Australian Government sets out challenges and priorities for ATM

Australia's Government released (21-Jul-2017) its national air traffic management (ATM) plan, setting out Australia's challenges and priorities for ATM. The plan is reviewed every five years. Highlights include:

• Effective use of, and investment in, technology, infrastructure and services. Future ATM technological capabilities will support:
  • A national satellite and ground based efficient and flexible ATM system, utilising air-to-ground data link surveillance for air traffic separation;
  • Aircraft utilising satellite navigation as the primary means of navigation, without the need to resort to ground based aids in normal situations;
  • The ability of air traffic surveillance to provide traffic conflict avoidance;
  • More efficient airspace and air route designs;
• Alignment with ICAO SARPs, the Global Air Navigation Plan (GANP), and Global Aviation Safety Plan (GASP);
• Civil-military ATM harmonisation, especially through implementation of OneSky and flexible use of airspace concepts;
• Regional air traffic services based on risk assessment. Initiatives to facilitate regional airports include:
  • Additional ADS-B ground stations;
  • Further implementation of required navigation performance (RNP) Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs) and Standard Terminal Arrival Routes (STARs);
  • Increased use of electronic surveillance for situational awareness in regional towers;
• The recruitment, retention and training of skilled personnel;
• Effective management of environmental impacts from aviation operations;
• Integrating drones into airspace, with drones expected to have an "increasingly significant operational role" in both civil and military applications;
• Supporting technology innovation from "increasingly sophisticated aircraft", which have the ability to operate more "flexibly" and safely, in a timely and responsive manner. [more - original PR]