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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 1976
COMPUTERISED RADAR SYSTEM FOR KAI TAK AIRPORT
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CIVIL AVIATION IN HONG KONG ENTERS A NEW ERA TODAY WHEN THE SECONDARY SURVEILLANCE RADAR (SSR) - AN INTEGRATED COMPUTERISED RADAR SYSTEM - COMES INTO OPERATION AT KAI TAK AIRPORT.
ANNOUNCING THE COMMISSIONING OF THE RADAR, THE DIRECTOR OF CIVIL AVIATION, MR. ROY DOWNING, SAID THE SSR 990, ONE OF THE MOST ADVANCED SYSTEMS OF ITS KIND IN THE WORLD, WOULD MAKE A MAJOR CONTRIBUTION TO THE EFFICIENCY OF AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS IN AIRSPACE CONTROLLED BY HONG KONG.
COSTING ABOUT $8 MILLION, THE NEW EQUIPMENT WILL PROVIDE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL STAFF AT THE AIRPORT WITH CONTINUOUS INFORMATION ON AIRCRAFT IDENTITY, POSITION AND HEIGHT IN ALL WEATHER CONDITIONS WITHIN A RANGE OF 250 MILES.
+ THE MAIN ADVANTAGE OF THE SSR, + MR. DOWNING SAID, + IS TO MINIMISE THE NEED OF RADIO TELEPHONÝ CONTACTS BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS AT THE AIRPORT AND PILOTS IN THE AIR FOR EXCHANGE OF DATA WHICH WILL NOW BE SEEN ON THE RADAR SCREEN.
+THIS WILL REDUCE THE WORK LOAD OF THE CONTROLLERS AND ACCORDINGLY INCREASE THE CAPABILITY OF OUR AIR TRAFFIC SYSTEM.+
HE ADDED THAT THE UTILISATION OF THE SSR WOULD HELP AUGMENT AND REINFORCE THE PRIMARY RADAR SYSTEM ALREADY IN USE AT THE AIRPORT.
THE SSR SYSTEM CONSISTS OF TWO UNITS - AN INTERROGATOR ON THE GROUND AND TRANSPONDERS EQUIPPED BY AIRLINES ON THE IR AIRCRAFT. BOTH UNITS COMPRISE TRANSMITTERS AND RECEIVERS.
THE INTERROGATOR TRANSMITS INTERROGATING SIGNAL TO THE AIRBORNE RECEIVER. AFTER RECEIVING THE INTERROGATION, THE TRANSPONDER REPLIES WITH CODED INFORMATION ON A DIFFERENT FREQUENCY.
THE REPLY IS THEN PROCESSED IN A COMPUTER ON THE GROUND TO PROVIDE THE NECESSARY INFORMATION SUCH AS THE IDENTITY, HEIGHT AND POSITION OF THE AIRCRAFT WITHOUT THE NEED FOR THE PILOT TO MAKE RADIO TELEPHONY REPORTS.
MR. DOWNING SAID SPECIAL PURPOSE CODES DENOTING RADIO FAILURE AND OTHER EMERGENCIES COULD ALSO BE SENT AND RECEIVED THROUGH THE SSR.
IN CONNECTION WITH THE NEW RADAR SYSTEM, HE ADDED, AIRLINES HAD BEEN INFORMED THAT IT WAS MANDATORY FOR AIRCRAFT INTENDING TO OPERATE WITHIN THE HONG KONG FLIGHT INFORMATION REGION TO CARRY SSR TRANSPONDERS FROM JULY 1, THIS YEAR.
/HOWEVER,