New Flight Procedures and Airspace Change for Pilots

NEWS RELEASE

MONDAY, 14 FEBRUARY 2005

The implementation of the South African Advanced Air Traffic System (SAAATS) has resulted in a large number of flight procedure and airspace changes.  The aim of these changes is to ensure that the functionality of the system is exploited to its full potential and to ensure greater efficiency levels than what was previously the norm.

All amendments to the existing procedures and additional procedures were published by the South African Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in accordance with the international notification requirements. There were, however, some further corrections to the initial publications and additional information has been published by Notice to Airman (NOTAM) and Aeronautical Information Package (AIP) Supplement.  The following are the details of the amendments to the procedures:

· Total new R-NAV route structure with some single directional routes where semi circular rules will not apply depending on air traffic patterns, conflictions and Air Traffic Control clearance;

· New Standard Instrument Departures (SID) / Standard Arrival (STAR) procedures which cater for the Johannesburg, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Durban airports;

· Transition routes for departing and arriving traffic associated with the terminal control areas for the abovementioned airports are also in place linking the SID/STAR termination / commencement points to the route structures commencing at 80 nautical miles from the airports;

· Air Traffic Control airspace sectors are also amended to best support the new routes and procedures and in some cases frequencies are also new.  One such example is a part of the Northern Cape, which was formally controlled from Cape Town and now from Johannesburg as the JHB Area Control West Sector on a new frequency;

· Another change is the splitting of the existing JHB Area Control South Sector to allow for greater efficiencies;

· A number of Air Traffic Control airspace sectors have also been re-named; and

· Significant point changes include re-positioning and name changes.

Special care should therefore be taken to ensure that database information is updated and representative of the current procedures as from 17 February 2005, which is the implementation date.     

Further information can be obtained from the ATNS International Aeronautical Information Management offices at Johannesburg International Airport on (011) 928 6517/8 on a 24/7 basis.

-Ends-

Issued by:

Moses Seate

Communications

SA Civil Aviation Authority

Tel: (011) 545 1156

Cell: 082 857 9494.