Air traffic boost for Prestwick

A new state of the art air traffic control system has entered full operational service at Prestwick Control Centre.

The system – called iTEC - is the next generation of air traffic control technology designed to increase airspace capacity.

And it will also improve safety by automatically detecting potential aircraft conflicts ahead of time.

It also helps reduce aircraft fuel burn and emissions by enabling the future introduction of ‘ Free Route Airspace’ above 28,000 feet, giving pilots greater flexibility to fly the best and most direct routes instead of following the existing network of rigid waypoints and airways.

More than 110 air traffic controllers at Prestwick have spent the last 10 months being trained on the new system, which has been in use periodically at increasingly busy times since January in preparation for a full switch over.

Alastair Muir, director at Prestwick Centre, said: “An enormous amount of work has gone into getting us to this point.

“It’s a major milestone both for Prestwick and NATS but also for aviation in the UK.

“How we do air traffic control is going to change in the next five years, making flying cleaner, quieter and more fuel efficient and this is a great step forward.”

Prestwick Centre has responsibility for 2.2m km2 of airspace and handling 80 per cent of North Atlantic traffic.

The successful deployment of iTEC forms part of a broader programme of work for NATS.

They are set to invest £ 600 million in new technology over the coming five years.