Chapelco Airport, near San Martín de los Andes, will be the firstairport in Latin America to rely on an approach system guided bysatellite-information. This new feature will allow for operationswithout experiencing problems despite unfavorable weather condition.
The survey for the development and startup of such System is the result of an initiative launched by Corporación América and their chairmaster Eduardo Eurnekian,for which it has invested one million dollars. The company entered intoan agreement with MITRE Corporation, a US-based company, to analyze theimplementation of advanced navigation systems and the design of thepath that will be used by the aircraft satellite navigator.
Snowstorms and clouds that used to hinder operations quite often atthe airport will now be something from the past if the suitability andfeasibility studies for the implementation of an Advanced NavigationSystem are positive.
The study currently under way for Chapelco coincides with the maingoal expressed by the company, which seeks to introduce the latesttechnology to rely on more efficient and safer operations in theaircraft-airport symbiosis and public interest utility.
To confirm the feasibility of such System, Corporación Américaagreed to conduct the feasibility study developed by MITRE incooperation with the Municipality of San Martín de los Andes and theConcessions Department of the Province of Neuquén.
MITRE Co. is a non-profit US-based private institution engaged inresearch. Its origins date back to a lab that had the MassachusettsTechnology Institute (MIT) as a member by the mid 20th Century. Atpresent, its staff has more than 5,500 mathematical engineers and otherprofessionals. Its Center for the Development of Advanced AviationSystem is certainly the most important and prestigious center aroundthe globe.
Aerial photogrammetric flights were made in the area. Then, theinformation obtained was scanned. In addition, an Automatic WeatherStation for Surface Observation (AWOS) was installed to transmit dataonline about weather conditions (atmospheric pressure and temperature,wind intensity and direction, visibility, and cloud height) to MITRElaboratories.
The new system will make it possible to operate with landings anddepartures under bad weather and poor visibility conditions. Satellitetechnology helps to accurately determine the position of movingobjects, either on the landside an on the airside, and has swiftlystarted to change air navigation techniques.
This means that suitably equipped aircraft (virtually all those thathave been recently introduced to the market) can navigate without theneed to be guided from the landside. In addition, they can also followcurvilinear paths, thus avoiding obstacles in difficult areas. Thistechnique is known as “required navigation performance” (RNP).
