Airservices Australia’s future plans to manage the increasing volume and complexity of Australia’s airspace were showcased to representatives from around the world at a recent industry conference in Japan.
ATM Network Services Manager Paddy Goodall spoke to delegates attending the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) Asia-Pacific conference, where he outlined how Airservices is acting to meet the future challenges in the aviation industry.
Mr Goodall described how OneSKY – an ambitious program to harmonise civil and military air traffic management into one seamless system is already delivering value to customers ahead of its full delivery.
“At the end of 2018, the program achieved its first major milestone when ATM facilities in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane all switched over to the voice communication system component of the Civil Military Air Traffic Management System,” he said.
“Although it’s just one in the first of many deliverables, the new voice system is already enhancing safety outcomes, enabling greater efficiency of our air traffic resources and minimising disruption.”
The conference also heard how three main factors are driving change and disruption in Australia’s aviation industry – continuing growth in air traffic, infrastructure investment to support that growth and the continuing acceleration of technological change.
The Brisbane-Sydney and Sydney-Melbourne routes are already two of the busiest in the world.
And over the next 20 years, conventional aircraft movements are expected to double for Australia’s capital cities.
“Australian airspace is changing at a rate we’ve never seen before,” Mr Goodall said.
