New ATC mode for old air woes

New Delhi: Aircraft hovering over the Delhi airport, and hours-long delays due to air traffic congestion will soon be a thing of the past. Performance-based navigation (PBN), an advanced air traffic management system being used at the Indira Gandhi International airport, will not only make flying much safer, it is also expected to decongest the airport.
In the PBN, aircraft can use installed on-board technology instead of the present ground-based navigation system and would be able to fly more flexibly and accurately.
Apart from tackling congestion, aircraft would also save fuel. At present, aircraft lose huge amount of the expensive aviation turbine fuel (ATF) while waiting for permission to land.
"Pilots are dependent on the air traffic controller to guide them on navigation, landing and take-off. With the new system, the detailed flight plan, including the exact time of touchdown, is fed into the aircraft's navigation system," said a senior air traffic controller who didn't wish to be named.
"Unlike earlier, they would also know which aircraft is ahead or behind them and this will cut down on unnecessary hovering," he said.
05/05/11 Sidhartha Roy/Hindustan Times

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Categories: Airports May 2011, New May 2011