Jersey Airport uses electronic flight strip system from Northrop Grumman

Posted by John McHale
LONDON, 23 March 2011. The air traffic control center at Jersey Airport in the Channel Islands is now using radardata processing displays and Electronic Flight Strip (EFS) capabilities from Northrop Grumman Park Air Systems.
Northrop Grumman Park Air Systems provided the EFS system under a subcontract to England's National Air Traffic Services (NATS). The EFS system automates the production, distribution, and administrative management of flight plan information and other air traffic control data and replaces the paper strip systems previously used by air traffic controllers.
"Our integrated air traffic management system will help controllers meet the demands for increased airspace capacity at Jersey airport," says Eldar Hauge, managing director for Northrop Grumman Park Air Systems Norway.
The EFS also provides data integrity checking, eases the working environment of air traffic controllers, and paves the way for the application of advanced features such as Controller Pilot Data Link Communications. The system installed at Jersey exchanges data via standard links with both the enroute centers at Swanwick in the England and Brest in France, as well as a data link to Guernsey.
"The project faced considerable challenges in delivering EFS for tower, approach and zone facilities in conjunction with moving the Jersey air traffic control center to a new facility," says Derek Brien, NATS manager special projects for Jersey Airport. "The success of the project is testament to the dedication of the entire project team, specifically both customer and supplier in identifying requirements and solutions throughout the project cycle."