ATM Modernization, Commercial

SESAR Begins Runway Safety Exercises

By Woodrow Bellamy III  | June 29, 2015
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[Avionics Today 06-29-2015] Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) members  recently completed the first phase of a validation exercise at Paris – Charles de Gaulle Airport aimed at improving the safety for vehicles operating on airport runways. Conducted by the SESAR European Airports Consortium (SEAC), together with its partners DSNA and Eurocontrol, the exercise validated the use of an additional screen fitted in the vehicle to display an Airport Moving Map (AMM) and surrounding traffic, and a system that generates warnings to the vehicle driver in case of an imminent dangerous situation.
 
 
The runway validation exercise at Paris – Charles de Gaulle Airport. Photo: SESAR JU.
 
To provide simulation of realistic operational conditions, the exercise made use of one runway and a part of the taxiway at Paris – Charles de Gaulle Airport during a night closure and two prearranged time windows of one hour during daytime operations. Drivers were instructed to perform a number of different operations with a second vehicle simulating an aircraft, to simulate realistic alerts. Seven drivers and fifteen observers from DSNA, Eurocontrol and the SEAC airports (Aéroports de Paris, Fraport, Munich Airport and Zurich Airport) participated in the first phase of the validation. 
 
“The validation exercise was a very exciting opportunity for the airside operations and IT teams of Aéroports de Paris to push forward concept and systems that we have all had in mind for years in order to enhance safety. Thanks to SESAR this is becoming a reality. The exercises were also a great opportunity to share experiences about safety with other airports and stakeholders of airside operations,” said Régis Lacote, Director AIRES AERONAUTIQUES, Charles de Gaulle Airport.
 

The second phase of validation has now began and consists of a two month trial period featuring five vehicles equipped with the system which will be used in daily operations by a group of drivers. SESAR JU expects the second phase of validation work to be completed in mid-July, with detailed results to be made available by November 2015.  

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