AGREEMENT SIGNED IN CAIRO WITH MINISTRY REPRESENTATION

DFS Aviation Services has signed a contract with Egypt’s National Air Navigation Services Company, establishing NANSC as a new customer of the DAS A² Academy. The partnership was formalised during a visit to Cairo hosted by NANSC and representatives of the Egyptian Ministry of Civil Aviation, with the agreement signed by Captain Ehab Mohieldin Azmi, Chairman of NANSC, and Andreas Pötzsch, Managing Director of DFS Aviation Services.

Captain Azmi said the contract marked the beginning of an important cooperation with DFS Aviation Services, and that specialised training at the DAS A² Academy would further strengthen the capabilities of NANSC’s air traffic management professionals. Pötzsch said the company was excited about the opportunities the partnership created and looked forward to shaping the future of ATM training together.

TRAINING CONTENT AND WHY CPDLC MATTERS

Under the agreement, DFS Aviation Services will deliver specialised training programmes for Egyptian air traffic management professionals at the DAS A² Academy in Langen, Germany. The portfolio includes courses on Controller–Pilot Data Link Communications, SID/STAR familiarisation, and best practices in the design and management of air navigation procedures. The academy will support around 80 participants through a combination of theoretical instruction and practical training in a classroom and simulator environment.

The selection of CPDLC as a training priority is operationally significant. Data link communication allows controllers and flight crews to exchange clearances and instructions as text messages rather than by voice, reducing radio frequency congestion and the risk of misheard or misread clearances. It is a prerequisite for operations in certain oceanic and reduced-separation airspace, and its implementation requires controller competency alongside the ground infrastructure. For an air navigation service provider managing airspace that carries substantial volumes of Europe–Asia and Europe–Africa overflight traffic, CPDLC capability affects both capacity and the competitiveness of the airspace as a routing option.

ALIGNMENT WITH EGYPTIAN CIVIL AVIATION POLICY

DFS Aviation Services states that the cooperation reflects a shared commitment to enhancing operational efficiency, safety and capacity within the Egyptian airspace system while fostering long-term knowledge transfer between the two organisations, and that it aligns with the strategic objectives of Egypt’s Ministry of Civil Aviation to develop the country’s air navigation services and strengthen the competitiveness of Egyptian airspace at regional and international level. The agreement follows a broader pattern of Egyptian civil aviation investment, including the Terminal 4 development at Cairo International Airport reported by World Airnews Daily earlier this month, which is targeting a total annual capacity of approximately 70 million passengers.