Civil Aviation to acquire modern Instrument Landing System

Last Updated on Wednesday, 24 July 2019, 4:58 by Writer

GCAA Director-General Egbert Field (r) and Mr. Bernard Goyette, IntelCan VP with the signed agreement.

Pilots landing at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) are from next year expected to do so with the help of an upgraded Instrument Landing System (ILS), the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) says.

The regulatory agency and Canada’s Intelcan Technosystems Inc. signed a contract for that company to install the new system to assist pilots in landing on the CJIA’s upgraded and extended runway in poor weather conditions.

“Following the upgrade and extension of the runway at CJIA, the acquisition of this new and modern ILS system will enhance the landing capability of aircraft at the CJIA to alleviate the need for diversions of aircraft in minimal weather conditions,” the authority said.

Officials hope that the delivery and installation of the system will be completed by February 2020.

An ILS is a precision approach aid employing two radio signals that provides a pilot with vertical and horizontal guidance during the landing phase of an aircraft. The localiser (LOC) provides azimuth guidance, while the glideslope (GS) defines the correct vertical descent profile.

The GCAA says it will also acquire a Digital-Automatic Terminal Information System (D-ATIS) to provide pilots with real time information on weather and safety.

“Currently, that information is presented to pilots by the Air Traffic Controllers without automation,” according to the Authority.

The D-ATIS system will provide data automatically every minute to the aircraft and will be updated every hour. Key features of D-ATIS are reduction of the workload for air traffic controllers and pilots, provision of timely, accurate, and updated information and reducing the likelihood of human error and runway congestion during the transmission of data to pilots and improving air safety and efficiency.

“The acquisition of DATIS will align the GCAA with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Global Interoperability Plans, which aims to provide a seamless operation and experience for pilots operating in any part of the world,” the GCAA said.