equipment on aircraft and ground vehicles.
“In general, airlines are hesitant to buy a safety system unless it’s mandated. So we’re looking into ways to incentivise airlines to equip smart runway technology.”
With plans to have SURF-A certified within 18-24 months and airlines showing interest in the technology, Honeywell have extended this beyond a research project, looking to offer it for retrofit and as well forward fit aircraft.
In 2026, air traffic at Charleroi and Liège airports will be remotely managed by a single digital control tower centre in based in Namur. The centre will oversee all ground movements during landing and take-off at the two airports.
Recently, SOWAER (Société Wallonne des Aéroports) and the Belgian air navigation service, skeyes, debuted the ‘Digital Tower Test Centre’ prototype at their site in Steenokkerzeel. The test centre is “almost identical” to the one currently being built in Namur and will be used to familiarise staff with the new technologies, train air traffic controllers, and deliver a seamless transition once the Namur centre is open. While the test centre is fed with real-time images from the masts in Liège and Charleroi, it does not have module for communicating with aircraft.
These digital towers are “the future for air traffic control,” using advanced cameras, infrared systems, and sensors at airports to receive real-time images on large screens at control centres showing a 360° view of the airport’s horizon. A ground radar system supplements this by pinpointing aircraft locations, even in poor weather. Augmented reality further enhances control by projecting extra information onto aircraft, aiding traffic management.
Eventually, the digital control centre in Namur will replace the physical towers at Charleroi and Liège airports. The innovative approach to air traffic control complements the wider digital transformations at the airports, illustrating their efforts to modernise infrastructure, streamline operations, and improve safety standards.
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