Preliminary Benefits Assessment of Traffic Aware Strategic Aircrew Requests (TASAR)

Abstract

While en route, aircrews submit trajectory change requests to air traffic control (ATC) to better meet their objectives including reduced delays, reduced fuel burn, and passenger comfort. Aircrew requests are currently made with limited to no information on surrounding traffic. Consequently, these requests are uninformed about a key ATC objective, ensuring traffic separation, and therefore less likely to be accepted than requests informed by surrounding traffic and that avoids creating conflicts. This paper studies the benefits of providing aircrews with on-board decision support to generate optimized trajectory requests that are probed and cleared of known separation violations prior to issuing the request to ATC. These informed requests are referred to as traffic aware strategic aircrew requests (TASAR) and leverage traffic surveillance information available through Automatic Dependent Surveillance -Broadcast (ADS-B) In capability. Preliminary fast-time simulation results show increased benefits with longer stage lengths since beneficial trajectory changes can be applied over a longer distance. Also, larger benefits were experienced between large hub airports as compared to other airport sizes. On average, an aircraft equipped with TASAR reduced its travel time by about one to four minutes per operation and fuel burn by about 50 to 550 lbs per operation depending on the objective of the aircrew (time, fuel, or weighted combination of time and fuel), class of airspace user, and aircraft type. These preliminary results are based on analysis of approximately one week of traffic in July 2012 and additional analysis is planned on a larger data set to confirm these initial findings.

Traffic Aware Planner for Cockpit-based Trajectory Optimization

“…The results of the benefits analysis indicated that aircraft equipped with TASAR capabilities could reduce flight travel time from one to four minutes and fuel burn by 50 to 550 pounds. 15 To verify and mature the TASAR concept, as well as facilitate its use by operators in the near-term, the TASAR project developed a software automation prototype system, the Traffic Aware Planner (TAP) software application. 5,6 TAP software development has followed an iterative process, expanding and refining TAP's design and capabilities over a series of simulation experiments and flight trials, 8 including:…”

Achieving TASAR Operational Readiness

“…9 A fast-time simulation model using an application programing interface to the Future Air-TrafficAmerican Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Management Concept Evaluation Tool (FACET) 10 was implemented and used to analyze historically flown trajectories in comparison to optimized trajectories using a TASAR capability for making trajectory-change requests to ATC. The platform included models for airborne surveillance, conflict probing, flight optimization, aircrew requests, ground surveillance, and ATC evaluation/response.…”

Proof-of-Concept Demonstrations of a Flight Adjustment Logging and Communication Network

“…Additionally, the development of TAP considered certification for operational use 6,7 . Furthermore, analyses show the preliminary benefits that TASAR would provide for an air carrier 8 . The benefits study and discussions between the TASAR team members and several domestic airlines resulted in two airlines expressing interest in equipping their aircraft with TASAR technology.…”