Thales Australia has won the tender to develop a single air traffic management system that will unify the separate systems used by the Royal Australian Air Force and Airservices Australia.
The ‘OneSky’ system will replace Airservices’ Australian Advanced Air Traffic System (TAAATS) and the Department of Defence’s Australian Defence Air Traffic System (ADATS), which are nearing the end of their service lives.
Announcing the selection at the Avalon air show, infrastructure minister Warren Truss says that OneSky will be phased in between 2018 and 2021.
“Once implemented, Airservices Australia and Defence will share technology and information, giving Australia the most advanced and integrated air traffic control system in the world,” he says.
“It will place us in a position to manage forecast growth of air traffic movement in Australia, of as much as 60 per cent by 2030, minimising delays for the travelling public.”
Flightglobal reported on 25 February that Thales has won out over Lockheed Martin, according to industry sources, and that final contract negotiations between Airservices and the Department of Defence were ongoing.
Airservices and the RAAF share air traffic control duties across Australia, and have been moving towards harmonised procedures and practices, as well as systems, to cope with predicted future growth in air traffic over the country.
Airservices adds that OneSky will lead to greater flight planning efficiency, including greater use of flexible airspace and user preferred routes, which will ultimately help to cut aircraft fuel burn and emissions.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
