AIRPORTS & AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL INDUSTRY
The Sertel PreciseSync-GMC-300 family locks radar consoles, ADS-B ground stations, ATC voice recorders, meteorological sensors and airport IT networks to a single UTC reference, so every event log across the airfield shares the same clock.
14 ns
TIMING ACCURACY WITH GNSS LOCK
<100 ns
PPS, IRIG-B AND PTP TO UTC
184-channel
MULTI-GNSS RECEIVER
Overview
When a radar return and a voice call disagree on the time, investigations start from zero.
A modern airport is not a single building with one clock. It is a tightly coupled network of primary and secondary radar heads, ADS-B ground stations, multilateration processors, tower voice recording systems, MET sensors, ILS and VOR monitors, CCTV arrays, and back-office IT. Every one of those systems timestamps the data it produces with its own internal clock, and every one of those clocks drifts independently.
Without a shared reference, the same event looks different depending on which log you read. A radar console may record an aircraft at 09:14:37.412, while the adjacent voice recorder logs the corresponding controller call at 09:14:40.009. That two-and-a-half-second gap is not real. It is clock drift. But to the safety analyst examining the records after an incident, it reads as a sequence problem that takes days to explain and may never be fully resolved.
Sertel designed the PreciseSync-GMC-300 family to eliminate that ambiguity from the source. One GNSS-disciplined Stratum 1 grandmaster distributes NTP, PTP, and IRIG-B simultaneously, so every device on the airfield, from legacy radar consoles to the newest ADS-B processors, reads from the same UTC clock. The PreciseSync-GMC-300-R adds full hardware redundancy for mission-critical ATC operations, while the PreciseSync-GMC-300-D serves panel-mounted installations in equipment rooms and remote navigation aid sites.
The problem
These are the gaps our engineers most often find when integrating time synchronisation into ATC and airport infrastructure projects across India and the Middle East.
Surveillance data with no shared clock
Primary radar, secondary surveillance radar, and ADS-B receivers each produce timestamped track data from separate internal clocks. When those clocks drift, track correlation breaks down. Post-incident analysis becomes a process of reconciling conflicting records rather than reading a clean sequence of events.
Legacy and digital systems sharing no common protocol
Older radar heads, distress frequency monitors, and voice loggers expect IRIG-B hardware pulses. Modern ADS-B processors, multilateration systems, and CNS/ATM platforms are built for PTP or NTP over Ethernet. Most airports end up running two parallel time systems with no single source of truth across them.
Incident logs that will not survive regulatory review
ICAO Annex 11 and national CAA regulations require sub-second event timestamps across ATC systems for safety investigations. A timestamp mismatch of even a few hundred milliseconds between a radar track and a voice log can derail a findings report or extend a mandatory investigation timeline by weeks.
Cyber-isolated airside networks with no public NTP access
Airside and ATC networks are air-gapped from the public internet for good security reasons, which means they cannot use external NTP pools. Operators need a fully on-premises Stratum 1 source that they own, configure, and audit, with no dependency on any external connectivity or third-party infrastructure.
The Sertel solution
The PreciseSync-GMC-300 family was built for environments where legacy infrastructure and modern digital systems must run on the same clock. Plug in the antenna, assign an IP address, and every system on the network locks to UTC within minutes.
Multi-GNSS receiver (L1, L2, L5)
A 184-channel parallel-tracking receiver acquires signals from GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou, and NavIC-IRNSS simultaneously on L1, L2, and L5 bands. The surge-protected helical antenna is IP67-rated for permanent outdoor installation.
PTP IEEE 1588v2 grandmaster
Sub-100 ns PTP timestamp accuracy to UTC across multiple profiles including ITU G.8265.1 and G.8275.1 Telecom Profiles, making the GMC-300 compatible with modern ADS-B processors and CNS/ATM network equipment.
IRIG-B AM and TTL outputs
AM and TTL IRIG-B outputs keep legacy radar consoles, distress frequency monitoring equipment, voice recorders, and RTUs synchronised to the same UTC reference alongside every newer PTP-capable device.
OCXO holdover for continuous operation
A high-stability oven-controlled crystal oscillator maintains microsecond-level frequency accuracy throughout GNSS signal loss or interference, so connected systems never lose their time reference during a signal outage.
Full system redundancy (GMC-300-R)
The R variant incorporates redundant GPS receivers, master clocks, comparator units, and dual power supplies in a 3U chassis, ensuring uninterrupted time distribution even when individual components fail.
