London Oxford Airport Successfully Launches New Radar Service,

Monday 9th July 2012

London Oxford Airport's investment in a brand new radar system has reached completion with the new Thales system now up and running in advance of the London 2012 Olympics.

Installation of the latest generation radar system, which is amongst the most modern and sophisticated radars available today, commenced at London Oxford in the middle of last year. The system has been supplied by Thales UK under project management by NATS. Combined with further system upgrades, the overall investment in communications equipment by the expanding UK airport has been approximately £4.5 million.

The primary and secondary (Mode-S, MSSR) surveillance radar system enables more efficient transits through local airspace as well as increasing the throughput of IFR flight activity (from up to nine minutes to under three minutes' aircraft separation). The state-of-the-art Thales solid state STAR 2000 primary and secondary radars feed data into the Eurocat-C radar display system.

Initial reaction from aircrews using the radar for the first time has been very positive with much faster access onto the approaches.

Commenting on the completion of the radar project, Business Development Director, James Dillon Godfray said: "With the steady increase in both business and commercial aviation traffic at Oxford, this new radar system is one of the most significant moves in the airport's history, representing the single most important infrastructure enhancement to date. The radar is another important tool in our ability to facilitate a faster throughput of movements, giving us an even greater advantage over a number of our peer airports in the South East."

Oxford can now follow air traffic movements half way up the county, beyond London out to the Thames Estuary, south as far as the English Channel and to the west over Wales. Mike Sparrow, Oxford's Airport Manager added: 'This major investment demonstrates our owner's commitment to the future of London Oxford Airport by selecting market-leading technology in this field. The completion of the project is particularly timely as we anticipate a considerable increase in demand for capacity with the 2012 Olympic Games starting later this month."

Wholly owned by the Reuben Brothers, investment for continued growth at the airport will continue, making London Oxford one of the most progressive airport's in the London region.

• About London Oxford Airport:

London Oxford Airport is wholly owned by the Reuben Brothers. Their investment activities include private equity, real estate ownership and development, which are predominantly based in the United Kingdom and Europe. Businesses include shopping centres, mixed use commercial real estate, data centres, race courses, public houses, hotels and other development projects. At the end of February the Reubens purchased the Barclays London Heliport at London Battersea, the capital's only CAA licensed heliport. The Barclays London Heliport is a 22-minute helicopter ride from London Oxford Airport.

www.londonoxfordairport.co.uk