No building to fund
Neither a tower structure nor a dedicated control room is required for the working position itself. The investment that would go into construction or renovation stays available for other airport priorities.
Benefits
Turn a fixed cost base into a service that scales.
Air traffic services are expensive at small aerodromes not because the traffic is difficult, but because the infrastructure is fixed. Remove the building and the console, and the economics change.
The economics
The cost of air traffic services is mostly the cost of a building.
A conventional tower or a remote tower centre ties a large part of the budget to a structure, a display wall and a console that have to be built, powered, maintained and eventually replaced — whether or not traffic justifies them.
A monthly fee instead
VisionATS is offered as a monthly rental per site covering hardware, software and ongoing availability. Development cost is spread across customers rather than charged upfront.
No own control staff
Aerodromes do not have to recruit, qualify or roster AFIS officers themselves. A shared, qualified operator pool can cover demand across several sites.
Hours that follow demand
Service windows can be extended, reduced or activated on request instead of being fixed by who happens to be on site.
Operating model
Fixed infrastructure on one side, a scalable service on the other.
Side by side
What changes when the working position becomes software
Conventional VisionATS
Requirement
Conventional model
VisionATS model
Workplace
Conventional modelFixed tower or RTC room
VisionATS modelPortable VR workspace
Infrastructure
Conventional modelPurpose built display wall
VisionATS modelStandardised software environment
Commercial model
Conventional modelLarge initial capital investment
VisionATS modelMonthly rental fee
Staffing
Conventional modelOwn AFIS officers, hired and rostered locally
VisionATS modelShared qualified operator pool
Service coverage
Conventional modelSite and shift dependent
VisionATS modelDemand based remote access
Scaling
Conventional modelAdditional rooms and hardware
VisionATS modelReplicated configurations
Contingency
Conventional modelDedicated backup facilities
VisionATS modelFlexible remote workspace options
Beyond cost
Lower barriers change what a small airport can offer.
Higher service levels become affordable. An aerodrome that could only justify a basic information service may be able to offer full AFIS once that capability no longer requires permanent local staff. More capable service attracts operations that were previously not possible.
Airports can pool rather than compete for staff. Aerodromes that individually cannot sustain qualified personnel can share them. An airport with its own qualified staff can offer that capacity to others and generate revenue from expertise it already pays for.
Resilience improves. If a tower is unavailable through maintenance, renovation or an incident, service can continue from elsewhere without a second building standing idle for the purpose.
Regional connectivity benefits. Extended hours, night IFR capability and short notice medical flights are the kind of movements that depend on service being available rather than on the runway itself.
What would this mean for your aerodrome?
Tell us about your current service model and traffic profile, and we will work through the operating concept with you.