The latest green air traffic management project in the Asia-Pacific region has been launched by Singapore and Thailand's air navigation service providers - the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and Aerothai - with the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) playing a supportive role in the project through its Operations Standing Committee.
The pilot project is aiming to improve ATM efficiency between Singapore and Bangkok through the use of collaborative decision making (CDM).
CDM aims to improve the exchange of information between all aviation stakeholders involved in flight operations, including airlines, airports, ANSPs and government agencies.
The project seeks to demonstrate the potential efficiency gains from the implementation of CDM at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport and Singapore Changi Airport, and the integration with en route CDM for seamless ATM operations. CDM will allow all partners to have the necessary information to enhance gate-to-gate operations, with the eventual plan to expand this to optimisation of "kerb-to-kerb" operations, says CANSO.
The partners say it is still very early days for the project, which was first launched in June and followed by teleconferences and a meeting in Singapore. The next project meeting is scheduled for November in Bangkok.
Data collection and sharing issues will be discussed once a concrete concept of operations has been finalised, say the project managers. In addition to CAAS, Aerothai and CANSO's OSC, the project also involves the Department of Civil Aviation Malaysia, which is the intermediate ANSP on the Bangkok-Singapore route and will play a key role in en route CDM, says CANSO.
Project partners agree that on-time performance, fuel efficiency and enhanced predictability are key objectives of the project, with efficiency targets currently being discussed by the project team.
"Apart from an overall improvement in ATM performance for the city pair, the application of CDM should lead to better on-time performance for the airlines and reduced congestion at the airports. This means better use of resources for airports, airlines and ANSPs and quantifiable savings in fuel consumption and carbon emissions for the thousands of flights operating on the city pair," says Hai Eng Chiang, CANSO's director Asia-Pacific.
CANSO says Singapore and Bangkok were chosen to launch the project because "there are relatively few air traffic constraints that could hinder the identification and further development of best practice". The organisation adds: "It is hoped that the data collected will contribute to the development of CDM implementation best practice for other city pairs in the Asia-Pacific region." Additional city pairs will be identified as the project gains maturity, according to the partners.
Source: Flight International
