Tanzanian airspace might not be safe following reports of a non functional radar at Julius Nyerere International Airport.
Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) confirmed the Radar has not been working for two weeks, reported The Citizen saying that the system broke down on August 3, forcing air traffic controllers to provide air traffic management services without using radar.
TCAA Director General Fadhili Manongi said they had asked Britain’s BAE Systems to supply the equipment whose failure caused the equipment to stop working.
The same publication quoted a source that said the radar experienced power supply failure since August 3, rendering it useless and cautioned that if the situation continued for long, major airlines will stop flying to JNIA for safety reasons.
The sources said air traffic controllers at the airport had for the past two weeks been using procedural control, which is a method of providing air traffic control services without the use of radar.
They said the method was unpopular with most pilots, who are used to radar and the Global Positioning System (GPS).
“With radar, an air traffic controller can see all planes flying in our airspace on the screen. Without this facility, air traffic controllers are reduced to relying on guesswork, which is very dangerous,” a source said.
Major airlines that fly to and from JNIA include British Airways, Qatar Airways, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Swiss International Airlines, Emirates, South African Airways and Ethiopian Airlines.
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