The ATS unit providng service for an airspace is not part of the minimum AIP data set but required in ENR 3 of PANS-AIM:
an indication of the controlling unit, its operating channel and, if applicable, its logon address, SATVOICE number, and any navigation, RCP and RSP specification(s) limitations.
Hence in the scope of this guidelines it is considered conditional data.
The diagram below shows the AIXM classes, including the relevant data types, needed to encode that information.
AIXM 5.1.1 issue
In AIXM 5.1.1, SATVOICE number, and any navigation, RCP and RSP specification(s) limitations cannot be encoded, except by using a Note.
AIXM does not provide a direct relationship between Unit and RouteSegment class.
The concerned Unit shall be encoded independently. According to the PANS-AIM Appendix 1 (Aeronautical Data Catalogue), at least the name shall be provided.
In addition, a Service provided by the Unit shall be encoded. The Service class has several specialised classes that have an association to a RoutePortion. The corresponding RoutePortion has to be encoded for the Service using the clientRoute property. One or more of these services may be provided for the same RoutePortion.
- AirTrafficControlService
- InformationService
- SearchRescueService
The type of service provided may be defined by the attribute Service.type. In addition also a Service.name may be provided.
Open Question Name of Unit Service
Should there be rule/pattern how the names shall be compsed?
Example "Amswell ACC"
the Unit.name = "Amswell" or "Amswell ACC"?
the Service.name = " NIL" or Also "Amswell ACC"?
The Service.type = "ACS"
The operation channel is encoded using the RadioCommunicationChannel class. The attribute frequencyTransmission and if applicable frequencyReception will carry the corresponding value and uom (see also Radio Communication Channel [RCC]).
The RadioCommunicationChannel has to be referenced by the adequate Service.
According to the PANS-AIM Appendix 1 (Aeronautical Data Catalogue) a specified code used for data link logon to the controlling ATS unit shall be provided if applicable.
AIXM 5.1.1 issue
- The AirTrafficControlService class contains two relevant attributes: dataLinkEnabled and dataLinkChannel.
- The InformationService class contains one relevant attribute: dataLink.
- The SearchRescueService class does not contain any relevant attribute.
However, via the ContactInformation class related to the Service class, corresponding attributes of the OnlineContact class may be used to encode that information. The code list for the network attribute contains a value 'ACARS'; which is defined as
Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System. A datalink system that enables ground stations (airports, aircraft maintenance bases, etc.) and commercial aircraft to communicate without voice using a datalink system.
The linkage and protocol attribute may then be used to define the details about the logon address.
Coding Rules for Controlling Unit
| Identifier | Data Encoding Rule | Justification | Data Verification Rule (UID) | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RTE-401 | All RouteSegments of a Route may have a related a Service provided by a Unit with the name attribute encoded. | PANS-AIM ENR 3 | TBD | RoutePortions have to be defined that cover all RouteSegments of a Route |
| RTE-402 | All RouteSegments of a Route should have a related Service that uses a RadioCommunicationChannel with the frequencyTransmission and frequencyRecption attribute encoded. | PANS-AIM ENR 3 | TBD | |
| RTE-403 | All RouteSegments of a Route should have a related Service that uses a RadioCommunicationChannel with the frequencyRecption attribute encoded, in case of a bidirectional communication. | Data consistency | TBD | |
| RTE-404 | Data link logon address should be encoded if available. | PANS-AIM ENR 3 | TBD | |
| RTE-405 | If any, SATVOICE number, and any navigation, RCP and RSP specification(s) limitations should be encoded using Note. | PANS-AIM ENR 3 | TBD |
Coding Examples
The figure below shows how the information about the controlling unit is published in an AIP:
Coding Examples can be found in the DONLON AIP data set sample file.
| No. | Description | XPath Expression |
|---|---|---|
ATC-EX-01 UNI-EX-01 RCC-EX-01 RTE-EX-02 | Controlling Unit for Route Portion | //aixm:AirTrafficControlServiceTimeSlice[@gml:id ='ATC_AMSWELL_ACC'] | //aixm:UnitTimeSlice[@gml:id ='UNI_AMSWELL_ACC'] | //aixm:RadioCommunicationChannelTimeSlice[@gml:id ='RCC_AMSWELL_ACC'] | //aixm:RouteTimeSlice[@gml:id ='RTE_UA4'] |