Groundbreaking news for Saab Remote Tower in Sweden

The defense and security company Saab has developed technology for remote air traffic control, known as Remote Tower. The Swedish Transport Agency has now given the Swedish air navigation service provider, LFV, clearance that the critical flight safety aspects of Remote Tower are clarified. Sundsvall Remote Tower Center will therefore be in operation in autumn of 2014. The airport in Örnsköldsvik will then be the first in the world to be remotely controlled with this technology.

Saab’s Remote Tower was installed in 2013 at Örnsköldsvik Airport. The Swedish Transport Agency has now given the Swedish air navigation service provider, LFV, clearance that the critical flight safety aspects (technical and operational procedures) of Remote Tower are clarified. The information is clear evidence of Saab’s new innovative solution for air traffic management as safe, modern and cost-effective.

Örnsköldsvik’s airport will, this autumn, be the first airport in the world to be remotely controlled using Saab's Remote Tower technology. Air traffic controllers at Sundsvall Remote Tower Center can then remotely control take-offs and landings from Örnsköldsvik Airport,100 km away.

The Saab Remote Tower product suite includes High Definition cameras and Pan-Tilt-Zoom cameras, surveillance and meteorological sensors, microphones, signal light guns and other devices for deployment at the airport. Data from these sensors are sent to a Remote Tower Center (RTC) to be displayed in real time. A controller at the RTC has the tools, in addition to live video, to operate the airport in a similar manner as he or she would in a traditional Air Traffic Control Tower.

Saab's ground breaking Remote Tower technology makes it possible to retain air traffic services at low traffic airports and possibly add services to airports without towers today. The technology also helps to improve safety and lower costs.

"Remote Tower makes it possible to have a network of airports operated from one location, and we can see a great deal of interest from many parts of the world. I look forward to seeing what Saab's technology can do for travelers," says Håkan Buskhe, President and CEO of Saab.

The technology has been developed by Saab in close partnership with the Swedish air navigation service provider, LFV, to meet air traffic controllers' operational needs. During the development work, it became apparent that some of today's air traffic control towers are no longer optimally located. In such cases, the Remote Tower system can enable controllers to see areas of the airport without having to construct a new traditional tower. The camera unit can be positioned where it has the best overview and it can even be moved easily if needed.