Driven by greater demand for new technologies, mainly VoIP, remote towers, predictive technologies, and automation systems, the global air traffic management (ATM) market is expected to reach $5.21 billion by 2025, a report said.

Titled “Global Commercial Air Traffic Management (ATM) Market, Forecast to 2025”, the report from growth partnership company Frost & Sullivan, finds that the need to address increasing air traffic in congested airspaces is driving digitalisation of ATM to handle flights efficiently and manage air traffic flow at airports.

“The global commercial ATM market is witnessing steady growth due to the gradual increase in implementation of new technologies such as MLAT and VoIP and the decommissioning of old technologies such as non-directional beacons (NDB), Doppler Very High Frequency Omni Range (DVOR) and primary radars,” said Priyanka Chimakurthi, research analyst, Aerospace and Defence at Frost & Sullivan.

“Modernisation programmes such as SESAR in Europe and NextGen in the US aim to optimise air traffic operations by upgrading systems and making them globally interoperable. This results in airspace capacity expansion and optimised flight paths for aircraft operators.”

Further trends driving growth opportunities in the ATM industry include:

•    Air navigation service provider (ANSP) investment in artificial intelligence, machine learning, intelligent video analytics, unmanned aircraft integration, and cybersecurity.

•    ATM supplier development of comprehensive data strategies to enable operational improvements and adoption of new business models such as managed services, increasing their aftermarket revenue share.

•    Virtualisation of operations: Virtual/remote control centres are now being developed across multiple countries. Sweden, Norway, Australia, parts of Europe and the Americas have already implemented remote control towers, while many others are showing interest. This trend will intensify as it greatly reduces infrastructure costs and helps overcome labour shortages.

•    Critical communications: Satellite communications are enhancing traditional communication systems. Echo-free communications, high availability, fast switchover in case of link failures and reduced total cost of ownership are driving the increased adoption of IP-based communication systems.

•    Collaborative decision-making: With large volumes of data generated at various processes, the industry is working towards implementing the system-wide information management (SWIM) concept and stakeholders are collaborating to utilise information critical to operations.

•    Intelligent networks: New operational concepts, such as trajectory-based operations (TBO), performance-based operations (PBO), dynamic airspace management and intelligent routing, are playing a significant role in enhancing situational awareness.

•    Industry consolidation: Consolidation is driven by incumbents, which are now looking to diversify both geographically and from a product portfolio perspective.  

For participants to maintain long-term growth, Chimakurthi recommends further investment in data and aftermarket strategies, openness towards collaboration, and continued product development through consistent investment in research and development.

“Cybersecurity is a recurring theme and a hygiene factor across markets, including ATM; future success in connected aviation will be driven by cyber credentials,” noted Chimakurthi.

Global Commercial Air Traffic Management (ATM) Market, Forecast to 2025 market intelligence identifies disruptive technologies, drivers and restraints, market share and the competitive environment for players such as Indra, Harris, Thales, and Leidos.

Adjacent industries such as unmanned traffic management, VTOL and electric vehicles are also discussed with key findings, market engineering measurements and revenue forecasts provided for segments, including communication, navigation,  surveillance, automation and simulation systems. – TradeArabia News Service