Eighteen months ago NATS, the UK’s ATC provider, announced implementation of time-based separation standards at London Heathrow Airport, designed to increase the arrival rate at Europe’s busiest hub airport. NATS says an effort it began in 2014 called XMAN, in which ATC in the UK coordinates with controllers in France, the Netherlands and Ireland, is also reducing the time aircraft spend burning holes in the sky around London awaiting their turn to land.
Air Traffic Control in London Improves Again
Key Takeaways:
- NATS implemented time-based separation standards at London Heathrow and the XMAN initiative (coordination with neighboring ATC) to increase arrival rates and reduce aircraft holding times.
- These efforts significantly reduced average holding times for aircraft at Heathrow, from 8.5 minutes in 2014 to 7.5 minutes in 2016.
- The reduction in holding times translates to annual savings of over 3,000 flight hours, 11,000 tons of fuel, and 35,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
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