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Representatives of Lufthansa airline visited BULATSA and got acquainted with the activities of the company. They had the opportunity to be informed about the overall activity, the specifics of the operations of Air Traffic Controllers and the different stages of their training.
At the meeting were discussed the challenges airlines are facing for capacity management and the quality, flexible and efficient service provided by BULATSA in the context of ever-increasing traffic.
Big interest arose the visit to the Training Center and the operational room at Sofia Air Traffic Control Center, where they monitored in real time the training process at the modern air traffic control simulator of BULATSA and the servicing of the air traffic over Bulgaria.

As of April 6, started the normal operations at the new Istanbul airport. On this date entered into force the new Letters of Agreement between BULATSA and the Turkish air navigation services provider DHMI. According to the agreed procedures, Bulgarian air traffic controllers interact and coordinate with their colleagues from Turkey a main part of the traffic to and from the new airport, as well as the currently expanding Sabiha Gokcen Airport on the Asian coast of Istanbul. Also in operation is the new Cross-border Arrival Management tool XMAN, part of DHMI’s Arrival Manager AMAN. The system serves to arrange the arriving traffic and reduce aircraft delays when approaching the airport as early as from the Bulgarian territory.
Although only a few days have passed since the start of operation of the new airport, the first results show that the serious preliminary training of the Bulgarian air traffic controllers has been conducted with high quality and in accordance with the highest standards in aviation.
The developed in BULATSA training programs, including theoretical training and practical exercises, provided the necessary preparation for optimal response to the changes in the airspace organization and the working procedures accompanying the opening of the new airport. Significant progress has been achieved in integrating the traffic from and to Istanbul into the intense traffic in the airspace serviced by BULATSA.
BULATSA will continue to perform professionally the activities agreed so far with the Turkish side, which will bring significant benefits to aviation operators and passengers, such as reducing the holding time on approach and reducing fuel consumption, which in turn will lead to increased flight efficiency and reduced environmental impact.

During the World ATM Congress in Madrid air traffic controllers from BULATSA and engineers from AIRBUS Aircraft and AIRBUS Defence and Space participated in a three-day joint demonstration of the expanded and tested so far functionalities of the TESLA prototype for phase V2 (Feasibility) – part of SESAR 2020 Programme.
The prototype has been developed by BULATSA and AIRBUS Defence and Space under SESAR Solution PJ.10-02a – Tactical Encounter Solver Assistant (TESLA).
The TESLA prototype aims at assisting ATCOs in resolving potential conflicts in terminal areas with medium and high traffic density with the purpose of tactical separation control. The prototype shall assess the ATCO’s work and present different options for conflict prevention by analyzing aircraft trajectories and suggesting actions for resolution of each specific situation.
The teams carry out preparatory activities for validation of Phase V3 (pre-industrialization), which include conducting a real-time simulation using the prototype developed. The exercise is planned to be conducted in the end of March 2019 in BULATSA, Sofia.

The Director General of BULATSA Mr. Georgi Peev participated in CANSO CEO Strategy Summit which took place on 11 March 2019, prior to the opening of the World ATM Congress (WATMC). The biggest international event for air traffic management, organized by CANSO in partnership with the Air Traffic Control Association (ATCA), was opened yesterday in Madrid and will continue until 14 March.
The Summit started the activities related to WATMC and is an event with the participation of high-level professionals which brings together CANSO Member CEOs to discuss the current development of the ATM industry and the CANSO strategy. This year a main topic of the discussions is “Cybersecurity in ATM”.
As part of WATMC 2019 Georgi Peev also participated in the CANSO Conference “Tackling the Big Issues in ATM – Capacity, UTM Integration, People”. At the forum were discussed the integration and management of drones, attracting and keeping the next generation of ATM professionals and exploring the best ways to provide the necessary growth in ATM capacity. Keynote speakers at the Conference were Mr. Henrik Hololei, Director-General for Mobility and Transport, the European Commission, and Mr. Daniel Elwell, Acting Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the USA.
The international partners of the aviation community marked also the 50th anniversary of the establishment of BULATSA.

The ski team of BULATSA ranked 10th in the 44th International Winter-Championship of Air Traffic Controllers, which was held in Sochi. More than 700 skiers from 49 teams from all over Europe, USA, Australia and Russia competed in the disciplines cross-country skiing, snowboarding and giant slalom skiing in Rosa Khutor resort.
25 Bulgarian air traffic controllers from BULATSA took part in all disciplines. Very good results were achieved by Svetlin Tzvetanov, who ranked 6th in his age group in the giant slalom, and Georgi Doganov – 10th in the ski running. The team also won the “Best Design T-shirt” cup, dedicated to Sanya Borzak (a Russian colleague who has passed away a few months ago).