The drive towards greater commercialisation, new airport developments, the expansion of the airline industry and regulatory compliance are all combining to create a challenging environment for operators.
Fundamentally, an airport is a safety-critical environment. Air traffic control must have the infrastructure, technology and training to enable the safe provision of air navigation services. The airport needs to be able to handle current and projected capacity with fully co-ordinated resources, minimising delays.
Typical problems that might impact day-to-day operations include:
- Surface movement and ground control, for example congestion or runway incursions
- Outdated operational procedures
- Failing equipment
- Lack of safety management systems
- Pressures from the environmental lobby (noise or particulate pollution)
- Cost and capability of ATC staff
NATS manages the day-to-day air traffic operations at some of the world's busiest airports and provides key engineering services to ensure these operations are sustained 24 hours a day.
- Our team of experts can advise on all aspects of your current or planned operations and procedures. NATS can assist in the design of new procedures, perform capacity studies and provide safety services to ensure operations are optimised.
- NATS project management and engineering teams can meet all your technology needs. We provide a turnkey operation to replace or upgrade systems, integrate and commission them into existing infrastructure and provide through-life maintenance support.
- NATS has worked closely with governments, regulatory bodies and environmental groups to ensure that air traffic operations - for example departure and arrival routes and holding areas - have minimal impact on the environment.
- A key NATS strength is the quality of its resources. NATS can provide fully qualified and experienced air traffic controllers to manage an ATC operation or implement a comprehensive training programme to ensure local staff are fully capable of delivering air navigation services.
