New NAV CANADA Air Traffic Control Tower up and running
NEWS RELEASE No: 12/13
For Immediate Release
New NAV CANADA Air Traffic Control Tower up and running
as Edmonton International Airport opens new Central Tower
(Edmonton, May 9, 2013) – NAV CANADA air traffic controllers are now handling flights at the busy Edmonton International Airport from a new air traffic control tower, which crowns the airport’s new eight-story Central Tower ̶ a significant component of Edmonton International Airport’s Expansion 2012 project.
“The Central Tower creates a distinctive new landmark and a dramatic icon for both Edmonton International Airport (EIA) and the Capital Region. But it’s not just nice to look at, it was needed. The multifunctional building includes a new NAV CANADA control tower at the top and a new integrated baggage system at the bottom. That left space for retail and office space in the middle, which will be home to NAV CANADA, EIA and Canadian Helicopters offices,” says Reg Milley, EIA President and Chief Executive Officer.
The tower incorporates many design elements that reflect environmental considerations. EIA is seeking Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) Silver Certification for Central Tower.
From the control tower cab, NAV CANADA controllers will have a clear view of the airspace, runways and taxiways.
“At 48 metres high, the new control tower is four metres taller than the old one, and the floor space in the cab is about 50 per cent bigger,” said Todd Trischuk, Control Tower Manager. “The extra height improves the controllers’ sight lines and the larger area makes it a better working environment. The cab is also equipped with new ergonomically designed consoles.”
Rudy Kellar, NAV CANADA Executive Vice President, Service Delivery noted that the previous control tower was over 40 years old. “It was clear that to continue to efficiently serve the airport’s existing traffic and projected future growth we needed a new larger air traffic control facility,” said Kellar.
“The airport’s expansion, including a well-designed efficient terminal building with integrated office space, was a perfect opportunity to upgrade our air traffic control tower and provide advanced tools and equipment for our employees to continue to provide excellent services from. The tower project was facilitated by the airport authority and they gave us excellent cooperation throughout the planning and construction,” Kellar added.
EIA is the country’s fifth busiest airport in passenger numbers with 6.7 million passengers in 2012, and eighth busiest in air traffic with 142,000 annual aircraft movements. NAV CANADA has a staff complement of 18 air traffic controllers working in the control tower.
Edmonton’s new control tower is equipped with the latest NAVCAN atm technology including NAVCAN strips. This advanced electronic flight strips system and other integrated air traffic management technology is in operation at more than 70 Canadian sites, and has been adopted internationally by the United Kingdom, Denmark, Australia, the Netherland Antilles, Hong Kong, and Dubai.
NAV CANADA is the country’s private sector civil air navigation services provider. With operations from coast to coast to coast, NAV CANADA provides air traffic control, flight information, weather briefings, aeronautical information services, airport advisory services and electronic aids to navigation.
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For further information, please contact:
NAV CANADA
Michelle Bishop Jonathan Bagg
Director, Government and Public Affairs Manager, Public Affairs
(613) 563-7520 (613) 563-5923
michelle.bishop@navcanada.ca jonathan.bagg@navcanada.ca
Media Information Line: 1-888-562-8226
EIA
Heather Lynne Hamilton
Director, Marketing and Communications
t: 780 890 2434
c:780 884 2966
e: hhamilton@flyeia.com
w:flyeia.com
NAVCANADA at a Glance
A General Overview of the Company
NAVCANADAis the private sector, non-share capital corporation, financed through publicly-traded debt that owns and operates Canada’s civil air navigation service (ANS). We purchased the system from the federal government, on November 1, 1996, for $1.5 billion.
Mandate and Services
The Company is responsible for the safety and efficiency of the ANS. We provide customers – airlines and other owners and operators of aircraft – with the following services: air traffic control, flight information, weather briefings, airport advisory services, aeronautical information services and electronic aids to navigation.
NAVCANADA is a private sector company and not a federal agency. The Company’s safety performance is regulated by Transport Canada.
Governance
The Company is governed by a Board of Directors comprising 10 appointees from four major stakeholders of NAVCANADA as follows: air carriers – 4; general and business aviation – 1; federal government – 3; bargaining agents – 2, as well as four independent directors, appointed by the Board, with no ties to stakeholders. The President and Chief Executive Officer is also a director.
Employees
Some 4,800 employees work at NAV CANADA, including air traffic controllers, flight service specialists, electronics technologists, operational support specialists, engineers, managers and administrative staff.
Facilities
NAVCANADA’s facilities across the country include seven area control centres (Vancouver ,Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, Moncton and Gander) and 42 control towers. The Company also operates 56 flight service stations, 8 flight information centres, 34 maintenance centres and 51 community aerodrome radio Stations (CARS) providing weather information in Canada’s North. Facilities are supported by a network of over 1,000 ground-based aids to navigation including 45 radar sites across Canada.
The head office is located in Ottawa, Ontario, where the Company also has a technical systems centre, a simulation centre and a national operations centre. NAVCANADA also has a conference facility in Cornwall, Ontario.
Finance
In accordance with the Civil Air Navigation Services Commercialization Act, NAVCANADA sets customer service charges to recover the cost of providing its services. The Company’s acquisition of the ANS, as well as its ongoing capital requirements, are financed with debt.
NAVCANADA currently has $1.925 billion in bonds and medium-term notes outstanding. The Company’s obligations are rated in the AA category by the three rating agencies operating in Canada.
Insurance
The Company’s insurance policy is the world’s largest, with over $4 billion in coverage per occurrence.
Service Charges
NAVCANADA revenues are generated mainly from service charges paid by customers.
NAV CANADA service charges have increased by about 5 per cent on average – 27 percentage points below inflation – since they were fully introduced in March 1999. Service charges are 30 per cent lower than the former Air Transportation Tax that airlines used to collect from passengers.
Traffic Volumes
In 2012, there were in the order of 12 million aircraft movements associated with NAV CANADA area control centres, control towers, flight service stations and remote aerodrome advisory services. These movements include take-offs, landings and overflights in domestic airspace and international airspace assigned to Canadian control.
Safety Record
The Company has maintained one of the best safety records in the world and this continues to improve. The rate of loss-of-separation of IFR-to-IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) aircraft has declined from an average of one per 100,000 movements in 2001 to less than 0.8 per 100,000 movements in 2012.
Awards
NAVCANADA is a three time recipient of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Eagle Award as the world’s “Best Air Navigation Service Provider.” The Company has received that honour in 2001, 2010 and 2011.
Service and Technology
Since assuming control of the ANS, the Company has adopted an aggressive strategy to modernize and enhance the delivery of air traffic services across the country. The Company has invested over $1.8 billion since 1996 in new facilities, systems and technologies in collaboration with its customers.
As a result, safety been enhanced, and customers are saving an estimated $485 million annually in the cost of fuel through more efficient flight operations
The Company has also deployed game-changing innovations including the NAV CANADA integrated controller workstation now operational at 80 facilities around the globe; the world-leading Gander Automated Air Traffic System (GAATS) for oceanic air traffic control; and the Canadian Automated Air Traffic System (CAATS) providing state-of-the-art flight data processing on a nationwide basis.
These and other innovations are also the basis of a successful 10-year effort to market technology solutions developed by NAV CANADA to ANSPs with cumulative sales of $75 million, now under the NAVCAN atm brand. NAV CANADA has signed technology contracts with ANSPs in the United Kingdom, Denmark, Australia, Hong Kong, Netherland Antilles and Dubai