Numerous aircraft manufacturers and aviation agencies have earmarked Southeast Asia and greater Asia as the region with the strongest growth and aircraft demand, all predicting double-digit expansion opportunities. An estimated 16,050 aircraft are needed in this region over the next two decades, and Honeywell is set to ride on this growth.
The aircraft systems and avionics manufacturer set up its regional headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in July last year and opened its Asia-Pacific regional distribution center, giving the company the ability to delivery spares around the continent.
Brian Davis, vice president, airlines, Honeywell Aerospace, told AIN that Southeast Asia and China are attractive and robust markets with a good segment mix of commercial aircraft and low-cost carriers, all of which need high reliability and dispatch rates to keep up with the surging demand.
He revealed that Honeywell worked with Cathay Pacific last year, which had some struggles with the fleet’s Auxiliary Power Unit (APU). Using data analytics and “Internet of Things,” Honeywell was able to predict when components might fail with an accuracy of 99 percent. The result was a 35 percent drop in disruptions to Cathay’s operations.
Davis said Honeywell (Stand Q23, Chalet CD32) is now working on an independent project to enable the aircraft to transmit abnormal flight conditions, such as speed or bank angle excursions, automatically via the JetWave Ka-band satcom so Honeywell can view the data in close to real time.
“It has a lot of interest in the Asia-Pacific as aircraft are often over water and not in contact immediately with the ground,” he said. “It combines the expertise of our flight data recorder team along with the satellite communications team to develop such an innovation.”
As skies get busier in Asia, another potential sector is airport navigation, especially the Ground-Based Augmentation System (GBAS). Marketed as the SmartPath GBAS, it is a solution to congested international hubs and small airstrips with limited infrastructure and budget.
The fact that GBAS is a digital signal makes the landing approach scalable and customizable, suited to the respective terrain and airport conditions. GBAS is able to provide 48 different approach paths to the airport at a fraction of the cost of a traditional ILS system.
Honeywell has installed the SmartPath system at Sydney’s Kingsford Smith International Airport and is currently under trial and certification at Shanghai Pudong Airport. He is confident that the system can increase Pudong’s capacity by 5 to 10 percent without building additional runways and taxiways.
Kuala Lumpur International Airport is also undergoing installation of this system which is expected to be operational by end 2018.
“We also have a lot of progress in the Philippines and had some short-term projects while we are working with the government on permanent long-term projects. We started RNAV approached into Tacloban, after the local airport realized that a traditional VOR approach is not viable due to the effect of numerous floods and inclement weather on the system,” he said.
Davis said that despite Honeywell being at the forefront of technology, he sees that disruption could come from the expectations of passengers seeking faster and better internet connectivity both in the skies and on land. “The passengers and the growth itself are becoming the disruptors, and we need to make sure that we are bringing solutions to the industry. The rapid growth will drive us to bring new innovations to the market faster.”
He also urges manufacturers and industry players to encourage local governments to be ready for the boom in traffic numbers as the ASEAN Open Skies Policy becomes a reality. ”As Open Skies is coming to fruition, we need to do our part to educate regulators and [exercise] the technology options that are available out there to embrace early adoption. My concern is when the regulations are ironed out and skies are opened, only then will we find out that the infrastructure is not ready.”