Chennai airport to upgrade air traffic control system

Chennai: Flying into Chennai airport could soon be free of hassles, and cheaper for the airlines as well, as the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided to introduce the Performance Based Navigation (PBN) procedure for air traffic control from October 22.
The upgraded system, already in place in Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad, is being introduced here as a step prior to the proposed air traffic control automation planned when the airport will get new radars by the end of next year.
Lack of sophisticated navigational procedure, poorly designed taxiways and a high requirement of fuel for aircraft due to congestion make Chennai a high-cost airport. All this is likely to change in the coming days.
Under PBN procedure, pilots would be provided pre-determined arrival routes into the airport. The feeder routes will be taken by the aircraft while descending from the cruising heights for landing. The modern procedure helps pilots to approach an airport for landing without the aid of air traffic controllers and also learn about air traffic density around an airport.
Other than PBN, Chennai airport will be upgraded from the existing RNAV-10 system to a more sophisticated RNAV-1 system, which reduces space between aircraft while approaching the runway for landing. This helps better use of airspace, eliminates air traffic congestion, and allows airlines to reduce fuel consumption and flight delays.
07/11/09 V Ayyappan/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Oct 2009