The Aerotropolis Institute Africa (AIA), of which UKZN is a knowledge partner, recently arranged for UKZN academics to visit the Air Traffic and Navigation Services (ATNS) Air Traffic Control Centre at King Shaka International Airport.

Representatives from the Schools of Engineering, Graduate School of Business, Governance, IT and Management and the Research Office, received an in-depth “behind the scenes” look at the intricacies of airspace management. ‘South Africa has one of the best aviation safety records in the world,’ said Mr Krish Moodley, Air Traffic and Navigational Services, Manager: Technical Support FALE/ Operations Technology, who hosted the tour.

The high level, international standard of training and state-of-the-art equipment impressed the UKZN team. The visit also opened up possible areas of research collaboration and training opportunities.

The visit to the ATC was part of the UKZN’s AIA FlyingSTART (Skills and Research for Aviation Research and Training) initiative to develop a broader understanding of the aviation sector and to explore skills development synergies.