Denmark’s Naviair selects FREQUENTIS ATM system as backup for Area Control Centre and Approach/Tower units

Naviair, the Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP) of Denmark, will replace its current Clear-The-Sky (CTC) backup Air Traffic Management (ATM) system with a PRISMA backup solution from Frequentis Comsoft, capable of providing continuous traffic handling, for unlimited time periods. The project will form part of an expansion of the Remote Digital Tower (RDT) contract between Frequentis DFS Aerosense GmBH and Naviair.

This expansion of the RDT project will build upon the PRISMA APP solution integrated in the RDT system currently being implemented for Billund Approach and Tower. It will include PRISMA Enroute for Naviair’s Area Control Centre (ACC) and APP for approach/tower units in Copenhagen, Billund and Roskilde airports.

“We require a reliable and up-to-date backup ATM system in order to ensure continuous, safety-critical air navigation services. The need to replace our current backup ATM system has existed for some time.  After we had learnt about PRISMA APP in the RDT project we realised the system could provide resiliency in the extreme rare case that our main ATM system suddenly becomes unavailable, but also during planned ATM system maintenance or for AIRAC (Aeronautical Information Regulation and Control) updates. We are looking forward to adding another PRISMA installation to our RDT project with Frequentis DFS Aerosense.” says Morten Søndergaard, CTO, Naviair.

Naviair selected the integrated digital tower and approach solution from Frequentis DFS Aerosense in early 2020 to manage increasing airspace demand and support the workload of Air Traffic Control Operators (ATCOs). The initial remote tower centre at Billund airport will house the system, which is a combination of a RDT and an approach automation solution (PRISMA APP).

“This expansion of the RDT contract to include PRISMA as an ATM backup is expected to yield considerable synergies to Naviair engineers and ATCO’s training on the system, as well as substantial reuse of new PRISMA functionalities developed specifically for Naviair or through the PRISMA product roadmap. We are delighted to be working with Naviair on this expansion of our solution,” says Frequentis Comsoft Managing Director, Constantin von Reden.

Added value is also brought by an open ATM platform which enables the customer to integrate additional services and applications either from the Frequentis group or from third-party providers.

Naviair services the København Flight Information Region (FIR) for all major airports in Denmark, as well as the lower airspace of Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The Main ATM system in use in Denmark will regularly require updates which sometimes can last for longer periods; a Backup ATM system must therefore be capable of sustaining a continous traffic capacity of the served airspaces.

The project will be rolled out under the Agile delivery model and will span over two years. Both the PRISMA Backup ATM and PRISMA APP projects are via Frequentis DFS Aerosense, a joint venture that provides Remote and Digital Tower solutions and consulting globally.