Mese: Gennaio 2022

NATINAMDS (NATO Integrated Air and Missile Defence System) is a complex defence network encompassing all countries being part the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). It aims to ensure security and stability of the whole alliance airspace by controlling the air domain and coordinating related activities.

The system includes all measures aimed at defending the territories of the countries adhering to the treaty against any air and missile threat and also at nullifying or at least reducing the effectiveness of any hostile air action, through the cooperation of sensors, command and control facilities and weapons systems. In this respect, it acts as a powerful deterrent against any aggression.

Italy is part of NATO and therefore plays its role in NATINAMDS too. The Italian Air Force (AM – Aeronautica Militare) contributes to this defence system by means of their military bases in the peninsula to detect, track, classify, identify and monitor airborne objects, and – if necessary – to intercept them using surface-based or airborne weapons systems.

Within this defence system, highly classified information is exchanged between military air traffic controllers. SITTI participates in the effort of keeping all the components in place as efficient and up-to-date as possible. Among the most recent major activities SITTI has been involved into, the following are especially worth being mentioned:

• strengthening of the UHF air/ground communications
• supply of classified so-called “RED” communication components

The supply is subdivided into a number of lots, some of which already passed the FAT (Factory Acceptance Test) phase and are going to be installed at the very beginning of next year.

The voice communication systems maintenance contract between SITTI and EUROCONTROL’s Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre (MUAC) has been renewed for another 4 years. As demonstrated in the past years, SITTI is committed to provide EUROCONTROL with the best service possible, putting at disposal the best competent workforce.

Back in 2006, SITTI has provided MUAC with a Voice Communication System (VCS) that is currently used as a backup system. This system provides telephone and intercom links, and it connects local radios and remote ones, located at Eelde (in the Netherlands) and Bremen (Germany). Because of the large and important area it covers, MUAC implemented a strict maintenance program to ensure that the systems being used are always efficient and effective.

SITTI has therefore been involved in this maintenance program since the very beginning, with the following features:

• Help desk service, through which the customer can have direct access to SITTI development departments and receive hints and suggestions for the better use of the installed systems.
• 24/7 support service for addressing possibly blocking malfunctions, so as to get immediate indications on what to do to solve the problem and possibly request on site intervention.
• Module repair service for the prompt substitution and repair of faulty boards, with blocked prices and predetermined delivery times.
• Software update service, which includes the update of the software installed on the system components.
• Spare parts replacement and supply service, to ensure the customer always has the right and compatible elements for their possible substitution, without system degradation.

MUAC is the facility from which EUROCONTROL is providing air traffic control services to all flights entering the upper airspace (from 24500 to 66000 feet) over Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and north-west Germany. This is one of Europe’s busiest and most complex airspace areas.