With remote towers in the spotlight recently, Andy Martin talks to the experts at Saab Digital Air Traffic Solutions and Searidge Technologies to find out why they’re suddenly attracting interest from airports large and small.
It is perhaps surprising that only 6% of the world’s 45,000 airports have full ATC facilities. Many are used only by light aircraft that rely on pilots maintaining visual separation, and will never need such a service, but for others the vital safety net provided by air traffic controllers will become increasingly important as the number of commercial movements increases.
One of the main reasons there are so few installations is that they can represent more than 20% of a small airport’s operating budget, an almost intolerable burden for some in today’s cut-throat and highly competitive market.
But the development of remote towers – providing services from a distant office rather than from a visual control room – is spearheading a change that’s likely to result in more widespread adoption of ATC services over the next few years.
Swedish and Canadian Origins
Saab Digital Air Traffic Solutions was formed a year ago to capitalise on ten years’ experience already gained in the market. …
