The recently inaugurated ATC tower at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport is India?s tallest, with a height of 83.8m and built within an area of 2,800sqm at CSIA. The location and the height of the tower will enable the tower controllers to have unobstructed view of the entire operational area, and help in optimising air traffic separation and increase the traffic handling capacity at CSIA.
Equipped to handle current and future air traffic movements at the GVK CSIA airport, the new tower is equipped with Electronic Flight Strips which ease the workload of the Tower Controller, enhances safety, navigation capabilities and overall capacity of the airport. This, combined with airside upgrading (addition of new taxiways and rapid-exit taxiways) will help reduce the Runway Occupancy Time (ROT), further enhance efficiency levels and increase air traffic movement per hour. Speaking on the occasion, Dr. GVK Reddy, Executive Chairman, GVK Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd, said, ?This beautiful iconic structure is a precursor to the New Integrated Terminal coming up soon. The new, ATC Tower posed immense challenges in its construction.? GVK CSIA awarded the design & architecture project to Hong Kong based renowned architectural design firm HOK and international engineering design firm Arup following a global architectural & engineering design competition while international lighting consultant Speirs & Majors designed the lighting of the tower. The centre is built in a wishbone structure which adds beauty and strength. The glass used in the tower has a visibility co-efficient higher than 50. It is also designed to withstand high speed winds. A special type of anti- fungal and anti- carbonation paint is used to improve the life of the building. The structure got the ?Outstanding Concrete Structure? 2013 award from the Indian Concrete Institute.