Weekly review #159 - 20th July

ANSP news

• LVNL reduces night-time noise pollution for residents in the province of Noord-Holland - LVNL will start to use a new route whereby aircraft that land on the runway Polderbaan will fly around the residential areas of the municipality of Uitgeest. This will reduce aircraft noise pollution during the night for residents in Uitgeest, Castricum, Heemskerk, and Beverwijk.
• ENAIRE and Aena improve operations - ENAIRE and Aena have improved operations at the La Palma Airport with new satellite-based approach procedures at both runway thresholds, RWY 18 and RWY 36, the latter of which includes an approach that relies on the European EGNOS satellite system.
• ENAIRE and Aena launch new satellite navigation procedures - ENAIRE and Aena have improved operations at the César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport with new satellite-based approach procedures at the runway 21 threshold.

Airports news

• The opportunity of small regional airports: Towards sustainability and better connectivity - To70 - Small regional airports have a hidden potential to foster better connectivity between remote locations, enhancing territorial cohesion and reducing travel times. The implementation of new technologies and innovations, i.e. electric, hydrogen and hybrid aircraft, could make regional flights a sustainable alternative for specific use cases, such as road transportation. Therefore, there should be a stronger investment in regional airports’ infrastructures, so as to strengthen their role in the mobility of the future.
• Singapore’s Second Airport Positions Itself As A Future Flying Taxi Hub - British Aviation Group - Singapore has already made agreements with startup companies Skyports Ltd. and Volocopter GmbH, which are looking to convert the airfield into a vertiport for future operations.
• Riga Airport Extends the Contract with Airport Coordination for Flight Data Processing - Riga Airport and Airport Coordination Ltd. have extended the contract for the collection and processing of flight data for three years.

Context information

• EU policymakers learn about air traffic management industry ambitions during skeyes visit - This summer ANSPs are addressing the challenge of managing growing traffic levels. Members of the European Parliament’s Transport Committee and national Aviation Attachés to the EU visited the Belgian ATC centre of skeyes at Brussels Airport to see how ATM works in practice.

Reports and data

• Fraport Traffic Figures – June 2022: Passenger Numbers Continue to Rise - Aircraft movements climbed by 79.3 percent year-on-year to 35,883 takeoffs and landings in June 2022.
• NAV CANADA reports June traffic figures - In June 2022 weighted charging units were higher on average by 107.3 percent compared to the same month in 2021. As compared to the same month in fiscal 2019, June 2022 weighted charging units were lower on average by 12.8 percent.
• Passenger Traffic Continues to Grow in June HKIA Named “Airport of the Year 2022" - Airport Authority Hong Kong announced traffic figures of Hong Kong International Airport for June 2022.The airport handled 62,155 flight movements, representing decreases of 1.1%.

Research and innovation

• Shaping airspace management of the future - NATS Blog - In our IFAV concept, ATCOs of the future qualify for service by sector type, allowing them to operate in any airspace classified as a particular ‘type’, regardless of geographic location.
• AI Captain: The voyage to discover the true power of data - From slashing aircraft turnaround times to AI-assisted bag tracking, or predicting on-time performance and passenger flow at airports, Jean-Paul sees data science and AI as the torch that will illuminate better decision-making at airports, borders, and on aircraft.
• Advanced air mobility infrastructure – what will it look like? - We are working with clients to help plan for the introduction of AAM infrastructure at airports and finding new ways to minimise costs by upgrading current facilities. A lot of aviation professionals are struggling to understand what AAM infrastructure looks like, read this blog to find out.
• Exploring long-range air traffic flow management - Matt Shepherd CF, CANSO ATFM/A-CDM Workgroup expert, and Managing Director at To70 Aviation Australia, discusses the concept of long-range air traffic flow management and the way in which it can be integrated with already established ATFM elements.
• More tests of new CPDLC features at Eurocontrol Innovation Hub - In June this year, air traffic controllers, including those from PANSA, and pilots completed testing of new CPDLC functions at the Eurocontrol Innovation Hub in Bretigny as part of the SESAR2020 Wave2 PJ18 sol 56 project.

UAV and UTM

• UK Government gives the green light for World’s longest drone ‘superhighway’ - The UK government has today announced it has given the go-ahead to for the world’s largest and longest network of drone superhighways to be built in the UK. The drone superhighway will link cities and towns throughout the midlands to the southeast of the country, with the option to expand the corridor to any other locations in the country.
• Farnborough 2022: New UK advanced aerial mobility consortium announced - Unmanned airspace - Vertical Aerospace, Virgin Atlantic, Atkins, Skyports and NATS, along with Connected Places Catapult and leading academic institutions Cranfield University and WMG, University of Warwick announced the creation of the Advanced Mobility Ecosystem Consortium.