AGI - Weather Equipment and Landing Aid Systems

Aeronautical and General Instruments (AGI) is an independent British company manufacturing weather equipment and landing aid systems for the civil and defence equipment markets worldwide.

AGI produces a wide range of weather equipment for measuring airfield surface wind and runway visual range for the military and civilian airport market. The surface wind system is called the Ultrasonic Wind System (UWS). Two runway visual range systems are produced - a transmissometer-based system called the AGIVIS 2000 and a forward scatter system called the AGVIS FSI measurement system.

SURFACE WIND MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS

AGI’s UWS surface wind system comprises a Gill ultrasonic wind sensor and a co-located data processor linking back to AGI multipurpose colour displays. A Gill sensor, which is FAA approved, provides a robust measurement head requiring little maintenance and calibration over its lifetime.

The co-located processor unit provides the sensor power and processes the wind data from the ultrasonic head. Wind data is then transmitted to the AGI multi-purpose colour displays situated in the control tower and other remote locations.

RUNWAY VISUAL RANGE MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS

The AGIVIS 2000 is a transmissometer-based measurement system designed for CAT 11 and CAT 111 airport runways. Using a patented transmitter and receiver pair, the system also includes a background luminance monitor.

Local processing in each of the measurement heads calculates the runway visual range and transmits this value to a control tower-based computer system. This in turn displays the runway visual range in metres using AGI custom displays. Runway visual range data is also transmitted to AGI displays located in the air traffic control monitors.

RUNWAY VISUAL RANGE MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS

The AGVIS FSI system uses a forward scatter measuring head from Biral Ltd to calculate the runway visual range. This system is targeted at CAT1 and small regional airports where the lower capital cost of the AGVIS FSI system makes it an attractive automatic visual range measurement system. An added benefit of the system is present weather observation which is available to an airport AWOS.

Using a similar design to the UWS system, a co-located field site processor calculates the runway visual range; the background luminance monitor being incorporated into the field site processor housing. Runway visual range data is then transmitted back to a control tower-based display unit, which in turn feeds the data to the air traffic control monitor screens.

RELIABLE AND ACCURATE LANDING AID SYSTEMS

AGI's products are produced to the highest quality standards. The UWS meets the ICAO Annex 3 as well as the UK CAT 670 MET01 requirements. The AGIVIS 2000 meets the latest ICAO accuracy requirements and has an excellent reliability record far exceeding its stated MTBF for all of the modules in the system.

The AGVIS FSI also meets the ICAO and CAP670 requirements for forward scatter accuracy and is referenced back to an AGI base transmissometer system. The AGI transmissometer system has been benchmarked by a number of aviation authorities as being of the highest accuracy for RVR measurements. Thus we feel confident in referencing our forward scatter systems to our transmissometer systems.

AGI offers comprehensive systems and product design engineering support packages including installation, commissioning, training and documentation.