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New Delhi: Indian Airspace will very soon have full Radar coverage above 30,000 feet with the completion of installation of 9 Mono-Pulse-Secondary-Surveillance-Radars with the existing Radar infrastructure.
This was stated by the Civil Aviation Minsiter Ajit Singh while addressing the42nd General Assembly of International Federation of Air Traffic Safety Electronics Associations (IFATSEA) in New Delhi today. Singh added that this will be complemented effectively by ATC Automation Systems being installed at 38 Airports. He informed taht the networking of Radars has been accomplished for Chennai Flight Information Regions (FIRs) and is in the pipeline for other FIRs. Stating that the efficient and safe Air Navigation Services is no more a dream for Indian Civil Aviation Sector, Singh said that Air Traffic Flow Managementis another ambitious plan to reduce the traffic congestion over Indian Air-Space.
Singh said that for maintaining safety, critical real time CNS-ATM system at their optimum performance level is vital. He said that the CNS Maintenance Engineers or “Air Traffic Safety Electronics Personnel (ATSEP)” as they are now called play a safety critical role. The Minister underlined that the challenges to maintaining the CNS equipments and facilities are effectively overcome by CNS Maintenance Personnel by constantly updating knowledge through training and through innovations carried out at the “Specialized Maintenance Centers”. He said, besides maintenance responsibilities and running training facilities, ATSEPs are also involved in installation of procured Navigational Aids and Instrument Landing Systems and in conducting routine and commissioning flight calibration of installed CNS facilities. Singh added that these units enable value addition in maintenance aspects besides economic savings.
The Minister pointed out that while maintenance issues everywhere may largely be the same, some Air Navigation Service Providers like Airports Authority of India may be investing more in human resources than being capital intensive in their Maintenance Philosophy. He expressed hope that the brainstorming sessions at the General Assembly of IFATSEA will provide more effective and efficient ways to synergize maintenance concepts and to evolve global standards.
Eminent persons, professionals, manufacturers, suppliers and delegates from the member countries are meeting at the five day General Assembly of the IFATSEA in New Delhi to exchange information and share their knowledge in aviation sector.