OREANDA-NEWS. These contracts are part of the country’s continuing efforts to modernise navigation and surveillance capabilities, ensuring a significant improvement in safety and efficiency.

Over the past decade, African air traffic has increased exponentially, with South Africa being one of the busiest airspaces in the continent. As a result, improved air space management, advanced technologies and system modernisation are needed to meet future challenges of scalability and operation.

ATNS has commissioned Thales to deploy multiple surveillance technologies, including WAM, Star NG (Next Generation) Primary Radars and RSM 970 Secondary Radars, matching the best solution to the operational requirement.  The WAM system will be deployed to provide surveillance over the entire Northern region.  Radars will be deployed to Johannesburg O.R. Tambo International Airport, Cape Town, Durban and Blesberg sites.  These surveillance systems will be integrated into ATNS’s existing Thales TopSky Air Traffic Management System, providing cost-effective, scalable and reliable surveillance.

DME systems will be deployed to 31 sites across South Africa where they will ensure high accuracy en-route and terminal aircraft guidance.
Together, these technologies will improve ATNS’s capability to offer airlines RNAV routes for faster and shorter trajectories, lower fuel consumption, and reduced carbon emissions. Furthermore, in addition to the supply, installation and commission of the technologies, these contracts provide for a long term support and maintenance agreement.