The functioning of the new Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower may get delayed as the Air Navigation System (ANS) department is facing problems allotting staff for training purposes. The ANS is already facing an acute shortage of staff.
The ANS, which consists of staffers from the ATC and the Communication, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS) department, have to be trained on the new ATC system as it has the latest, state-of-the-art equipment and technologies that the present tower does not have. While ATC officials directly coordinate with pilots and others for managing traffic, CNS provides infrastructure support for it.
After the training, the new as well as the existing ATC tower will be simultaneously operated for over two months. Following this, the operations will be managed only from the new ATC tower.
While CNS is facing a shortage of over 40 per cent, the ATC is falling short by over 50 per cent. The seriousness of the staff shortage issue can be gauged from the fact that at least 118 cases of AIRPROX have been recorded in the past five years. AIRPROX refers to a situation where two aircraft come dangerously close to each other mid-air.
A senior official from CNS commented, “It is becoming difficult to free staffers for training as we are already understaffed and overworked due to increased air traffic in the city airspace.” Staffers from the ATC echo the same sentiment. A senior ATC official said,“It’s a Catch-22 situation. But something has to be worked out.”
However, it has now been learnt that following the emergence of the problem, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) management is planning to arrange staffers from other centres to work in Mumbai temporarily, so that the local staff can attend the training sessions. AAI officials, however, refused to comment on the issue.
At 83.8 meters, the new ATC tower is India’s tallest one, built over a space of 2800 sq meters. The glass used for the tower is designed to withstand high-speed winds. The tower is also equipped with Electronic Flight Strips (EFS), which will reduce the workload of the tower controller, enhance safety and overall capacity of the airport.
