Connections Transport & ICT Low-Cost Technology to Improve Aviation Safety and Efficiency Investment program brings modernized aviation information technology to Pacific islands Christopher De Serio and Aldo Giovannitti The World Bank’s Pacific Aviation Investment Program (PAIP) is bringing state-of-the-art air traffic management and satellite-based ground communications to airports and small aircraft operators in seven Pacific island countries and 90% territories.1 These advances, coming online in 2017, will vastly improve the safety and efficiency of South Pacific aviation and further its global integration. The air traffic surveillance equipment, known as ADS-B, surpasses the abilities of radar to locate aircraft en Equipment cost reduction route and does so at one-tenth the cost.2 ADS-B from installing advanced air increases the safety of flying and improves search and tra c surveillance rescue operations; it also enables more efficient flight technology instead of radar routing, which saves fuel and reduces greenhouse gases. The installation of the surveillance equipment at ground stations in five Pacific island countries—Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu— and in smaller aircraft will significantly broaden the coverage of aviation activity across the region. A new satellite-based ground-to-ground communications network will link those five countries plus Cook Islands and Niue. The network will be resistant to natural disasters, thus improving emergency preparedness and response. More broadly, strengthening aviation- related communications in the Pacific will help integrate the Asia-Pacific region with global developments in air traffic information systems. Enabling Surveillance of Aircraft than two-thirds of the world’s surface, an area that includes much of the Pacific islands region. The En Route reason for the lack of coverage is that deploying After the disappearance of Malaysian Airways radar, the conventional method for tracking aircraft, flight MH370 in 2014, many were surprised to learn is too costly for developing countries, including the that air traffic surveillance is unavailable for more small island states of the Pacific.3 1 PAIP is also helping Pacific island aviation improve environmental sustainability in the design of air terminals, runway lighting and paving, and solid waste management (see Connections Note #5, 2015). 2 The cost of ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast) over the full project area (eight times the size of Germany) compared with the cost if radar had been used—a savings of $50 million. 3 In the United States, one radar station can cost more than $6 million (ATC Global, www.key.aero/central/attachments/ADS-B_feature_-_ Market_Intelligence_Report_I.pdf). FEBRUARY 2017 NOTE 2017 - 1 Even where deployed, radar data is not as accurate altitudes and maintain optimal flight direction. or informative as the information available through It also allows a safe tightening of distance be- newer technologies. For example, radar requires tween aircraft, which reduces flight time.5 from 3 to 15 seconds to update an aircraft's posi- tion,4 leaving a considerable gap in surveillance ADS-B is the leading new aircraft surveillance tech- given that jetliners cover up to 1 kilometer in less nology and is gradually being installed worldwide than 4 seconds. as part of the International Civil Aviation Organiza- tion (ICAO) Global Air Navigation Plan (2013–28). ADS-B has a number of key advantages over radar: Many countries are making ADS-B mandatory. • Its positioning data is more precise. A tran- Connecting Air Traffic Controllers sponder on the aircraft receives the plane’s global positioning system (GPS) coordinates Reliable ground communications are also critical and sends the data nearly every second to to safe and efficient air travel. Air traffic officials ADS-B ground stations, which in turn relay it to at most airports in the Pacific communicate with air traffic controllers. each other on conventional land-line or mobile telephones. At a cost of up to $350,000 per instal- • It shows a richer set of data. The ADS-B sys- lation, PAIP will establish a secure, satellite-based tem shows pilots and controllers the plane’s VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) system in the absolute location as well as its position relative aforementioned five countries, plus Cook Islands to other aircraft and weather conditions. The and Niue, with a hub managed by Airways New result is greater situational awareness shared Zealand. The disaster-resilient system will be more by controllers and pilots and a crucial see-and- reliable and provide a back-up communication net- avoid capability that radar cannot provide. And work for rapid response in emergencies. The design the more accurate location information allows of the system allows for future expansion. rescue missions to find crash sites much more quickly. The Big Picture • It is far less expensive to buy, install, and Investments in ADS-B and VSAT will transform maintain. Eight competitively procured ADS- surveillance and communications across the entire B ground stations for the five countries cost South Pacific. VSAT can be integrated with ADS- about $100,000 apiece. In addition, PAIP will B to better exchange aviation surveillance data be installing ADS-B units on 55–60 aircraft at a throughout the region and improve emergency cost of $6,000–$13,000 each. responses. PAIP also complements an ICAO initia- tive to connect the Asia-Pacific region that will ul- • It helps optimize flight paths in real time, which timately allow the global exchange of high-quality reduces aviation CO2 emissions even more air traffic information. than gains in engine efficiency or aerodynam- ics. ADS-B optimizes routing by improving the ability of controllers to specify fuel-efficient 5 For example, U.S. regulators have reported that use of ADS-B over the Gulf of Mexico, where radar coverage is largely absent, saved up to 100 nautical miles on some routes. That in turn saved about 588 kg of fuel (authors’ estimate based on fuel burn rate of a 4 U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, www.faa.gov/nextgen/ twin-jet, narrow-body, single-aisle, short- to medium-haul aircraft), equipadsb/benefits. and saved three times that weight in CO2 emissions. For more information on this topic: U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, “NextGEN: Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B),” www.faa.gov/nextgen/programs/adsb. Connections is a series of knowledge notes from the World Bank Group’s Transport & Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Global Practice. Covering projects, experiences, and front-line developments, the series is produced by Nancy Vandycke and Shokraneh Minovi. The notes are available at http://www.worldbank.org/transport/connections. FEBRUARY 2017 NOTE 2017 - 1