Are physical towers dead?

Much has been written about remote towers in previous years – an attractive option for regional airports to have their air traffic services (ATS) provided at a lower cost from another location via a remote tower service provider. 

So do remote towers sound the death knell for physical control towers? Almost certainly not. A quiet revolution is underway with a new tower concept – the digital tower. Powering this digital tower transformation are electronic strips with video overlays and data analytics, providing air traffic controllers (ATCOs) with a modernised working environment that embeds safety and productivity tools.

Heathrow and Singapore are harnessing the video capability of remote tower technology and powerful data analytics to provide day, night and all-visibility capabilities with predictive tools supporting high-performance runway operations.

Although still in the prototype test phase, work at both airports is developing on-site, potentially facilitating a quick transition into operational service.

Through the Single European Sky ATM research (SESAR) project, EUROCONTROL is busy researching digital towers’ potential to integrate data and systems, consolidating key services through a single-screen display system accessible through touch-sensitive or simple point-and-click input devices.

This makes flight plan and second level information immediately available when needed to inform controllers, who can easily update the system with strategic and tactical info. The approach resembles that of a modern cockpit, with layers of information available to the pilot on demand, rather than cluttered multiple displays, each dedicated to a single application.

Yet the real wizardry is being able to translate data into graphical or enhanced intuitive images that support controllers’ decision-making, and enable them to achieve their primary safety and separation tasks. These new decision-support tools can help detect ‘runway clear’, predicting the separation distance from the leading aircraft’s runway exit and the following aircraft’s time over the runway threshold.

What’s more, recognition technology will permit tracking, zooming and monitoring of challenging situations including drone incursions.

In short, digital towers offer a new world for physical towers, which look set to continue alongside their “remote” cousins.