Airspace enhancement to end bottlenecks in UAE airspace, says GCAA

Abu Dhabi, July 15, 2013 (WAM) - The Director-General of UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) says 1.62 million aircraft movements expected in UAE airspace by 2030. The multi-billion dollar expansion of airports in the UAE, mostly led by Dubai and Abu Dhabi, has thrown up Air Traffic Management challenges for the civil aviation authorities. Aircraft movements in the UAE witnessed a 6.7 per cent growth in 2012. The UAE Flight Information Region (FIR) recorded a total of 741,450 aircraft movements in 2012 and it is expected that the UAE FIR will have 895,468 flight movements in 2015, over 1.13 million flight movements by 2020 and 1.63 million flight movements by 2030. Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Director General of the GCAA, spoke exclusively to Via Dubai for its current edition about grappling with airspace constraints, the challenges ahead for the aviation industry and what is being done to meet the ever-increasing demands. Asked what the GCAA is doing to meet the huge demands of air traffic management, given the fast expansion of the fleets of UAE carriers like Etihad, Emirates, flydubai and Air Arabia, Al Suwaidi said "The GCAA has recently signed an agreement with Airbus Prosky, one of the world leading organisations in ATM solutions and airspace design, to start the first phase of the UAE Airspace enhancement programme. The study is focused on assessing current air traffic operations and management at airports and in airspace, and to provide suitable recommendations and solutions to enhance the ATM safety and efficiency. "In addition, there have been many airspace changes in 2012, such as the RNP AR project in Abu Dhabi, Dubai Airport Development Phase 1 and the launch of the Delta sector. Now, there are on-going airspace proposals due for implementation in 2013 with Bahrain and Oman. There is a continuous focus to enhance the ATM systems and procedures. "We have launched a first in the Middle East region, the UAE Airspace Coordination and Contingency Cell, and we are busy finalising phase two as well as implementing a major enhancement to the ATM system through the launch of Arrival Manager - AMAN in Quarter 1 of 2013. Training and research and developments have always remained our top priorities due to the valuable contribution they add to the level and quality of our services," Al Suwaidi added. Asked whether the UAE airspace is under pressure to meet the growth of airports/aircraft movements, the GCAA director general said, "We always believe in continuous enhancements and there will always be areas for improvement. Therefore, we and our stakeholders, through the National Airspace Advisory Committee continuously assess and improve air traffic management. The UAE airports and airspace structure, capabilities and investments are considered amongst the best not only in the Middle East, but worldwide. It is due to the rapid expansion of our national operators and the other regional carriers, with the limitations and the small size of the UAE airspace, in addition to the overburdening regional constrains and restrictions in areas beyond the control of the UAE, we have delays and bottlenecks in our FIR." Asked whether GCAA feels the need for coordination with other GCC states for a wider initiative, he said, "Airspace is part of the air traffic management system, we cannot take it in isolation from the rest of the system components. To improve the system, many other areas have to be collaboratively improved such as airport design and operations, fleet equipage and capabilities, flight scheduling and improvement to the regional constraints and restrictions. The GCAA is working and coordinating very closely with all the stakeholders internally and externally through the National Airspace Advisory Committee, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO), IATA and International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) to improve ATM safety and efficiency in the region." Evaluating Air Traffic Management in the UAE, Al Suwaidi said, "The UAE was proclaimed as the Middle East PBN (Performance Based Navigation) Champion by ICAO, due to its leading role in airspace design, management and PBN implementation. We have the UAE PBN Implementation plan available in place and we have recently uploaded the first ever draft UAE ATM Strategic plan 2030 for the industry consultation." – Emirates News Agency, WAM