By the end of March, 2006, Terma ATM will have installed its advanced ATIS Flex system at Riga Airport as part of the CASCADE project.
The system will then go live in April, and be declared operational by early 2007 after comprehensive tests and certification.
With ATIS Flex, Riga Airport will be able to provide digital and voice ATIS (Automated Terminal Information Service) and VOLMET (aeronautical broadcast service) messages to cockpit crews on approaching, departing and en-route aircraft, greatly relieving ATC controllers of the need for manual handling of requests, and enhancing safety in the same process.
The air traffic controllers will benefit from improved working conditions, and being relieved of the burden of continuously providing the latest available MET and runway data manually, while pilots will enjoy a distinct high-quality broadcast of ATIS information whenever they need it.
The implementation of Terma’s ATIS Flex is an integral part of the CASCADE (CNS/ATM* applications staged implementation and conventional airspace development) project with the US provider DORS International Inc. as its general supplier.
A salient feature of Terma’s ATIS Flex platform is its flexibility that allows users to define for themselves the interfaces for easy integration within existing infrastructure. The flexibility also ensures convenient customisation of fonts and other features by the system’s HMI.
The new platform of this ATIS Flex system for use at Riga Airport includes departure clearance and allows for up to 16 optional services. The HMI is programmed in Linux, while applications are based on Java script.
ATIS Flex allows for simultaneous operation in two broadcast languages, and also provides a wide range of statistics that are essential as management tools.
Basic to Terma’s product philosophy is the extensive use of COTS that ensuress low maintenance costs, a high rate of reliability, and easy implementation within customer environments.
Over the next three years, implementation of the systems and technologies comprised by the CASCADE project will bring Latvia’s air traffic control into full compliance with the most advanced international aviation requirements, as stated by ICAO and Eurocontrol.