A Navy helicopter has helped Airservices test its new “digital tower” at Western Sydney International Airport (WSI) ahead of this year’s opening.
The EC-135 training helicopter performed a “series of passes and maneuvers” near the 45-meter digital airfield service (DAS) mast at WSI on Thursday to help calibrate and validate camera transmissions, Airservices said.
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“Once fully operational, the Digital Airfield Service will allow air traffic controllers based at Eastern Creek to observe the airfield through an advanced camera system,” an Airservices spokesperson said.
“The 25 high-resolution cameras will provide a 360° view, object tracking and the ability to overlay operational information onto a live video feed.
“Today’s flight is helping to validate this critical aviation infrastructure by testing our camera images at specific longitudes and latitudes over and around the airfield.
“We will use the information gathered today to ensure Australia’s first fully operational Digital Airfield Service is ready to go when the airport opens.”
Digital airfield services use cameras and sensors to replace traditional physical air traffic control towers, and are faster and cheaper to build. The digital tower, operated from a new hub at Eastern Creek in western Sydney, will be the first of its kind in Australia when it opens in 2026.
Developed in partnership with technology providers CDC and Frequentis Australasia, the DAS will use more than 20 high-resolution cameras, sending data about the airport and surrounding airspace to the Eastern Creek control centre, with new management tools and features such as object tracking, night vision and image enhancement.
“DAS technology is a proven technology already in use around the world, including at airports in London and Europe,” the spokesperson said.
Speaking to Australian Aviation last month, chief executive Rob Sharp said the WSI tower is “in good progress” and Airservices hopes to have it operational in July.
“The tower is up, the cameras are on and it’s very, very impressive. We took regulator CASA on a tour and their management team over the last month, and we were very pleased with that,” he said.
“Because this is a new technology here, CASA has prepared and reviewed extensive safety cases, and we are working with them during that process. That is an important step.”
Airservices plans to deploy DAS towers at several airports in Australia, including Canberra, where a 30-metre mast was installed in late 2024, and Ballina-Byron.
