T E C H N O L O G Y

A toast to our people!

Helios is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and now is a good time to reflect on what makes a good consultancy. Integrity, reliability, added value - these are all important. But it all boils down to PEOPLE and EXPERTISE. We aspire to be strong in both. For this issue of ON AIR! we have chosen a range of articles that reflect some of the different types of partnerships we are fostering, particularly those with associates and academics. These people provide a valuable extra layer of knowledge and experience into which we can tap, when the need arises. The articles in this issue spotlight some of our partners. The list is not exhaustive; there are many 'unsung partners' out there, too many to feature in one newsletter. But you know who you are, and I'd like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your support. Finally, ten years on and perhaps we might be allowed to invent a new word: 'Heliostistics', our name for some of the Helios statistics of growth 1996 - 2006: Heliostistics 1996 2006 Number of employees 3 36 Company turnover 300k 4.3M Average age of staff 30 31.1 Projects carried out in the year 5 95 Languages spoken 1 9 Average emails per day in my inbox 12 123
Mike Shorthose

CONTENTS
MAIN STORY

New software tool delivered

AFTER ACCESSION

Focus on Zilina
CEATS UPDATE

Advanced military CONOPS

ENVIRONMENT

New Scientific Adviser on board

HOT AIR!

Our news section

OFF AIR!

The pilots name?

AUTUMN 2006

Where to put ground stations?

New software tool delivered A
a new surveillance tool, to the EUROCONTROL Surveillance Products Centre (SPC). One of the responsibilities of the SPC is the maintenance and development of SASS-C (a suite of tools allowing verification of the surveillance infrastructure in a multi-sensor environment) on behalf of Member States. As part of the ongoing development of SASS-C, EUROCONTROL wanted to develop CAPT (short for ADSB/TIS-B Coverage Analysis and Planning Tool), a new tool to help States work out where best to put ADS-B and TIS-B ground stations. Helios worked with Luciad NV to develop CAPT. Helios managed the software development lifecycle, implemented the ADS-B datalink surveillance performance calculations and gathered user feedback. Luciad developed the GIS-based HMI using LuciadMap .
TM

Helios-led team successfully delivered CAPT,

Line-of-sight coverage calculation showing vertical terrain profile

The team successfully delivered CAPT in May 2006, within the timescales of the overall SASS-C development schedule. It is already being used by the EUROCONTROL CASCADE team to validate an initial set of ADS-B applications. Says software developer, Anita Woogara: CAPT demonstrates Helios ability to manage multinational teams to specify, design and implement software which can be used to solve complex engineering problems

News and Information from Helios Technology

News and Information from Helios Technology

and meets the practical needs of our customers. We are now looking to build on the experience of CAPT to develop other tools for the ATM domain.
The key features of CAPT include:

Calculation of line-of-sight coverage including DTED terrain data. Support for 1090 Extended Squitter, VDL Mode 4, UAT, sectored ground stations and multi-link scenarios.

Anita Woogara Anita (shown in the photo with her CAPT colleagues Andrew Burrage and Adam Parkinson) has been at Helios for 5 years. During that time she has worked on many software projects and recently moved into the newly created software cell. Anita

worked as the main software developer in the later stages of CAPT, responsible for adding new functionality and carrying out required testing, both internal and during factory acceptance testing. Anita also generated the documents required to support the full software lifecycle.

Calculation of ADS-B/TIS-B coverage performance limited by datalink load and additional interference sources.

Display and manipulation of data using GIS based HMI. Overlay of additional airspace features using AIXM and geo-referenced file formats.

After accession
Focus on Zilina
Tony Kazda, Head of Department of Air Transport at the University of Zilina and Juraj Jirku

proved the viability of the air transport market in Slovakia and supported the decision of several Low Cost Carriers (LCCs) to start their operations from Bratislava. We have strong links with SkyEurope, Czech Airlines and Slovak Airlines. Among other activities, our recent research is aimed at airport benchmarking and weather prediction models.

Q What are the key issues facing the industry in your

region? The rapid growth of the Slovak GDP, which was 6% last year, means that more Slovak citizens are travelling by air, and this increase is expected to continue. Bratislava has become a popular LCC destination and is one of the fastest growing airports in Europe. The demand for new professionals in civil aviation is extraordinarily high in Central Europe and our department benefits from the airline and airport growth. However, the support and the attitude of the new Slovak government towards the aviation business will be very important.

o-operation with universities is an important part of our strategy to grow our expertise and attract the best

staff. Our relationship with the University of Zilina in the Slovak Republic is particularly strong, given their foundations in transport and communications. We have been impressed with the calibre of their graduates and have employed three of their best. This year we sponsored MSc thesis topics in airport benchmarking, gate scheduling and ATM contingency planning. Next year we expect to do even more. So for this ON AIR! Helios Juraj Jirku, formerly a student at Zilina, caught up with Tony Kazda, Head of Department of Air Transport at the University of Zilina and put a few of our questions to him.

