News / MP challenges HIAL over air traffic control
NORTHERN Isles MP Alistair Carmichael has issued a renewed challenge to Highlands and Islands Airports (HIAL) over its plans to centralise air traffic control to a single location.
Local politicians and unions previously voiced serious concern when it emerged HIAL was looking at getting rid of air traffic control towers across its network of airports in April.
It would put skilled and well-paid jobs at risk, while there are concerns over the reliability of any remote connection serving areas like Shetland. The single tower would most likely be cited in Inverness.
Having received a briefing from HIAL on its review of the existing system, Carmichael said on Tuesday: “A centralised system of air traffic control is fraught with danger. It relies on good quality connectivity – much better than we have at present.
“The challenge I have put to HIAL is that in testing their proposal they should be able to demonstrate that the one centralised tower can work if it is located in Shetland. If it cannot meet that target then it should not happen.
“If HIAL truly believe that connectivity to Shetland will not be an issue, then I would challenge them to base their central air traffic control room out of Shetland and trust the connectivity to run the other airports from there.
“If HIAL are unwilling to run the system from the most technologically challenging location, how on earth could they expect people in the isles to have faith that the system will work for them if it is run from the south?”
When the proposals first emerged in late April, HIAL chief executive Inglis Lyon and company chairman Mike Cantlay stressed that it was in the early stages of considering the proposal and no decision had been taken.
Lyon and Cantlay, who at that time refused to be interviewed having met with Northern Isles politicians, said a “scoping study” was unlikely to be discussed by HIAL’s board until September “at the earliest”.
But remote digital towers are viewed as “the ideal concept for regional airports”, allowing air traffic controllers to run several airports from a single location and thereby save millions of pounds in operating costs.
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