Innsbruck Airport Deploys Sensis System for Terminal Area Surveillance
Multistatic Dependent Surveillance Enables Increased Capacity
DEWITT, NY – February 18, 2003 – Sensis Corporation today announced that Innsbruck Airport, Austria, will be deploying Sensis’ airport surveillance system, Multistatic Dependent Surveillance (MDS) for terminal area surveillance. Austro Control, the Austrian Air Navigation Service Provider, will deploy MDS at Innsbruck Airport to address the unique separation requirements of Innsbruck Valley. The deployment of MDS for terminal area surveillance validates the robustness of Sensis’ multilateration technology.
“The high reliability and accuracy of MDS make it ideal for terminal area, as well as surface area surveillance as demonstrated by our previous installations,” said Marc Viggiano, president of Sensis’ Air Traffic Systems Division. “The aerospace industry has recognized MDS’ benefits and efficiencies over other surveillance solutions. And as surveillance technologies continue to evolve, MDS’ adaptable, scalable technology will remain a key surveillance component.”
MDS, a transponder multilateration system, interacts with an aircraft or airport vehicle’s transponder to determine position and identification. The system uses a minimum of three low-cost, non-rotating sensors to triangulate and calculate the position and identification of an aircraft or vehicle based on their transponder signals. With precision comparable to global positioning systems, a higher update rate than traditional airport surveillance radar, and consistent surveillance performance regardless of weather conditions, the MDS system provides significant benefits. In some applications, MDS can enable the utilization of capacity increasing separation standards not currently available to the air traffic controllers. Further, through its compatibility with developing concepts such as Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B), multilateration provides a bridge to future technologies.
With the rough terrain and inclement weather at Innsbruck Airport, traditional radar often experiences coverage gaps as a result of terrain blockage or precipitation. Additionally, due to the narrow valley where the airport is located, commercial pilots require specialized training for landings and departures.
“Innsbruck airport will benefit from this new surveillance system – especially during holiday times and in periods of low visibility,” said Dr. Werner Langhans, senior expert surveillance
systems, Austro Control GmbH. “By leveraging MDS for terminal area surveillance, we can provide our air traffic controllers with positional accuracy of 30 meters, enabling us to increase safety, flight efficiency and throughput in the long-term.”
Further, Innsbruck Airport’s harsh environment makes traditional radar difficult and costly to service and maintain. “Optimally sited traditional radar stations would have to be accessed by ski during winter season, which is about half of the year. A simple maintenance or repair activity can easily become an all-day event,” stated Langhans. “MDS’ reliable, non-rotating sensors will simplify maintenance while consuming less power and thus will keep life-cycle cost to an absolute minimum.”
