The General Authority of Civil Aviation expected to increase the number of aircraft in the country’s airspace, at a rate of between 90 and 120 aircraft per day during the events of “Expo 2020 Dubai”, bringing the total number of aircraft that the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center deals with to 2470 aircraft per day during the exhibition.

The authority told Emirates Today that the center adopted a elaborate plan to receive the increased air traffic during the "Expo 2020 Dubai" period, pointing to full cooperation with neighboring countries to accommodate the increased movement of aircraft during the exhibition period.

It revealed studies for the establishment of the "National Center for Air Traffic Operations" and the project for modernizing aviation information management systems.

The atmosphere in "Expo"

In detail, the Assistant Director General of the Air Navigation Services Sector at the General Authority of Civil Aviation, Ahmed Ibrahim Al-Jallaf, revealed that the number of aircraft in the country’s airspace is expected to increase by a rate ranging between 90 and 120 aircraft per day at least, during the activities of the Expo 2020 Dubai, to reach The number of aircraft dealt with by the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center to 2470 aircraft per day during the exhibition, compared to 2350 aircraft per day, an increase of between 3.8 and 5%.

Al-Jallaf explained to «Emirates Today» that this increase is related to the scheduled planes only, unlike the private planes that are expected to be tangibly active during the exhibition’s activities, but it is difficult to predict their numbers accurately now, due to the nature of private aviation whose flights are not previously scheduled, It is also changing and flexible.

Sheikh Zayed Center

Al-Jallaf revealed to "Emirates Today" that the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center is fully equipped to deal with the expected increase in air traffic during "Expo 2020 Dubai" and beyond, pointing out that the center's absorptive capacity reaches two million aircraft or air traffic annually, and 5555 aircraft per day, And approximately 231 air traffic per hour, while the center currently deals with 900 thousand air traffic per year, and 2350 aircraft per day, which is equivalent to less than half its capacity.

A well done plan

He pointed out that the center adopted the elaboration of a tight plan on several levels, to fully prepare to receive the increased air traffic during "Expo 2020 Dubai", by preparing and developing air monitoring systems in the center, and supporting security systems, to ensure the smoothness of air traffic in the most crowded and sophisticated airspace, compared The size of the state’s airspace, preparing alternate schedules to facilitate the process of distributing air traffic controllers, and increasing their numbers through training and qualifying air traffic controllers from national cadres, who will be graduated in batches, during the current year, coinciding with the opening of the exhibition.

He stressed that the center has developed a plan for coordination and full cooperation with neighboring countries, to accommodate the increasing movement of aircraft during the period of "Expo 2020 Dubai", and to conclude agreements with many neighboring countries to manage the increase in air traffic, so that movement management begins early in the neighboring countries, which reduces delays and improves Air traffic handling operation.

He revealed that a plan is currently being established for permanent and continuous coordination with air navigation services providers, with the aim of identifying specific mechanisms to accommodate the increased traffic during the period of "Expo 2020 Dubai", and the development of some operations and procedures for work systems in emergency situations, or bad weather conditions and fog, with the development of plans Alternative precaution to cope with any emergency, especially during peak periods.

National center

Al-Jallaf revealed that the center is currently conducting detailed studies and plans to establish the "National Center for Air Traffic Operations", in cooperation with all strategic partners in the aviation sector, indicating that it is the first of its kind in the region, and aims to support coordination with airlines, service providers, airports, and the meteorological authority in Air operations, to increase the flow, and added that the study will be presented to the Board of Directors of the General Authority of Civil Aviation upon its completion for approval.

The cover also revealed that "civil aviation" will complete, at the end of the second quarter of this year, a project to update aviation information management systems, with the aim of improving the capabilities of managing the aviation information system, and supporting the quality and accuracy of aviation data, to improve forecasts and manage traffic flow smoothly.

He emphasized that a tender for a new project to manage the air traffic flow will be established soon for the winning company, where four international experience houses submitted offers, and the contract will be signed with the winning experience house, in the third quarter, in preparation for the start of the project, pointing out that the importance of the project stems from the continuous increase of traffic Air that can be connected to the carrying capacity of the airspace.

vision

Al-Jallaf said that the design phase of the air traffic management system has been completed in the "Next Generation Air Traffic Management" project, which will ensure the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center's readiness to deal with the increased air traffic during the next 15 years.

He added that among the artificial intelligence systems included in the project: the automatic scheme to assist the air controller in decision-making, and the effective scheduling system, in cooperation with airlines, so that the best possible flight scheduling is determined to reduce delays and increase air traffic flow, indicating that the project schedule It continues for six years after receiving and activating the first stage, which is scheduled to be completed in 2022.

Airspace

On the project of restructuring the airspace of the country, Al-Jallaf said that the theoretical evaluation of the project, which resulted in an increase in the absorptive capacity of the airspace, was carried out, while the practical results were not measured because air traffic did not reach the maximum capacity.

He emphasized that the project achieved great success, as it witnessed a comprehensive change in the airspace of the country, and this was done without interruption in air movement or reducing the movement of airplanes in the air even during the phase of change, as he managed the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center, with the assistance of strategic partners and air navigation services providers In the country, the transitional phase with full efficiency and effectiveness, was praised by the international civil aviation community.

He explained that the rate of savings in 2019 amounted to about 3870 flying hours, equivalent to providing more than 55 million kilograms of carbon emissions, and a total of 21 million dirhams, in order to save flights to the country's airports only.

He added that one of the most important outputs of the project is a "strategic study", which is divided into three phases between 2020 and 2040, in which air traffic and absorptive capacity are evaluated, and thus the necessary changes to the airspace are based on air traffic data.

Air Localization

The Assistant Director General of Air Navigation Services Sector at the General Authority of Civil Aviation, Ahmed Ibrahim Al-Jallaf, said that the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center focuses on supporting Emiratization programs in air traffic control and air navigation engineering.

He added that the number of trainees currently reached 34 trainees at various stages of training, while the localization rate in the center increased to touch 32%, with the localization of the administrative and supervisory staff at a rate of more than 84%.

Al-Jallaf drew attention to the efforts to publicize the position of "air controller", the importance of localizing it, and supporting benefits and incentives for the position of air controller, especially that it is one of the highest-paid jobs.

He revealed that a new program for the settlement of the position of "Communication, Navigation and Monitoring Engineer" was recently launched, with distinct advantages and incentives, and the first batch will be graduated next April, indicating that two graduates will be appointed, after graduation, at the center.

Asem System

Last year, the General Authority of Civil Aviation ran the Asim system to automate the air navigation safety system. Ahmed Ibrahim Al-Jallaf explained that the system is the first of its kind in the Middle East, and preparations are underway to start the next phase, which includes digital access and the use of the smart application via phones.

The capacity of the center's air movement reaches two million aircraft annually.

Studies to establish the "National Center for Air Traffic Operations".