A self-separation algorithm for width-limited high density air corridor*

Abstract

*Partly presented at the 29th Congress of the International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences, 8 September 2014, St. Petersburg, Russia. Algorithms for self-separation of aircraft operating in a one-way high density air corridor are discussed. In the air corridor, which is considered as a tube or band-shaped piece of airspace that connects high-demand areas, only aircraft capable of self-separation may operate. It is required that all the aircraft fly in the same direction while maintaining safety without instructions of air traffic controllers. To realize high traffic throughput without losing safety, aircraft should be self-separated in an appropriate manner. Additionally, aircraft must operate inside of the assigned airspace for the air corridor operations. In this paper, an algorithm for self-separation of aircraft in a width-limited band-shaped piece of airspace has been developed. The algorithm determines maneuvers for conflict avoidance using information of surrounding aircraft. It is demonstrated that all the aircraft are able to self-separate without conflict in the width-limited air corridor. It is also demonstrated that self-separation using current state information results in a deadlock in the narrow air corridor. As the corridor width increases, aircraft are able to maintain the separation through the use of heading changes while maintaining their optimum speed. Additionally, it is indicated that the installation of sub-route and utilization of optimum speed information prevent a deadlock even though the corridor width is narrow.