Naviair, the Danish Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP), has successfully completed proof of concept testing for its integrated digital tower and approach solution. The concept testing took place at Frequentis premises in Austria and allowed Naviair to see several remote tower components on the integration platform MosaiX for the first time. The testing also allowed Naviair to request customisation based on its requirements, proving the flexibility of the solution.

Frequentis DFS Aerosense

Naviair selected the integrated tower and approach solution from Frequentis DFS Aerosense in early 2020 to manage increasing airspace demand and support the workload of Air Traffic Control Operators (ATCOs). The initial remote tower centre at Billund airport will house the system, which is a combination of a remote digital tower (RDT) and an approach automation solution (PRISMA APP). This will be the first time that both digital tower and approach services have been combined as one integrated system.

“The proof of concept testing has given us confidence that the system can be tailored to fit our requirements. We are looking forward to continuing this project with Frequentis DFS Aerosense and providing a modern solution to tackle our airspace demands in an elegant way both now and in the future,” says Frank K. Christensen, Project Director, Naviair.

The solution for Billund Airport, the second largest in Denmark, will include a high-resolution panorama view and pan tilt zoom (PTZ) cameras based on visual and infrared sensors. Features such as short-term conflict detection, area proximity warnings and minimum safe altitude warnings, are all designed to assist the ATCO with optimal situational awareness.

“By providing ATCO’s with additional, digital tools and automation, controller workload can be reduced, and safety can be increased. However, with such a significant change it is important that all stakeholders, including the local regulator and relevant authorities, are involved early in the project in order to earn full acceptance.

The key to the success of this project is the combination of Frequentis’ technical expertise and the operational experience of DFS Aviation Services”, says Katrin Ordemann, managing director at Frequentis DFS Aerosense. “We are looking forward to the next planned verification tests later this year, followed by software and hardware installations at the airport.”