Q Whats it like to be an Accession State?

We are pleased to be a member of the EU and that we are able to participate in decisions at various EU levels. On the other hand, we regret that most of the old states did not open their labour markets. Nevertheless, for our Department, membership has opened doors to new challenges and possibilities for European co-operation. For our part, we are prepared to learn and be very active.

Q What is the University of Zilina Air Transport

Department (ATD) currently doing in the field of airline/airport business and operations? Recently, ATD was the initiator and leader of a research project for the Slovak Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications concerning passenger flows prediction from Slovakia to Vienna airport. The results of the research

Q How do you see life then and now?

The biggest difference is the possibility to travel without restrictions. It is fantastic that the young generation doesnt need to face as many difficulties and administrative obstacles as we had to overcome when travelling.

News and Information from Helios Technology

CEATS update
Advanced military CONOPS
Accuracy of Trajectory Prediction - Helios recently completed a project for EUROCONTROL studying the impact of Aircraft Derived Data (ADD) on a ground trajectory predictor. A trajectory predictor is a software tool which estimates the location of an aircraft at a future time given its current location and additional information like velocity. Trajectory Prediction (TP) has become a hot topic with various controller support tools including arrival managers (AMAN) and Medium Term Conflict Detection (MTCD) highly dependent on the workings of their internal TPs. Working with partners LFV, Avtech Sweden AB and Pesys, Helios led the study characterising the importance of ADD including aircraft mass, aircraft maximum bank angle, local meteorological conditions and FMS intent which could be downlinked to the ground. Simulated and recorded data from Boeing 737s flying into Stockholm Arlanda airport were used. The study found ADD parameters to have a significant effect on TP accuracy. For further details contact nick.mcfarlane@helios-tech.co.uk. We're proud of them! - Well done to Dr Peter Choroba who completed the final stage of his PhD from the University of Zilina in the field of Transport and Communication Technology. Congratulations also to Steve Leighton who was awarded a distinction in his MBA from Warwick Business School and to Dominique Phippen, our accounts administrator, who completed her City and Guilds accountancy course with flying colours. Our staff have also been very active raising money for various charities. Zoe Hutt completed the 5km 'Race for Life', the UK's biggest fundraising event for women only. In doing so Zoe raised 415 for Cancer Research. And with very little training Andrew Burrage managed to cross the finish line of the gruelling London to Brighton 54-mile bike ride in aid of the British Heart Foundation. Navigation team expansion - Welcome to Stuart Mitchell who joins the Navigation team. Stuart graduated from Loughborough University last year with a Masters Degree in Aeronautical Engineering. A keen football, tennis and badminton player, Stuart also won a Gold Crest Award from the British Engineering Association in 2001. General Aviation - As part of the EGOA project (Enhanced General aviation Operations by ADS-B) Helios has developed one of the first European business cases focusing on ADS-B and datalink services for General Aviation (GA). It recognises the increasing impact that the GA and Aerial Work market is having on the safety of our ATM environment. The business case explores the benefits and costs of providing better traffic, airspace and weather information, using an integrated voice and data radio, to European aircraft of differing equipage levels. To read the case study, visit www.helios-tech.co.uk and click on the link in the NEWS box.

he Central European Air Traffic Service (CEATS) began life in the early 1990s as a co-operative agreement

between Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Northern part of Italy (Padua), the Slovak Republic and Slovenia for the provision of air traffic services. The idea was to pool resources into the development of a single, unified air traffic control system for the upper airspace over eight nations. However, at the time of writing, only four states (Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Hungary and Slovakia) remain firmly committed to continuing the implementation of the original agreement. The other States have not formally withdrawn from the project but are maintaining a watching brief. Although CEATS is not progressing according to the original vision, work is continuing in a number of areas, for example, the development of a CEATS Advanced Military Concept of Operations (CONOPS). This programme is aimed at ensuring the efficient use of airspace through an enhanced level of civil/military co-ordination aided by civil/military co-operation in Air Traffic Management. Helios successfully completed the first two phases of information gathering and analysis to support development of an Advanced Military CONOPS. A team led by Helios Associate Bob MacEvoy assessed the regulatory and operational status across the different States, identified areas of commonality and built financial models to assess various methodologies. The team was then given clearance to proceed to the final phase of work which was to analyse the findings and present options on the way forward, together with cost implications.