DIN Rail form factor (GMC-300-D)
A compact DIN Rail mount with IRIG-B AM and PTP Ethernet output brings precision time synchronisation into panel-mounted ATC equipment rooms and remote navigation aid sites where rack space is not available.
Applications
ATC radar and surveillance networks
Synchronises primary radar, secondary surveillance radar, and ADS-B ground stations to a common UTC reference so track correlation is accurate and post-event analysis produces one agreed sequence of events.
Multilateration (MLAT) systems
Feeds nanosecond-stable timing to multilateration receivers, supporting the precision these systems need to calculate aircraft position from time-of-arrival differences across widely spaced antenna sites.
ATC voice communication recorders
Aligns voice logging systems to the same UTC clock as radar and surveillance data, so transmission timestamps match radar track records when reconstructing any incident or controller handover.
Navigational aid monitoring (ILS/VOR/DME)
Provides a local on-premises time reference for ILS, VOR, and DME monitoring equipment at remote sites, including DIN Rail deployments where a portable panel-mounted solution is required.
Meteorological systems (AWOS / METAR / AWS)
Synchronises automated weather observation systems supplying RVR, wind, QNH, and ceiling data to ATC, ensuring met observations carry the same timestamp as the operations they support.
Airport security, CCTV, and access control
Keeps camera footage, access control logs, perimeter intrusion records, and incident management systems on one clock, so footage and access records can be correlated second for second during any security investigation.
From our commissioning logs
During a CNS/ATM technology refresh at a regional international airport, the engineering team found that the primary radar console, secondary surveillance radar processor, and ATC voice recording system were each running independent internal clocks. A post-occurrence review of a separation event showed the same aircraft manoeuvre timestamped across three systems with offsets of up to 2.8 seconds. The safety investigation required three additional working weeks to reconcile the records and establish an agreed event sequence.
We installed a single PreciseSync-GMC-300 grandmaster on the ATC LAN and distributed IRIG-B to the legacy radar console and voice recorder through signal converters. PTP was enabled for the secondary surveillance radar processor. Within 90 minutes of installation, every device on the network was locked to within 100 nanoseconds of UTC.
The next occurrence review, conducted six weeks later, produced a single aligned event timeline across all three systems, reviewed and accepted in one session. That is the operational value of a common clock: investigators working from one version of events, not three.
Relevant products
Stratum-1 GNSS Time Server
A compact 19 inch rack PTP time server with OCXO holdover and 15 ns timing accuracy under GNSS lock. One unit feeds PTP Ethernet, IRIG-B, 1PPS and any number of slave clocks.
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Redundant Stratum 1 GNSS Time Server
Redundant GNSS receivers, master clocks, comparator and dual power supplies in a 2U or 3U Eurocard chassis. Built for substations and control rooms where time must never stop.
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Stratum-1 PTP Time Server, DIN Rail
A panel-mounted PTP time server that fits inside control cabinets without rack space. Delivers IRIG-B (AM) and PTP Ethernet from a multi-constellation GNSS receiver with OCXO holdover.
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Dual-Band GNSS Meteorological Radiosonde
A lightweight balloon-borne instrument that transmits real time profiles of pressure, temperature, humidity and GPS-derived wind data up to stratospheric altitudes. Designed for daily operational launches, it provides high sensor accuracy, stable telemetry, and dependable performance in extreme atmospheric conditions.
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GNSS Wind-Finding · Balloon-Borne
It is a compact GPS sonde designed to measure upper winds. It follows the balloon's position during its ascent to determine wind speed and direction. The device substitutes manual observations that were performed with optical theodolites. It delivers automated wind profiles under all weather conditions for aviation and meteorology.
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AWS Series · Environmental Monitoring Systems
A complete, field-ready weather monitoring system built around the T-AWS-DL-300 data logger. Integrates temperature, humidity, wind, rainfall, and solar sensors into a single IP65+ rated platform, engineered for unattended operation in remote and harsh outdoor environments.
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Weather Stations
An industrial-grade data acquisition unit with a 24-bit ADC, 16 analog inputs, and 8 digital I/O channels. Captures readings at up to 1000 Hz and transmits them to cloud platforms such as AWS IoT Core over 4G/LTE, Ethernet, or satellite telemetry.
Know moreFAQ
Talk to a Sertel field engineer about specifying the right PreciseSync-GMC-300 variant for your site. We ship globally, configure on-site, and back every deployment with full lifecycle support.
