Ratmalana airport’s operations and unplanned development

Wellington Airport, New Zealand, Control Tower, in a shopping Mall
 

By Capt G A Fernando MBA
gafplane@sltnet.lk
President, Aircraft Owners and Operators Association
RCyAF, Air Ceylon, Air Lanka, SIA, SriLankan Airlines

In 1934 the State Council of Ceylon decided that an airport with easy access to Colombo was a necessity and declared that Ratmalana was the best site available. Accordingly an airfield was built and the first landing took place on 27 November 1935. This was Ceylon’s first Airfield. With the advent of WW II, the airport expanded and a runway was also built. The Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm used it.

To assist aircraft landing in bad weather and resulting bad visibility, a transmitter was built at Thalangama to generate a Radio Signal Beam directed along the extended centre line of the runway at Ratmalana. If the aircraft was tracking the correct path, the pilots would hear a continuous tone on their head sets. However if they were left of the desired track, the pilots would hear a letter ‘A’ in Morse code (dit dah) or if right, a letter ‘N’ which was a (dah dit) in Morse. The objective was to hear a continuous signal in the ears, which guided them towards Ratmalana. The decent to lower altitude was at the pilot’s discretion.

As time went by, there was a low frequency, Non Directional Radio Beacon (NDB) placed in the vicinity of the airport (Attidiya) and used with an Automatic Direction Finder (ADF) on board the aircraft. A needle over a compass dial pointed to Attidiya and gave directional guidance to international air traffic. Although it could accommodate an unlimited number of aircraft, when they needed it most like during thunderstorms activity, there was static interference and the needles pointed towards the thunderstorms instead of Attidiya. So a Very High Frequency Omni Directional Radio Range known as a ‘VOR’ for short was installed for more accuracy.

Then in 1968, Ratmalana International Airport lost its ‘International’ status when the Bandaranaike International Airport opened and all international operations moved to Katunayake. The equipment at the airport was allowed to deteriorate. The Radio Navigational let down aids ran down. There was no proper Control Tower. Even the runway lights were not working and night flights had to depend on Kerosene Lamps. One redeeming grace, in the night, in those days, was that the Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery was in full production and the giant flare of the burning gasses was the guiding light to the Ratmalana Airport. The Pilots spotted the flare from far away and flew over the Refinery and then turned on the runway heading and could see the runway edge kerosene flares, flickering dimly in a dark patch that was the Ratmalana airport! The civil training aircraft of the Government Flying School of those days had neither radios nor any radio aids to navigation.

Post 1977, after the ‘Dharmista’ Government created another problem for Ratmalana operations. The authorities decided to build a new Capital in Sri Jayewardenepura, Kotte, and also move the New Parliament to that neck of the woods. Unfortunately, the Parliament was just 3.6 Nautical Miles from the end of the Ratmalana runway ‘as the crow flies’ and less than 1NM from the Thalangama Transmitters. In most countries overflying the Parliament is prohibited. Therefore the Authorities blindly decreed the same in Sri Lanka. Thus restricting the freedom of aircraft movements to the Ratmalana Runway and preventing safer, conventional landing approaches. It must be noted that Air Ceylon and other domestic flights were still using Ratmalana. Many professionals were quick to observe that it was akin to someone building a house near a railway line and then complaining that it was too noisy and requiring the railway to divert!

Everyone had learnt to live with the non-availability of precision Navigational aids at Ratmalana. Thalangama Transmitters lost its significance. The Urban Development Authority (UDA) eventually, took vacant procession and the SL Army (Gemunu watch) established a camp there.  During December, with clear nights and cooler mornings, (Temperature inversions) combined with the North Easterly winds blowing smoke from the Sapugaskanda Refinery, the visibility on the final approach tends to get very bad at the Ratmalana airport.

In fact, on the morning of 14 December 2014, a SLAF Antonov AN 32, ferry flight from Katunayake, attempted to approach for landing at Ratmalana and crashed killing the crew. This prompted the then Air Force Commander to write to the then Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to reinstall Navigational Facilities (See Letter below). Now almost five years have gone by and at last the Airport and Aviation Sri Lanka (AASL) is slowly waking up to the fact that not only the seen but also the unseen facilities at Ratmalana should be brought up to standard in the name of air safety. Wide publicity is given to the fact that the Government’s intention is to make Ratmalana an International Business aircraft hub and regain its lost glory. 

While this concept is being actively pursued by the Airport and Aviation Sri Lanka Ltd (AASL) and the Civil Aviation Authority Sri Lanka (CAASL), another security sensitive building has been erected in the vacant land at Thalangama, barely 1 NM from the Parliament and 4.4 NM from the runway end. That being the Akuregoda Military Headquarters. This has created an effective barrier for operation of legitimate air traffic. As a direct result more restrictions are bound to be imposed on inbound air traffic. Furthermore, it does seem like that there was no ‘master plan’ and the left hand didn’t know what the right hand was doing.

Air safety dictates that jet planes should have at least an eight mile straight in (no turns) final approach. Now it is not possible to do that with the unplanned sensitive buildings on the final approach to Ratmalana. Ideally, like in other countries, all three parties, the Local Municipality Town Planer, the Civil Aviation Authority/ Airport and Aviation Ltd (CAASL/ AASL), and the Building developer, must make these long term decisions. In Australia for instance the CAA’ Airports Authority has control of manmade obstacles for a radius of 25 miles. Unplanned buildings, called ‘man made relief’ as against ‘Geographic Relief’ (terrain) has spoilt the feasibility of the intended City Airport. Another case in point is the Kotalawala Defence University (K DU). Which is the tallest building in the vicinity of the airport that should never have been allowed to be built that high. This seems to be the malady this whole country is suffering from. The people in the know are afraid to speak. Subsequently, no one is held accountable for these poor, uncoordinated decisions. The true professionals are not consulted. As a result vision is ‘tunnelled’. The Sinhala saying “Leda malath, bada suddai” seems to be very appropriate. (Although the patient died, the bowels were clean!)  

It is believed that accommodating Business Jets inbound to Ratmalana airport will be a money spinner and a step in the correct direction. There is no point in crying over spilt milk one would say. What is done is done. I write to offer a practical solution.to mitigate the adverse effects of unplanned buildings. While the Military Base is working 24/7 (around the clock) and overflying prohibition may be justified, the Parliament ‘works’ only on certain days and for limited hours. The Authorities should provisionally allow air traffic, inbound to Ratmalana to overfly the Parliament on days and times that there are no sittings. A Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) could be issued as and when necessary. In other words let’s share the airspace for the benefit of all, without attempting to kill the goose that may lay the golden egg. Then longer and therefore safer approaches could be designed to facilitate these small but fast Business Jets which will be operating in and out of the Ratmalana Airport.

The Ratmalana Airport lacks a proper Control Tower with a 360 degree visibility of the area. A new Control Tower could be sited in the highest point in the vicinity. Perhaps at KDU to mitigate the hopeless situation. The Wellington, New Zealand Control Tower is on top of a Shopping Mall!

To put this in the correct perspective, according to the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) USA, research shows that light training aircraft and other small aircraft of the size and mass of business jets cannot create catastrophic destruction to strong buildings like our Parliament or the Military Base, like what happened on 9/11 with large passenger jets. Some even say that the Pentagon was damaged by a missile and not a passenger aircraft. But that’s another story.