May Opening For New International Atlanta Terminal

The opening of the world's largest airport's new international terminal will occur in just over one month's time, it's been announced.

Already the busiest airport on Earth, Hartsfield-Jackson hit a new milestone in 2011, with close to 10 million international passengers passing through, alongside close to 70,000 international flight movements. According to the FAA, the passenger-handling level is set to have surpassed 13 million by the end of December 2015.

Positioned on the eastern side of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal should originally have been operational in 2006, but has experienced a protracted development period. Now, it will open for business on 16 May 2012, according to Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

New Atlanta Terminal
The new Atlanta terminal takes its name from the late Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr - Atlanta's first African-American Mayor - who passed away in 2003.

"The opening of the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal is a major milestone for Hartsfield-Jackson airport and the City of Atlanta", Mayor Reed told media representatives. He added: "The international terminal will strengthen Atlanta's position as the capital of the southeast and a vital global gateway for the United States.

"Our city has long been a preferred destination for international business and tourism, and I look forward to May 16 when we greet travelers from around the world in this new, state-of-the-art terminal."

Approximately 3,000 workers have so far been involved in the Atlanta Maynard Jackson terminal project and, once finished, a 1,500-strong workforce will be required to oversee and maintain it.

International Atlanta Terminal Opening
The Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal boasts a 12-gate concourse and is linked up to the international concourse already in place. That means, as a result of the international Atlanta terminal opening, Hartsfield-Jackson International will have 40 international gates and, in the new terminal, 64 additional check-in kiosks and 80 more ticketing counters.

Architecturally, the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal features a cambered roof design, a blend of smooth curves and angular framework and extensive use of glass.

"The Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal has a focus on efficiency and customer-friendly design, so it will serve our international guests well now and in the future", Louis Miller - the airport's Aviation General Manager - commented.

Airport International will revisit Hartsfield-Jackson International's new terminal in future News coverage.

Source: Airport International

By: Progress On 02:01

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NASA’s Next-Gen Augmented Reality Cockpit Displays

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is working on a pair of glasses intended for commercial airline pilots landing at severely fogged-up airports.

The augmented reality-themed glasses feature an HUD (Heads-Up Display) that projects an overlay of the airport's runway and general layout, to aid pilots maintain safe control of commercial aircraft when airport conditions are at their worst.

While the idea of embedding augmented reality (AR) directly into pilots' glasses is new, the marriage of AR and aviation is already well-established.

Augmented Reality Cockpit Displays
This next-generation augmented reality pilot display technology is under development at NASA's Virginia-based Langley Research Center and the administration's presently seeking to collaborate with an external partner to bring the concept to commercial life.

Heads-Up Displays were initially confined to just two commercial aircraft designs - the Boeing 737 NG (New Generation) series and the Brazilian Embraer 190. Now, however, there's a wealth of types equipped with them including the Airbus A318 and the brand new Boeing 787 Dreamliner, on which they're standard.

These HUDs form part of the cockpit layout and involve flight data placed on top of the view to the outside world.

Next-Gen Cockpit Displays
NASA's next-gen cockpit display glasses go one stage further by putting the overlaid data right in front of a pilot and making it more interactive: when the pilot moves his head, the data moves around accordingly. So, with the glasses on, a pilot can be presented with key landing information - direction, altitude and speed, for example - while remaining focused on the approaching runway.

Since the aircraft landing glasses are almost entirely autonomous, they could be used regardless of the systems already integrated into an airliner's cockpit, so there'd be no need to retrofit much in the way of new components into existing cockpit layouts.

NASA's work in this area forms one part of its much wider Synthetic Vision programme, which aims to give commercial aircraft pilots new flight tools and, ultimately, to relocate many of the cockpit's flight data dials directly into the pilot's field of view.

Airport International will present further coverage of the NASA Synthetic Vision programme in future News Items.

Source: Airport International

By: Progress On 01:59

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FAA Studies Aircraft Passenger Electronic Device Use

The US FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is looking into implementing rules that would allow airline passengers to use electronic gadgets while aircraft are arriving at or departing the world's airports.

Presently, there's legislation in place that allows all carriers to put specific types of personal music players, tablets and the like through trials to ensure they're safely compatible with the electrical systems on board commercial aircraft.

However, the sheer volume of electronic gadgets on the market, combined with the impracticality of expansive test programmes, has limited the number of airlines who've actually done this to a small handful.

Aircraft Electronic Device Tests
The FAA's therefore moving to initiate discussions between dominant airline groups, the manufacturers of these Personal Electronic Devices (PEDs) and other parties to, potentially, get these aircraft electronic device use tests underway.

At present, PEDs can't be used by passengers onboard commercial aircraft at heights of 10,000 feet or below. If this changes, however, such devices could be allowed to remain in operations throughout the takeoff and landing phases of commercial air travel.

"With the advent of new and evolving electronic technology, and because the airlines have not conducted the testing necessary to approve the use of new devices, the FAA is taking a fresh look at the use of personal electronic devices, other than cell phones, on aircraft", the FAA's Laura J. Brown explained, in a statement.

FAA Passenger Device Studies
The results of any trials that are staged from these FAA passenger device studies could be closely followed in the US - a nation where, as per data published by Forrester Research, no less than 60 million iPads are forecast to have been sold by the end of this year.

Referring, in a press release, to the interest in this programme likely to be shown by consumers, the FAA has nonetheless confirmed that ‘no changes will be made until we are certain they will not impact safety and security.'

Image copyright ‘aschaeffer'/sxc.hu - reproduced with grateful thanks

Source: Airport International

By: Progress On 01:56

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By: Progress On 10:07

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Gatwick Solar System

Gatwick Airport now boasts the UK's first liveside solar system, positioned 150 metres away from the main runway.

Rated at 50 Kilowatts, the solar system is comprised of photovoltaic panels that convert solar energy into electricity. It's been installed by UK group Orta Solar and not only is it a UK first but it represents just one component of Gatwick's wider CO2 reduction programme, which aims to limit the site's contribution to climate change resulting from greenhouse gas emissions.

This should see, in future years, a more extensive Gatwick solar power system put in operation.

Airport Solar Technology
Several issues had to be overcome before this airport solar technology could be put in place. These included ensuring that the system didn't produce potentially dangerous forms of glare or interrupt any of the radar signals transmitted at ground level. To guarantee that the criteria for safe operation were met, both NATS (the National Air Traffic Service) and the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) were consulted.

Gatwick Airport was formerly part of BAA's UK airport portfolio but, in October 2009, was acquired by Global Infrastructure Partners. In recent months, the site's unveiled a host of new features including, in October 2011, a new security upgrade at its South Terminal.

Gatwick Airport Solar System 
The Gatwick Airport solar system programme was kickstarted by Joe Attwood - the site's ex-sustainability delivery leader. "For a long time Gatwick Airport Ltd has been working hard to increase its sustainability and adding 100 per cent carbon free electricity generation into our operations is a positive step", Attwood explained in an Orta Solar press release.

"Although only at the 50kW trial stage at present, the system will save 25 tonnes of CO2 on our operational carbon footprint per annum."

"The system breaks new ground regarding the acceptance of Airport based solar in the UK and all involved have learned a lot regarding challenges & solutions specific to the location", Nick Pascoe - Orta Solar's Managing Director - added. "We're already speaking with other leading airport groups in the UK about bring Solar PV into their operations."

By: Progress On 04:02

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