ACAMS Airport Tower Solutions was represented by our colleague Henrik Lid Scharff, at an important conference in Mexico focused on extreme weather preparedness for airports
ACAMS at the Hurricane Preparedness Conference in Mexico
Recently, ACAMS Airport Tower Solutions was represented at an important conference in Mexico focused on extreme weather preparedness for airports, bringing together key stakeholders including airport operators, authorities, and industry partners.
The event addressed a critical and growing challenge: how airports can maintain safe and continuous operations in the face of hurricanes, tropical storms, and severe weather disruptions.
ACAMS was proud to contribute to this important discussion through a presentation by Henrik Lid Scharff, International Sales Manager, who shared a practical and operational perspective on airport resilience and continuity planning.
From vulnerability to resilience: a shift in mindset
Airports – particularly in regions such as Mexico, the Caribbean, and parts of Latin America – are increasingly exposed to extreme weather events that can disrupt operations, damage infrastructure, and compromise safety.
The key message from ACAMS was clear: resilience is not a feature, it is an architectural approach. Rather than reacting to disruptions, airports should design systems that anticipate failure points and ensure continuity regardless of the scenario.
Three pillars of resilient airport tower operations
ACAMS’ position on how airports can better prepare for extreme events is not theoretical. It is grounded in more than two decades of operational experience across over 45 countries, including deployments in environments regularly exposed to severe weather conditions. This global experience has shaped a clear approach: resilience must be designed into the operational architecture from the outset – not added afterwards.
ACAMS presented a structured framework built around three core concepts:
Traditional towers often rely on multiple independent systems, each with its own interface, hardware, and failure risk.
ACAMS’ integrated tower approach consolidates key systems into a single, unified and redundant environment, enabling:
Crucially, this architecture already lays the foundation for resilience:
by standardizing systems and interfaces, it makes relocation, duplication, and recovery operationally feasible.
During extreme weather, physical access to infrastructure is often limited or impossible.
The ACAMS Technical Control and Monitoring System (TCMS) provides:
Instead of fragmented alarms, TCMS delivers a clear and actionable operational picture, enabling faster and better-informed decisions when it matters most.
ACAMS highlighted the importance of independent backup tower capabilities—but importantly, these are not standalone concepts. They are a natural extension of the I-TWR architecture.
Because all systems are already integrated, standardized, and accessible from any position:
This means that backup is not an emergency workaround; it is a planned, operationally ready capability.
Backup options include:
In practice, I-TWR ensures that when a disruption occurs, airports are not improvising, they are executing a predefined continuity plan.
Proven resilience in real-world environments
ACAMS’ approach is not theoretical. With deployments in more than 45 countries and extensive experience in Brazil, systems have been tested in some of the most demanding weather conditions globally -from tropical storms to high humidity and lightning exposure.
This experience provides a strong foundation for supporting regions like Mexico, where weather-related disruptions are not exceptions, but recurring operational realities.
A broader vision: regional and network resilience
One of the key insights shared during the conference is that resilience should not be limited to a single airport.
With integrated systems and centralized monitoring, multiple airports can be connected and managed as a network, allowing shared situational awareness, a coordinated response strategies but also potential backup operations across locations
This opens the door to a more resilient aviation ecosystem, not just resilient infrastructure.
Let’s continue the conversation
Extreme weather events will continue to increase in frequency and intensity. The question is no longer if disruptions will occur, but how prepared airports are to handle them.
ACAMS supports airports and aviation authorities in:
Interested in strengthening your airport’s resilience?
Let’s discuss how ACAMS can support your preparedness, before the next disruption occurs. To arrange a dedicated meeting with the ACAMS team, contact us here.