Helios selected to advise on Remote Tower feasibility at Dublin airport

Aviation consultancy Helios has been engaged by the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) to assess the operational and technical feasibility of implementing a remote tower solution to provide ATC services to a dual runway operation at Dublin airport. 

Dublin airport has achieved significant traffic growth over the past few years and is considering meeting ongoing growth with the construction of a second parallel runway. Amongst the associated airport infrastructure that will be required for this runway is the deployment of a new Air Traffic Control tower.

The IAA was already granted planning permission for the development of a new 86.9m high tower in 2007. However, recent developments in the field of remote tower technology have raised the possibility for an alternative to the conventional tower, making this concept more viable for larger operations.

Helios will recommend whether to proceed with a new visual control tower, or to deploy a remote tower solution. As part of the study, Helios is considering all aspects of ATM including safety, human factors, regulatory approval, technical requirements and operations. Stakeholder workshops will be held with the main actors in Irish aviation to ensure a transparent decision-making process.

The study is due to be completed by the end of April 2016.