ICT and aviation experts for real-time monitoring of flight data
International standards mooted for ‘aviation data cloud’ to track aircraft
Kuala Lumpur, 27 May 2014 – A two-day dialogue between
experts on real-time monitoring of flight data took place in Kuala Lumpur, 26-27
May. The meeting was facilitated by ITU and hosted by the Ministry of
Communications and Multimedia, Malaysia.
Following a call at ITU’s World Telecommunication Development Conference on
30 March 2014 from the Minister of Communications and Multimedia of Malaysia,
Ahmad Shabery Cheek for an international effort to find solutions to track
commercial aircraft in real time, industry leaders and experts from the aviation
and information and communication technology (ICT) sectors, representatives of
international organizations, governments and trade associations met in Kuala
Lumpur to explore global initiatives and current and future technological
developments that could provide such solutions.
The Expert Dialogue was motivated by the events surrounding the disappearance
of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which departed Kuala Lumpur for Beijing on 8
March 2014 with 239 people on board.
Participants took note of the preliminary report on MH370 by the Chief
Inspector of Air Accidents, Ministry of Transport, Malaysia dated 9 April 2014
and its recommendation addressed to the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) to examine the safety benefits of introducing a standard for
real-time tracking of commercial aircraft.
Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek noted that international consensus is building
and that the Government of India has already issued a circular to instruct
airlines to track all aircraft in real time. “We hope this means the learning
has begun and we want to crystalize and leverage on what has happened,” said Mr
Shabery. “We are aware of the growing interest within governments to look for
alternative means to track aircraft and the need to set up processes for
real-time tracking of flight data.”
“Thankfully, the number of aircraft which disappear are not many,” Mr Shabery
said. “But having gone through the experience of MH370, even one aircraft
disappearing is one too many.”
ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré expressed his deep concern for the
families affected by the disappearance of Flight MH370 and urged experts to look
for technological solutions to track commercial aircraft more effectively and in
real time. “The aviation and aerospace industries epitomize state-of-the-art in
technology; and air travel is the safest mode of transport in the world,” said
Dr Touré. “Yet, even as the multi-nation search for the missing Malaysia
Airlines aircraft continues, we must make every effort at the international
level to develop real-time tracking solutions for the aviation industry.”
“ICTs are instrumental to the safe and efficient operation of tens of
thousands of flights each day,” said Malcolm Johnson, Director of ITU’s
Telecommunication Standardization Bureau. “The challenge is to bring the
capabilities of the rapidly advancing telecommunication and ICT technology to
the aviation sector in a coherent and coordinated manner. ITU has a long history
of harmonising the use of the radio spectrum and developing international
telecommunication/ICT standards and is offering to bring this competence to
assist aviation, in partnership with ICAO, to consider alternative ways of using
technology such as cloud computing and big data, to provide these solutions.”
Nancy Graham, Director, Air Navigation Bureau, ICAO, said that an Aircraft
Tracking Task Force (ATTF) will address the near-term needs for flight tracking
and that ICAO in partnership with ATTF will develop guidance material, based on
available flight tracking best practices. Pending the outcome of the ATTF,
airlines will be encouraged to use existing equipment and procedures to support
flight tracking. She called for the global tracking of airline flights as a
priority to provide early notice of and response to abnormal flight behaviour,
and thanked ITU for its offer to assist in developing long-term strategy for
aviation data and information.
This first meeting of experts took into account the views of aerospace and
avionics manufacturers, satellite system operators, providers of services and
solutions in the area of ICTs and computer-based networks as well as from those
directly involved in operating and flying aircraft: airlines and pilots.
Requirements and concerns from the flight deck were also taken into account.
Industry experts provided information on current technological developments
including solutions for position reporting, and opportunities for future
technological enhancements using cloud computing and big data. They recognized
the advantages of international standards, open architecture and harmonized
spectrum to ensure global interoperability and compatibility as well as reduce
costs through economies of scale.
“This experts’ dialogue provided an opportunity to establish clear actions
going forward, in particular related to ITU’s expertise in the fields of
radio-frequency spectrum, satellites and ICT standardization,” said Malcolm
Johnson. “It will help instigate an international effort to ensure that an event
like MH370 is not repeated.”
A
communiqué outlining a roadmap for the way forward was
issued at the end of the dialogue.
For photos of the event see:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/itupictures/sets/72157644967362723/
Live interview: BBC
News Interview: MH370 Live Flight Tracking – Malcolm Johnson, Director of the
Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB), ITU
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