Indra has won a contract to provide Vancouver International Airport in Canada with a turnkey solution for digital traffic control on its aprons, as well as aircraft movement and parking areas in the vicinity of passenger and cargo terminals
The company is to supply a multi-mast A-SMGCS integrated Digital Tower solution for apron control composed of the InNOVA advanced surface movement guidance and control module (A-SMGCS) and the IRTOS digital tower module with 12 camera locations and a 4K video wall.
The also solution includes a multi-mast 4K natural vision of the seven aprons to be controlled with the market’s most advanced ground surveillance system – all easily controlled with a single mouse
Vancouver Airport Authority manages aircraft movements on the aprons while the Canadian air navigation service provider, NAV CANADA, manages take-offs and landings. Indra’s A-SMGCS is currently one of the technologies used at Vancouver International Airport (YVR)by NAV CANADA.
Once YVR operationalizes its Apron Management Program in 2025, traffic control will be transferred between NAV CANADA’s tower controllers and the airport’s apron controllers for aircraft that enter or leave apron areas. By using the same technology, tower and apron controllers will have access to the same information thereby streamlining communications and improving situational awareness and decision-making of two highly interdependent functions.
The airport’s Apron Management Program will result in improved coordination of aircraft ground taxi operations with NAV CANADA, increases efficiency of aircraft movements thereby improving the experience for operators and reducing carbon emissions. This transition comes at an appropriate time as air traffic rebuilds to pre-pandemic levels, providing YVR and NAV CANADA the opportunity to optimize the utilization of existing airport assets through the new Apron Management Program.
“We are proud to be among the first airports in the world to digitalize apron control at YVR,” said Andy Margolis, vice president, operations and chief operations officer, Vancouver Airport Authority. “Our apron controllers need, and will have, a user-friendly system that ensures full situational awareness and enhances communication and information sharing.
“Our Apron Management Services Program will allow us to continue, and to enhance, the efficient movement of aircraft on and around the aprons at YVR through active management practices. The digitization of our apron management will also improve the passenger experience with enhancements in operating procedures and efficiencies.”
YVR is Canada’s second busiest airport, serving more than 19 million passengers in 2022. YVR is operated by Vancouver Airport Authority in service of the community and economy that supports it. It is an established trans-Pacific hub that leverages its geographic location to serve as a gateway between the Americas and Asia. Apron Management systems are currently in use at other major airports in Canada, such as Toronto-Pearson, and Montréal-Trudeau International Airport.
Indra’s digital apron control system is based on the multi-mast A-SMGCS Integrated Digital tower system that is being implemented for HungaroControl, converting Budapest into Europe’s largest remotely controlled airport.