Retained Government Services
Air Navigation & Regulated Activities
The Bermuda Airport Authority provides a range of essential services at the LF Wade International Airport, including: Air Traffic Control, Bermuda Weather Service, Air Traffic Engineering, Airport Maintenance Services.
AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL
Located at the midpoint of the runway at the LF Wade International Airport, Bermuda air traffic controllers guide over 12,000 aircraft per year landing and taking-off. Average annual movement is 64% commercial, 34% private and 2% military. Air traffic controllers provide information and give instructions, through radio transmission, to aircraft in the Bermuda Class D Airspace and keep pilots informed of weather conditions. Air traffic controllers also control movement of aircraft and vehicles on the ground. Departure and arrival control is provided by New York Air Route Traffic Control Center located on Long Island, New York. The New York facility uses radar, radio transmitters and receivers installed in Bermuda.
BERMUDA WEATHER SERVICE (BWS)
Given Bermuda’s isolated geographic location, local weather forecasters rely on numerical weather prediction models from geo-stationary and polar orbiting weather satellites. Computer model data and observations are displayed on visual workstations supported by the United Kingdom Meteorological Office. Observers at BWS take surface observations at least every four hours and release a weather balloon at least once a day monitoring atmospheric temperatures, pressure and humidity. BWS is staffed 24/7, 365 days a year.
Bermuda Airport Authority owns and operates the Island’s weather radar system. BWS is the only weather organisation in the world that provides radar imaging of the Bermuda area.
AIR TRAFFIC ENGINEERING
Bermuda Airport Authority and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) jointly own air navigational equipment at the LF Wade International Airport, which is maintained and supported by the Airport Authority’s air traffic engineering team. This includes all airfield sensors, navigational aids and transmitters, such as secondary surveillance radar and instrument landing systems (ILS), and a radio beacon network that combines VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) with distance measuring equipment. These systems help inbound aircraft to determine their positions, stay on course and land safely.
AIRPORT MAINTENANCE SERVICES
A number of key assets around the aerodrome are maintained and serviced by our airport maintenance services team including eight emergency electricity generating units. This team maintains the Bermuda Airport Authority’s vehicle and equipment fleet and 4.36 acres of Airport Authority land, including providing wildlife control services to the aerodrome.
AIRPORT RESCUE AND FIREFIGHTING SERVICES
Airport Rescue & Firefighting Services are provided at the LF Wade International Airport by the Bermuda Airport Authority via an agreement with the Bermuda Fire & Rescue Service. Services are available to respond to aircraft incidents 16 hours each day, and also respond outside these hours to aircraft emergency diversions.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
In addition to providing air navigation services, the Bermuda Airport Authority formally manages many relationships supporting important provisions for aerodrome certification, regulatory compliance, aeronautical information services, aviation safety, quality assurance and regional traffic services through the facilitation of local and international agreements. The Bermuda Airport Authority is also responsible for maintaining Infrasound listening stations for the United Nations Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organisation and has an agreement with NASA to host tracking station assets at the Authority’s weather radar site.
