ATC equipment market remains buoyant

Expanding economies are continuing to increase expenditure on equipment as investment remains stable in established aviation markets

The IHS Jane's Air Traffic Control annual survey of equipment purchased in the period September 2011 to the end of August 2012 shows strong results despite disappointing traffic volume. European and North American markets experienced very little traffic growth, while Middle East and Asian countries experienced stronger demand, with some reaching double figures.

There was a decline in the sale of conventional radar products and traditional products such as navigational aids struggled to reach the levels of previous years. Overall the market for hardware and software products including surveillance, communications, and navigation systems exceeded USD4.5 billion. Expenditure by expanding economies including India, China, and Eastern Europe continued to rise, whereas in Europe and the United States levels of investment remained more stable.

Sales of conventional radar surveillance equipment totalled USD130 million to USD150 million, excluding long-standing contracts such as the US Digital Airport Surveillance Radar (DASR) ASR-11 programme and Service Life Extension Programme (SLEP) primary radar upgrades already under contract to Raytheon. This represents the third consecutive year of decline. Among the largest contract awards, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) purchased co-located primary and secondary radars for eight international airports (Ahmadabad, Amritsar, Chennai, Cochin, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Trivandrum. The contract was awarded to Eldis Pardubice of the Czech Republic and follows earlier wins by Eldis to supply secondary surveillance radar systems to Indonesia.

DECEA of Brazil placed an order for seven radar systems featuring co-mounted primary and secondary surveillance radars from Thales' Brazilian subsidiary Omnisys. No single supplier dominated the market, with suppliers such as Eldis, Telephonics and Intelcan recording success alongside established manufacturers such as Indra, Raytheon, SELEX, and Thales.

In contrast to radar sales, the market for new surveillance technology, including Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast (ADS-B) ground stations and wide area augmentation (WAM) continued to expand. Sales exceeded USD100 million, not including the nationwide ADS-B programme that accounts for about USD200 million annual expenditure in the US.

Additional detail and tables about contracts and suppliers can be found in IHS Jane's Air Traffic Control.