By David Learmount in London
The quality of aeronautical information provided to operators and crews is “substantially below the [level defined by the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s] adopted standards and recommended practices”, according to Eurocontrol, which held a conference on the subject in Madrid, Spain last month.
More than 90 nations met at the Aeronautical Information Services (AIS) congress with the intention of rectifying the systemic shortcomings, says Eurocontrol director general Victor Aguado.
The reason AIS is substandard is “mainly because information is generally processed manually and distributed on paper – leaving scope for repeated human errors”, says Eurocontrol, which has been working since 2001 to improve worldwide communication between AIS providers and standardise the presentation and handling of information.
“This conference saw a global consensus that we need to change how we deal with aeronautical information systems. This is a major step forward as it lays the ground for a co-ordinated global approach to the evolution of AIS, essential for any new generation of air traffic management [ATM],” Aguado says.
The information distributed through AIS includes everything aviators and aviation administrators need to know, from notices to airmen (NOTAM), to airport, airspace and air traffic control provision details and meteorological information.
Eurocontrol points out that the increasing number of flights around the world has created a greater need for high-quality AIS provided in a common format through interoperable systems.
Attendees at the congress, says Aguado, included “information originators, processors, publishers, regulators, system designers, service providers and end users”. They reviewed “emerging technologies intended to facilitate change in a practical and affordable manner...and outlined a roadmap for the evolution of aeronautical information to assist ICAO in leading global change”.
The congress was organised by a consortium led by ICAO and Eurocontrol with the aeronautical authorities of Australia, Canada, China, Japan, South Africa, Spain and the USA.
Source: Flight International