News and Information from Helios Technology

Aviation and climate change

Scientific Adviser on board
G
rowth in aviation brings with it a growing contribution to climate change; one that goes beyond the effects of CO2 emissions. Aircraft contribute to climate change through the emission of nitrogen oxide (NOx) aiding formation of the greenhouse gas ozone at aircraft cruise altitudes. Aircraft also trigger formation of condensation trails (contrails) and enhance the formation of cirrus clouds: both of which contribute to global warming. This aspect of aviation deserves expert attention, so Helios is delighted to welcome Peter Brooker on board as Scientific Adviser. Peter joined Helios in August 2005 following four years as CAA Professor at Cranfield University, where he is now a Visiting Professor. Peters career has been mainly in senior R&D and strategy posts at the UK CAA and NATS. His principal consultancy and research interests are in aviation safety and air traffic control, but he is increasingly asked to contribute on environmental issues. Says Peter: Ive done a great deal of aircraft noise work over the years. But most recently Ive been providing expertise to local authority planners in particular West Sussex County Council (which covers Gatwick airport) on air quality and climate change implications of aircraft operations.
For more information contact peter.brooker@helios-tech.co.uk. Recent papers by Peter Brooker include: Aircraft Noise: Annoyance, House Prices and Valuation. Acoustics Bulletin, May/June 2006, pages 29-32.

additional target to cap high risks from PM2.5 exposure - a potential problem near airports because of the concentration of aircraft and airport-associated road traffic emissions (particularly diesel vehicles). These are in addition to the ongoing debate surrounding fuel taxation, emission charges and emissions trading. In early July, the European Parliament accepted a recommendation to include aviation in the EU's emissions trading scheme, whereby companies exceeding individual CO2 emissions targets buy allowances from greener ones. MEPs also voted in favour of the immediate introduction of a tax on jet fuel for flights within the 25 member states of the EU. Mike Shorthose, Helios' Managing Director adds: "Although a vote by MEPs does not necessarily lead to legislation, a new tax would set a huge challenge for the industry, so we're pleased to have Peter to help us understand the implications."

What is the pilots last name?

On the Bratislava-Stansted flight are three passengers named Jirku, Choroba and Bazso. By coincidence the pilot, the first officer and the chief steward have the same last names. 1. Passenger Jirku lives in Bratislava. 2. The chief steward lives halfway between Bratislava and Stansted. 3. The passenger with the same name as the chief steward lives in Stansted. 4. The passenger who lives nearest to the chief steward has exactly three times as many brothers as the chief steward. 5. Passenger Choroba has 2 brothers. 6. Bazso (a member of the crew) recently beat the first officer at billiards. What is the pilots last name? The answer will be published in the next edition of ON AIR!. Please send your solutions to laurette.royer@helios-tech.co.uk. All entries must be received by 30th November 2006. As usual, we will give a bottle of champagne to the first correct answer drawn at random after this date. Good luck to everyone! And the winner is The correct answer to the conundrum in the Spring edition of ON AIR! was a dice. Well done to Mark Denney of Air Safety Support International, who wins the champagne.

Peter points to two current examples of aviation air quality problems that must be addressed: 1.Reductions in road transports NOx emissions should flatten out by about 2010. To meet EU targets near airports, aircraft fleet mixes will need to include a sizeable proportion of reduced NOx aircraft. 2.Increasing concern that fine sooty particles (Particulate Matter 2.5 micrometres in diameter PM2.5) are more hazardous than larger ones. The EC is proposing an
VI

Civil Aircraft Design Priorities: Air Quality? Climate Change? Noise? Aeronautical Journal, August 2006, pages 517-532.

Helios is a technical and business consultancy working in airports, air traffic management and navigation markets. We help our customers solve problems and implement technical and operational solutions that will improve corporate performance. Our team has a range of expertise covering research, planning, simulations, feasibility studies, cost benefit analysis, procurement support and safety studies. Our knowledge covers all of the technologies that support air traffic management, as well as satellite navigation and advanced communication systems.

For further information, contact Mike Shorthose by email: mike.shorthose@helios-tech.co.uk, telephone: +44 1276 452811 or visit our website www.helios-tech.co.uk. This newsletter has been written for the interest of our clients and colleagues. We believe the facts are correct at the time of printing, but cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. Please send change-of-address details to info@helios-tech.co.uk. Helios Technology Limited, Chamberlain House, High Street, Bagshot, Surrey, GU19 5AE, UK.