South Africa ATNS signs agreement with Aireon LLC

As part of the agreement, ATNS will have 100% air traffic surveillance of Johannesburg Flight Information Region (FIR) and the Cape Town FIR through Aireon’s satellite-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) service.

“Much of Africa is currently without any air traffic surveillance. Aireon’s service will give us visibility into many regions, allowing us to facilitate seamless transitions between air traffic control providers. This will be achieved without any additional ground infrastructure and utilizing currently-mandated on-board avionics,” said Thabani Mthiyane, chief executive officer, ATNS.

Using ADS-B will allow ATNS to access real-time visibility throughout their airspace, and improve safety and efficiency of air travel.

The service is planned to be operational in 2018.