- Tunisia is improving its air traffic surveillance network by doubling its current capacity. Also, the airport on the Island of Djerba, a major tourism destination, is to get a technological upgrading, allowing all-weather landings.
Tunisia's air navigation providers - Office de l'Aviation Civile et des Aéroports (OACA) - have ordered the extension of its air traffic surveillance network with three new radar stations. The stations are to be equipped with two primary radars and two secondary radars. The secondary radar system not only detects and locates aircraft but also obtains additional information regarding identification or flight height.
With this in place, OACA expects air traffic controllers to be supplied extensive information of a higher quality, which is to allow handling a larger amount of flights without detriment to standard security levels.
This technology is planned to enhance Tunisia's transport infrastructures. OACA therefore expects to be able to cope with air traffic growth due to an increase of domestic flights, tourism flow and to the country's geographical location, which is essential in long-distance routes between Europe and Africa.
In addition to these installations in Tunis, also the Djerba tourism airport is to be upgraded by OACA. A new approach control centre is to be set up in the Island of Djerba. It is to be equipped with a so-called Aircon system, which displays the activities that occur in the air space operators are responsible for. The system integrates and shows the information supplied by radars, aircraft's flight plan as well as weather information.
For travellers, the most important news is that the new control centre will allow landing in adverse weather conditions in Djerba, thus reducing delays and cancellations. "The start-up of the centre will boost economy dynamism by improving communications and facilitating tourist flow," the suppliers promise.
The systems in Tunis and Djerba are to be supplied and set up by Indra, a Spain-based multinational IT company. According to a statement by the company's Madrid headquarters released today, "the contract exceeds euro 10 million." Much of the technology to be installed in Tunisia is developed by Indra itself, the company holds.
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