The Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) said air traffic management at the Clark International Airport (CRK) will further improve once the new air traffic control (ATC) tower is completed in the second quarter this year.
CIAC president Jojit Alcazar said in a statement on Monday that the ATC tower would apply innovative communication technology that meets international standards, and is being utilized by leading airports across the world.
“We expect the tower to be operational by the second quarter of this year, and we also expect air traffic volume to escalate, so the safety of aircraft and passengers are our foremost concern,” Alcazar said.
The new infrastructure will also mitigate the current challenges in airspace congestion and complex air traffic management amid the continued increase in global air traffic, as well as equipment breakdown and weather disturbances.
“The surge in travel volume adds up to the challenges faced by ATC operations at Clark, and so a new system capable to quickly identify and mitigate these challenges is needed,” the CIAC chief said.
The 18-story infrastructure will also be the country’s tallest a ATC tower in the country, a new landmark in Central Luzon.
Its height is expected to address existing line-of-sight issue on the north-end approach area of the runway to ensure an ideal operational setting by maximizing visibility during air traffic control activities.
MSV Construction and Supplies and the Northern Builders Construction Corporation bagged the contract for building the ATC tower.
Also last month, CIAC’s and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines’ engineers and specialist completed their training overseas, improving their skills on operations of traffic communication, navigation, and surveillance systems. (PNA)