MUMBAI: American aerospace technology conglomerate, Honeywell Automation India Limited (HAIL) on Monday announced that it has secured a contract to provide its Airfield Ground Lighting (AGL) system for the Noida International Airport (NIA). These systems provide visual guidance to aircraft, increasing safety and streamlining operations across the tarmac.
“Honeywell’s visual aids will play a crucial role in helping aircraft manoeuvre the tarmac in difficult weather conditions and will support landing and on-ramp safety.The advanced AGL uses ‘intelligent lighting’ technology, which makes the ground taxi process easier for pilots. AGL will also help pilots improve their own situational awareness by automatically switching lights on and off based on information shared by aircraft surveillance and tracking systems with tower controllers,” said the company.
“Noida International Airport represents a significant leap forward in advancing India’s aviation sector, and we are pleased to have secured this visionary project, ensuring the highest standards of safety and operational efficiency with our advanced technology,” said Atul Pai, Managing Director, Honeywell Automation India Limited (HAIL).
Christoph Schnellmann, CEO, Noida International Airport, said, “We are delighted to partner with Honeywell to bring their Airfield Ground Lighting system to Noida International Airport. The implementation of the state-of-the-art system will ensure superior visual guidance and operational efficiency, aligning with our mission to provide a safe and seamless experience for all airport users.”
The project covers the supply, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of Honeywell’s AGL system on runway 10L-28R and the associated taxiways at NIA. Honeywell has a broad portfolio of technologies in use at airports across India and also has end-to-end AGL system operations in the country, including design, manufacturing, assembly, installation, commissioning, and service support.
The first phase of the airport will feature one runway and one terminal, with the capacity to handle traffic of 12 million passengers annually. Upon completion of all four development phases, the airport will be able to cater to 70 million passengers per year.
In July this year, the Tata group owned Air India signed a long term agreement with Honeywell for Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) aftermarket support covering both Air India’s existing and new fleets. Under the agreement the airline will get a comprehensive maintenance support for its Honeywell APUs so as to ensure high aircraft dispatch reliability, fleet availability and lower unplanned maintenance costs. The APU comes to play before the aircraft engines are turned on, it provides electrical power and air conditioning to a plane while it is on the ground. The APU is what keeps the passenger cabin cooled when the aircraft is on ground. Airlines rely either on APU or an external ground power unit to run the cabin air conditioning when the jet engines are off.