Investigating Untapped Capacity at Single-Runway Airports using Short Final Curved Approach, Dual Glide Slope, and Double Threshold

Abstract

In Europe more than one third of the 100 busiest airports have only one runway and most of them have no possibility to build another one. Aircraft of all types and sizes must use that same runway which affects operational complexity. In such situations the problem of capacity appears since separation between aircraft is based on all of them following the same path and smaller aircraft following larger ones have to wait for the wake vortex to dissipate, in the case of both arrivals and departures. This paper offers a possible concept for increasing single-runway airport landing capacity. It is based on separating smaller aircraft to a final approach path that is not affected by the wake vortices produced by the larger aircraft. Published references dealing with this topic are included and discussed. The operation rules proposed are based on existing standards and some best practices. This paper does not discuss available technological solutions.