NATS, the UK’s leading air traffic management provider, is investing £15 million in the first upgrade of equipment at the London Area Control Centre since it opened in 2002.
To meet the continued predicted growth in air travel, NATS is upgrading air traffic controller and engineering workstations to sustain future systems. The London Area Control Centre at Swanwick in Hampshire handled 1,667,381 flights in its year of opening rising to 1,858,003 in 2005. The Centre is one of the largest and most advanced in the world and handles some of the busiest and most complex airspace in Europe.
More than 200 workstations in the Operations Room and the Training and Development Unit are being redesigned and fitted with new 28-inch BARCO flat screens, graphics display generators and IBM Power PC processors. Software developments will accommodate the next generation of air traffic control systems. Human factors criteria played a crucial role in the design and development of the new workstations.
Paul Reid, NATS‘ General Manager of the London Area Control Centre said “The new workstations will provide a platform for the next generation of air traffic management systems. The London Area Control Centre is the busiest in Europe presently handling on average 6000 flights a day and this upgrade will ensure we are fully equipped to meet the predicted growth in air travel.”
More than 350 civil controllers are located at the London Area Control Centre and the upgrade is expected to be completed by early 2007.
