CHENNAI: Air Traffic Controllers (ATC) in the country will soon be able to hone their skills on an integrated simulator which will be installed at Chennai airport. First of its kind in the country, the `20 crore equipment will be set up at the Air Traffic Services complex within six months.
D Devaraj, regional executive director, Airports Authority of India, Southern Region, said officials working in tower, approach, route and oceanic controls will be trained to handle any emergency using the simulator.
Till date, air traffic controllers used to be trained for a week using manual procedures and were required to renew their certification every six months.
With the installation of the simulator, the training schedule is likely to change. Course duration and content will be customised as per the requirements, he said.
The facility could be used to train ATCs from all control regions in the south as well as from Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata.
As Mumbai and Delhi are planning to integrate the radar network in their regions, the training simulator in Chennai may come in handy to train controllers from those regions also. Chennai airport had recently automated its air traffic control.