Leonardo-Finmeccanica promotes its airport and air traffic control systems and capabilities

Air traffic management and control and airport systems and security are at the heart of Leonardo-Finmeccanica’s offer in the airport air side and land side domain. In the occasion of Inter airport and ATC Global, both taking place in Beijing from 12th to 14th September, these capabilities have been showcased in China, where Leonardo has a leading role with its civil systems and solutions.

Leonardo’s ATC systems in China and around the world

Leonardo supplies ATC systems to China, where the company has provided over 60 radar systems which ensure radar coverage of nearly all the major air traffic routes over the central and eastern regions of China. In the country the company also provides maintenance, services, logistics support and upgrade work for existing systems. The company boasts a worldwide presence from Asia to America.

For instance the new airport in Doha, Qatar (HIA - Hamad International Airport), along with the Kingdom of Bahrain’s main airport are both being equipped with Leonardo’s air traffic control systems. The company’s ATM systems are also operational in Malaysia, at Vietnam’s Hanoi airport and Bulgaria’s Sofia Airport. In Saudi Arabia, both Jeddah and Riyadh airports are already operating Finmeccanica ATC systems. In Kuwait, a recent contract will see Leonardo supply and install a complex suite of equipment that will manage the data traffic between the airport’s existing systems. In 2016, Leonardo made operational one of the world’s most complex ATM systems, Turkey’s SMART project (Systematic Modernisation of ATM Resources Turkey), which manages all of the country’s air traffic.

In India, the company supplied ATC equipment for Bangalore and Hyderabad airports. In 2016/2017, Singapore’s Changi Airport will begin operating one of Leonardo’s terminal approach radars. In Canada Leonardo was recently awarded a contract to supply the Canadian department for environmental policies and programs with 20 networked weather radars, with options up to additional 13 long range surveillance radar systems. Leonardo’s communications systems are installed in over 600 airports round the world. Leonardo is also helping define new standards for air traffic management systems, participating in major European programmes such as SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) the research and development programme aimed at the modernization of the European air traffic control.

Leonardo in the ATC domain: facts and figures

150 countries, trust Leonardo’s air traffic control systems. With over 50 years of experience, Leonardo has developed, manufactured and installed more than 300 air traffic management and control centres. The company has also provided more than 80 simulators, providing advanced air traffic control training worldwide. More than 700 primary and secondary surveillance radars (including Mode S which allows an advanced surveillance capability for secondary radar systems) have also been sold, with more than 2000 operator stations and 1000 navigation systems.

Helping manage the effects of weather on flights, Leonardo has provided more than 160 weather radars and over 40 automated weather observation systems.

Leonardo’s land side systems at Inter airport China: the Multi sorting Baggage Handling System

For over 50 years Leonardo has been a leading international solution provider of sorting systems for letters, flats & packets with a continuous evolution of its products expanding to handling baggage and parcels. A series of innovations and improvements position the MBHS (Multi-Sorting Baggage Handling System based on a consolidated cross-belt handling proprietary technology) as one of the most advanced, high-performance baggage handling systems on the market. Some of the key benefits, adding value to its customers, include very high sorting throughput with ultimate precision, significant energy savings, very low maintenance, extremely high reliability, availability and configurability, which ensures lowest life cycle costs. The innovative technology ensures optimum and gentle handling for all types of baggage including that are fragile, have high friction or sticky surfaces, have prominent wheels or are irregular in shape, thereby enhancing passenger experience.

Leonardo’s baggage handling systems are successfully in operation in several European airports. Among them the most significant are: Rome Fiumicino in Italy, Geneve in Switzerland, Auroairport (Basel CH, Mulhouse F, Freiburg D) and Paris Orly. Systems are also currently in deployment in Islamabad (Pakistan) and Lyon (France). In Rome Fiumicino, moreover, two new huge baggage handling systems are in the last phases of activation: one is dedicated to the new Alitalia Etihad Terminal and the second to the new International Terminal.

The first can be considered a real “giant” among the BHS systems: the complete system will be nine kilometers long, covering a 25,000 sqm area, including three cross belt sorters (for a total sorter length of about 1100 m) and it can easily reach, and exceed, the overall capacity of 6000 baggage per hour, required by Aeroporti di Roma, the Italian company in charge of the two international Rome airports management, thanks to the capacity of each sorter of more than 8000 baggage per hour. The first lot of this system has been activated six months ahead schedule since July 2016 helping the main Italian international airport face the boom of passengers during the summer; the second lot will be in operation at the end of 2016.

The system dedicated to the International Terminal includes two cross belt sorters (for a total length of about 960 m) and a total of more than 7 km of conveyors.

Leonardo’s cross-belt baggage sorter MBHS helped Aeroporti di Roma to be awarded the Baggage Improvement Program certificate by IATA and allowed a decrease of over 60% in the number of mishandled bags.

The Security platform solution showcased at Inter airport China

Innovative and proprietary solutions support security officers during their activities inside and outside the airport, while being connected with the Leonardo’s security platform solution enhance the safety and security. The platform, suitable for all types of airports, whether small or large and complex, civilian or military, is able to manage the security of all the inside and outside airport areas, activating dedicated and configurable workflows.

Leonardo’s security solution for airports includes video-surveillance, crowd analysis, scene-analysis algorithms, access control, plate readers, facial recognition, integration with all main airport systems for prompt detection of critical situations, interconnection with different stakeholders to manage emergencies and the integration of secure airport communications. The use of professional communications networks in the airport guarantees service across all airport areas, both in-door and outdoor even in the case of critical events such as natural disasters or terrorist attack. Leonardo’s communications technology is based on TETRA(Terrestrial Trunked Radio) or DMR (Digital Mobile Radio) standards accompanied by new high-speed LTE (Long Term Evolution) capability for voice/data communications, messaging and interoperability among airport stakeholders.