If for you the image of the control tower is as inseparable from an airport as the station manager is from a railway station, you’re going to have to face the fact that the control tower is soon going to be an endangered species.
London City Airport (LCY), located in central London, became the world’s first fully remotely operated airport on April 30.
Air traffic control 115 km from the airport
All work previously carried out in the control tower is now operated from an operations center 115km away. It’s not yet remote work for air traffic control, but it’s beginning to look like it.
To achieve this, an entire “enhanced reality” system was developed, and the control tower replaced by a digital control tower featuring 16 high-definition cameras and various sensors to provide remote operators with a 360° view.
On the “other side” is a high-definition panoramic view for those who will be guiding take-offs and landings remotely, thanks to technology from Saab Digital Air Traffic Solutions.
The controller can benefit from a kind of heads-up display, adding aircraft call signs, speed and altitude, weather information, etc. to his peripheral view.
Cameras more powerful than the human eye
In addition to providing a coherent, enriched vision of reality, the high-definition cameras will zoom in to enlarge the image 30 times if the controller ever wants to check something visually! A luxury they didn’t enjoy when they could only rely on their eyes.
A totally secure system
Naturally, every precaution has been taken in setting up this radically new system. The tower has been operational since 2019, and since then has undergone a battery of intensive tests before being put into service in real conditions this year!
Air traffic controllers, who spend much more time with their noses on the screen than looking outside, are also winners, since the new system greatly improves the information they can receive from the outside view.
And if you want to know what’s so special about London City Airport, you should take a look at what an approach to this truly city-centre airport looks like!
