Radar system at CIAL in 3 weeks
Kochi: A radar system costing Rs 30 crore will become operational at Cochin International Airport within the next three weeks.
Final tests are being conducted by the Airport Authority of India and the nod from the director general of civil aviation for commissioning the system is now awaited.
The radar system is a combination of Approach Surveillance Radar (ASR) and Monopulse Secondary Surveillance Radar (MSSR)
The ASR tracks aircraft approaching the airport within a range of 20 nautical miles while MSSR detects and measures the position of aircraft i.e. range and bearing, but also requests additional information from the aircraft such as its identity and altitude. MSSR has a longer range of 200 nautical miles.
The installation of the radar will cut down the landing time from the present six to nine minutes to approximately three minutes. Once full-fledged operations begin, aircraft landing and take-off will be totally under the control of the radar controller thereby minimising the need for any judgment by the pilot during these procedures, even under conditions of very limited visibility.
This will enhance the safety of operations and minimise the holding time of aircraft, thereby saving aviation fuel and helping to reduce the carbon footprint by cutting down emissions. It is estimated that airlines can save around Rs 60-65 crore a year on aviation fuel once the radar system is commissioned.
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