The transport ministry will reorganise its four regional control centres into three, with one covering all high-altitude travel above 10,000km and two for low-altitude flights, split between east and west. Japan wants to reduce the number of flights passed from one centre to another as they move between regions.
The change is expected to let the network manage at least 2 million flights yearly compared with 1.8 million now, including foreign and domestic travel as well as overflights that do not touch down in Japan.
The government also plans to create a digital system by fiscal 2024 to consolidate information such as takeoff and landing times, flight routes and weather, based on standards from the International Civil Aviation Organization, a United Nations agency.
The data will be shared in real-time with airlines, airport operators and government bodies such as the defence ministry. Airlines will be able to adjust flight plans based on congestion levels, letting air traffic control operate more efficiently in large urban centers where departures and arrivals are concentrated.
The planned upgrades respond to a global rise in demand for air travel, particularly from fast-growing emerging economies. The International Air Transport Association, an airline trade group, expects passenger numbers to return to pre-Covid-19 levels in 2024.
With annual growth steady, “dealing with airspace congestion is a challenge shared by a number of countries”, a Japanese transport ministry source said.
Japan scrapped coronavirus-related border controls in October and has been adding flight slots at major airports to accommodate more travellers. Haneda Airport in Tokyo and nearby Narita Airport intend to increase their total capacity to 1 million flights yearly by the late 2020s, from 830,000 in 2020.
The air traffic control reforms, in conjunction with a transition to sustainable aviation fuel, are part of Japan’s strategy for slashing greenhouse gas emissions. The government aims to attract 60 million foreign visitors annually by 2030 while seeking to cut emissions 16% from fiscal 2013 levels by then.
The new data management system could reduce emissions by having planes spend less time in the air waiting for traffic to clear – burning fuel in the process – before they can land.