Are digitised, affordable ATC systems a possibility for all?

For decades air traffic control operations have largely relied upon paper flight strips and the sharp focus of controllers.

These flight strips, small pieces of paper detailing each aircraft’s flight, are essential for tracking the movements of aircraft. Controllers manually update these strips, often shuffling them around to reflect changes in course, altitude and speed.

The analogue, manual nature of the process conjures images akin to the Royal Air Force’s Second World War group operations room. A critical service, but surely outdated in the 21st century?

Like a high-stakes game of chess, every decision made by a controller involves meticulous coordination and constant communication with pilots and other controllers. Controllers are also responsible for handling emergencies and unexpected events, when every second counts.

Inherently limited by the speed at which flight strips can be updated and the potential for human error, controllers must be exceptionally organised and detail-oriented, constantly vigilant to avoid mistakes.

The quest to provide a solution for today’s air traffic control (ATC) processes is what led Hal Newberry and fellow co-founders to launch Skyverse, a company developing a low-cost digital flight strip platform for aerodromes globally.

“Aviation relies on the professionalism of pilots and controllers to maintain high levels of safety. Both pilots and controllers are trained to an exceptional standard and must conduct their work with an extremely high level of vigilance, 100% of the time. When that doesn’t happen, aircraft accidents and incidents can occur,”  Newberry, a former airline captain, tells us.

“Recognising the state of UK aviation, its perceived inefficiency and capacity limitations, the UK regulator published the Airspace Modernisation Strategy, which is a comprehensive initiative aimed at modernising the UK’s airspace infrastructure, representing a rare opportunity to future-proof our operations.”

Government action

That would infer there is a government-level realisation that technology requires an update. Newberry says the UK Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) Airspace Modernisation Strategy Support Fund grants £2m per year to industry-led research projects, a lifeline to any ambitious start-up. “Legacy systems and entrenched views are not uncommon in aviation and modernisation requires breaking these barriers. Venture capital is flowing into advanced air mobility, but that vision will need existing infrastructures to modernise to truly take flight,” he cautions.

It is a similar story in the US. Last month, 26 groups, including the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), signed a letter calling for changes to the Aviation and Airways Trust Fund to enable the FAA to fix and replace infrastructure operating beyond its expected lifespan. “Every Air Route Traffic Control Centre and more than a quarter of all FAA facilities are at least 50 years old, with many in need of replacement,” the letter stated.

System outages more common

Legacy ATC systems are also susceptible to faults which lead to outages and create major disruption for operators and aircraft passengers alike. In August last year, UK airspace control failed – delaying or cancelling the flights of more than 700,000 passengers with an estimated cost close to £100m. Reason: the National Air Traffic Control Services (NATS) was unable to process unusual, but correct, data in a flight plan submitted for an aircraft crossing UK airspace to Paris from Los Angeles.

“It’s unimaginable that a national flight planning system could be brought down by a particular combination of duplicate waypoint data being submitted. A simple human error caused this and the system didn’t have the sophistication to recognise the error. It’s surprising that such incidents haven’t occurred more frequently, emphasising the reliance on aviation professionals operating to a near meticulous standard.” 

Skytower platform

In answer to the headline “Are digitised, affordable ATC systems a possibility for all?”, Skyverse certainly thinks so.

With a patent pending, the firm’s Skytower platform enables airports to modernise traditional processes to a cloud workflow solution that provides more data and transparency to the control tower. In the spirit of democratising aviation, Skytower aims to offer airfields and airports access to the same standard of tools typically delivered to major international hubs.

Skyverse’s software as a service (SaaS) tools aim to replace paper-based processes and a significant volume of repetitious radio and telephone communications. To date, the firm has received over £400,000 in funding from the UK’s Airspace Modernisation Strategy to further its development.

“So far we have operated trial flights under CAA approvals between airports in the southeast of England between Redhill, Goodwood and Shoreham aerodromes. We are now doing a further project with Norwich Airport to see if we can leverage the benefits even further,” says Newberry.

“The system itself is software hosted on the cloud. You can run it from any browser or download it as an app to your computer and use it alongside any off-the-shelf hardware that you choose.”

Training 

The Skytower system has been designed to require minimal training to operate. Designed with material design principles (bold, depictive and purposeful), it is created to be as intuitive as downloading an app to a mobile phone. “You don’t need a user guide for an app, you just take a little bit of time to familiarise yourself. That is the intention with our platform.”

Existing systems either utilise a piece of paper with handwritten data often littered with crossings out or an electronic version which reimposes the paper version on to a screen. “We have thrown that in the bin entirely,” says Newberry.

Safety and cybersecurity

Last year, Eurocontrol – Europe’s air traffic control body – came under attack by Russian hackers. The organisation reported it defended itself successfully and no disruption was caused, but the threat remains. The UK’s National Air Traffic Control Services (NATS) has previously said it has “close working relationship” with domestic security services to guard against cyber attacks.

“We adhere to ISO 27001 cyber security standards such as two-factor authentication and we have many layers of redundancy across multiple regional data centres,” says Newberry. “Airports often have an uninterrupted power supply [UPS] and work has already begun on providing the system in offline mode. Having multiple failovers gives us more uptime than other systems.”

Multiple layers of redundancy also offer protection against unexpected incidents. Newberry gives the example of an electrical fire in the control tower. “You will have to evacuate the tower. If your system is online the platform is served across the same login. So you can simply pick up that piece of hardware – a laptop or tablet – walk out the door and continue to operate and ‘make safe’. 

Cost vs today’s technology

Many airports today are faced with outsized expenses relative to their operations to update ATC systems, hence why so many stick to paper, according to Skyverse’s chief commercial officer. “You need a six-figure sum to get your hands on a bespoke hardware system and pay further annual maintenance fees on top of that. If you want to make any changes to your system, you usually have to call the company you have the contract with, they send you software engineers and that can come with a big charge.”

Skyverse’s cloud-based system is being priced relative to a customer’s operation size and the number of controllers employed. Somewhere small, such as Redhill Aerodrome, could cost around £10,000 to install. A larger regional airport might be in the £40,000 to £80,000 price range. “Significantly less expensive than the installation cost of a six-figure, or greater, bespoke system,” says Newberry.

“We are building a platform for the mass market with an inbuilt configuration suite that enables each customer to tweak and change the platform at their discretion. You have all the tools at your fingertips, removing the need for engineering teams.”

Not here to compete with AAM

The Skyverse team says it is not here to challenge AAM infrastructure developers. The software required to allow advanced electric aircraft to operate in controlled airspace is seen as a key enabler for commercial operations. Leading electric aircraft developers like Joby Aviation in the US and Eve Air Mobility in Brazil are developing their own urban air traffic management solutions, as well as a growing number of area-specific start-ups.

“We are here to enable existing locations and infrastructures to modernise. We say aerodromes, but that encompasses everything from airstrips and heliports to airfields and airports. We believe, if AAM is going to happen, it will take place only by using a combination of existing infrastructure with the slow introduction of vertiports. It will not be an overnight change,” says Newberry. 

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