China Has Opportunity to Lead Transformational Air-Traffic Management System

The China aviation market is well situated to lead a transformation in air-traffic management, according to a Boeing expert speaking on Thursday at the 2011 China Civil Aviation Development Forum in Beijing.

“China is not burdened by the fragmentation of the European Union or by the dated infrastructure of the U.S.,” said Neil Planzer, vice president, Air Traffic Management, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “China has the opportunity to demonstrate strong leadership and create transformational system design, development and implementation through its five year planning cycle.”

Planzer shared the Boeing perspective at a forum organized by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), during which regulators, airlines, airplane manufacturers and suppliers from around the world gathered to discuss new concepts, technologies and practices to accelerate transformation of global civil aviation.

China’s continued economic transformation is pushing its commercial aviation sector to grow at an unprecedented rate. Boeing has forecast that Chinese airlines will need to purchase an additional 4,330 airplanes by 2029 to meet market demand. China’s air fleet, which has more than doubled in size since 2000, is now one of the newest and most efficient fleets in the world, a trend that will continue.

As Planzer pointed out, China can take advantage of its status as of one of the youngest air fleets in the world. This will help China address the challenge of managing its increased capacity to operate safely and efficiently, while limiting the impact on the environment.

“Boeing has pioneered innovative air traffic management concepts such as required navigation performance and Tailored Arrivals. We look forward to expanding our cooperation with the CAAC and Air Traffic Management Bureau to help China advance its ATM system,” said Planzer.

Planzer noted that advances toward the future can begin immediately. “Program investment decisions for the system should be based on the synergy of the whole, not on individual subsystem choices,” he said. “But even now, the system can start with tactical improvements that can be accomplished in the short term and still would be transitional toward a transformational system. Such new approaches would enhance safety as well as efficiency and capacity.”

With more than 25 years experience at the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and senior positions at the U.S. Department of Defense, Planzer is a recognized leader in air traffic management. Planzer joined Boeing in 2003 and today leads Boeing’s air traffic management organization.

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