According to a comment on the July air traffic statistics released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on 4th September 2011, demand for Middle East carriers rose 9.7% above last year’s level worldwide.
Paolo Carmassi, President Honeywell Aerospace EMEAI said: “The latest air traffic statistics for the month of July 2011 have been published by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), showing a rise in global air traffic of 5.9% compared to July 2010. The figures also show that the Middle East carriers experienced a rise in demand of 9.7% above last year’s level. With passenger numbers continuing to rise and airports and operators battling to meet demand that is exacerbated by the summer holiday rush, focus is being placed on Air Traffic Management technologies that can reduce the risk of delays resulting from Europe’s crowded skies.”
“Operational efficiency is key to meeting current and future air traffic demands more so than ever before, with fuel prices remaining volatile and question marks hanging over the state of the global economy. Solving the problem of rising demand whilst simultaneously helping airlines to improve efficiency in light of higher operational and environmental costs is a challenge that Honeywell is tackling head on with its range of Air Traffic Management (ATM) technologies. Honeywell is a key member of the SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) Joint Undertaking, a 2.1 billion Euro EU initiative to modernise Europe’s aviation infrastructure. By 2020 SESAR is aiming to reduce average flight time by between eight and 14 minutes, cut 300 to 500 kg of fuel and reduce CO2 emissions by at least 948 kg per flight.”, President Honeywell Aerospace EMEAI continued.
“The requirement for operationally efficient and cost-effective flight patterns is now more critical than ever for Europe’s airlines. ATM technology that reduces congestion and improves efficiency by enabling more planes to fly optimised routes is available today. It is now crucial that the industry’s key stakeholders including Honeywell, SESAR and Europe’s airport authorities, airlines and Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) work together to introduce this technology to the region in the most efficient and economically viable way possible”, emphasized Mr. Paolo Carmassi.
