The City of Concord in North Carolina has teamed up with Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, a global provider of high-technology and mission-critical systems, to agree a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to enable the installation and eventual certification of the Kongsberg Remote Tower System at the airport.
Acknowledging the importance of addressing rising costs for its bricks and mortar tower, Concord Airport Director, Dirk Vanderleest, said: “It’s important to identify innovative means to meet our changing airport operating environment. Remote Towers have been designed to enable more efficient, cost-effective air traffic management which is welcomed news for our airport and many others across the country. We look forward to working together with Kongsberg, the FAA and our ATCs on this exciting project.”
Kongsberg Remote Towers will replace the traditional airport air traffic control towers with a virtual or remote tower and are operated by controllers from a remote tower control centre, which may be located at the airport or at an alternative site.
Providing secure, high fidelity video presentations from a camera sensor, the installation and evaluation of the Kongsberg Remote Tower moves the airport and the US a step closer to enabling remote towers and their built-in smart technical capabilities.
Kongsberg’s 360-degree camera sensor will be used to replace the information controllers presently gather by looking out the tower cab windows. The remote tower system also provides added capabilities that will increase the controllers’ areas of visibility and enhance it with infrared capabilities, increasing aviation safety – all in support of the remote tower technology being evaluated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
“Kongsberg Remote Tower system is operational in Europe, and we are proud to bring this ground-breaking technology to Concord-Padgett Regional Airport,” said Kjetil Reiten Myhra, Executive Vice President, Integrated Defence Systems, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. “Kongsberg will be working closely with the local air traffic controllers to customise and adapt the system to support FAA Remote Tower Type Certification. We look forward to providing US airports with viable alternatives to traditional air traffic control towers and controllers with modern technology to perform their safety-critical services.”
Eirik Tord Jensen, President of Kongsberg Defense Systems, USA, added: “The fact that we have entered into a formal, long-term agreement with the City of Concord shows the progress and commitment being made between the parties and Remote Tower technology. Remote Tower technology represents a cost-effective solution for the future of air traffic management. Now the team moves on to the next major milestone of making the Kongsberg Remote Tower an operational installation to begin its FAA Type Certification in 2023.”
