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Air traffic control inAustralia is provided by two independent organisations, one civilian and one military. The civilian provider isAirservices Australia, which controls civilian airfields and airspace. The military provider is theRoyal Australian Air Force (RAAF), which controls military airfields and adjoining airspace. This includesAustralian Army andRoyal Australian Navy aviation bases.
Some airfields in Australia are categorised as Joint User airfields, where there are both civilian and military operations based at the airfield. Joint User airfields have air traffic control provided by the RAAF. Currently these are located at Darwin, Townsville and Williamtown (Newcastle).
Air traffic controllers manage the safe and orderly flow of aircraft into, out of, and between airports throughout Australia and with overseas regions adjoining Australian airspace.[1] Australian civilian air traffic controllers are employed under an Air Traffic Control Enterprise Agreement.[1]
Civilian air traffic control developed after WWII when returning servicemen gained employment as both aircrew and ground control.[2] From 1988 to 1995 air traffic control in Australia was the responsibility of theCivil Aviation Authority.[3] The CAA was split into two separate government organisations in July 1995: the regulator, theCivil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), and the service provider,Airservices Australia.
CASA was made responsible for aviation safety regulations and approvals: licensing of pilots, aviation engineers and air traffic controllers; airworthiness of aircraft; medical standards for aircrew and air traffic controllers; aviation services, including air transport operations (airlines and charter), maintenance operations, ATC services, and aviation rescue and fire fighting.
Airservices Australia was made responsible for delivery of services to aviation: airspace management, aeronautical information, communications, radio navigation aids, airport rescue fire fighting services, and aviation search and rescue. The role of aviation search and rescue was transferred from Airservices Australia to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority in 1997. Airspace management was transferred to CASA in 2007.[4]
Airservices Australia is a government-owned corporation that provides air traffic control (ATC) services, as well as other related services such as communications, navigation, surveillance, aeronautical data and airfield fire services. ATC services include tower, approach and centre (en route) services.
Currently, most Airservices Australia ATC units useThe Australian Advanced Air Traffic System. The introduction of the new computerised system increased controllers' productivity.[5]
Airservices Australia operates from the following air traffic control towers:
Airservices Australia has six terminal control units (TCU). Controllers in a TCU use radar and other surveillance technology to manage the flow of aircraft arriving and departing from major city airports. Airservices provides air traffic control services in an extended area around capital city airports, and maximise the safe use of this airspace. The TCU services are provided around the following major airports:
Airservices Australia manages 11 per cent of the world's airspace, including very large portions of theIndian andSouthern Oceans, and parts of thePacific Ocean andTasman Sea. The airspace consists of twoflight information regions (FIR), the Brisbane FIR and the Melbourne FIR. Each FIR is managed by its respectivearea control centre (ACC), which provide en-route services.
The Brisbane FIR consists ofNew South Wales north ofSydney, all ofQueensland, most of theNorthern Territory and the northern half ofWestern Australia. It also contains theAustralianTasman Sea airspace. Due to the nature of the airspace, it controls most international flights in and out of Australia (exceptIndian Ocean flights), and domestic flights operating to airports within the FIR. As only two of eight capitals are located in the Brisbane FIR, it handles a lesser volume of traffic than Melbourne Centre. However,Sydney is just south of the border of the two FIRs (the Sydney Basin is part of the Melbourne FIR), and thus Brisbane Centre has control of flights arriving or departing inSydney from the north.
Brisbane Centre is located adjacent to Brisbane Tower atBrisbane Airport. It also contains Brisbane Approach and Cairns Approach.
The Melbourne FIR consists of all otherAustralian airspace outside the Brisbane FIR. This includesVictoria,Tasmania, southernNew South Wales includingSydney, most ofSouth Australia and the southern half ofWestern Australia. It also contains theAustralianIndian andSouthern Ocean airspace. Apart from international flights arriving from theIndian Ocean, most international flights will pass through Brisbane Centre first. However, as the FIR contains six of the eight capital cities, a very large portion of domestic flights are controlled from Melbourne Centre.
Melbourne Centre is located adjacent to Melbourne Tower atMelbourne Airport. It also contains Melbourne Approach, Canberra Approach and Adelaide Approach.
Like civil air traffic control, theAustralian Defence Force provide tower and approach services but do not provide en route services.
Although historically each of the three services had its own air traffic controllers, the Royal Australian Air Force exclusively provides air traffic control services to the Australian Defence Force.
44 Wing (44WG) was formed to centrally manage ATC personnel and facilities at 11 defence bases. 44 Wing is an Air Command unit, belonging to the Surveillance and Response Group and is headquartered at RAAF Base Williamtown, Williamtown, NSW. 44WG is divided into two squadrons; No. 452 Squadron which consists of all ATC units at bases north of the Queensland border, and No. 453 Squadron which consists of ATC units at bases south of the Queensland border. The ATC unit established at each base in known as a flight and belongs to one of the two squadrons. Each flight manages air traffic control services at the base, although is ultimately commanded from HQ452SQN, RAAF Base Darwin or HQ453SQN RAAF Base Williamtown.
The RAAF provides both tower and approach services, and in some cases a limited centre (or en route) service. However, centre services are normally amalgamated with approach control. Two bases, Richmond and Edinburgh, provide only a tower service, given their close proximity to Sydney and Adelaide respectively. Civilian ATC provides approach services to these bases.
Tower and approach services are normally located within the control tower or an adjacent building. Unlike civilian ATC, no approach or en route services are provided remotely.
Currently, most military ATC units use theAustralian Defence Air Traffic System. The RAAF use Airservices Australia's TAAATS systems in Perth to provide approach services to RAAF Base Pearce.
