Air Navigation Service Research Articles

Enhancing innovation in aviation: Applying the Triple Helix Model and PMBOK in the UAE-Sweden partnership

To sustain economic growth and generate new ideas for innovation, academia, industries, and governments should cooperate to develop successful research and development ecosystems. Indeed, the collaboration between these parties is required to extend beyond the basic funding provided by industries to research projects conducted by universities. Hence, collaboration must occur in an integrated environment so that each party plays its role including problem identification, setting the regulations, funding, conducting the research, etc. On the other hand, due to globalization, collaboration in research and development has become international where teams from different countries or continents collaborate in various ways. Indeed, the integrated collaboration between industry, governments, and academia improves the impact of the research outcome on society by addressing problems of interest to society while involving all the concerned parties. One of the known frameworks in this context, the Triple Helix Model (THM), has been used in this study to foster international collaboration in aviation. The international collaboration involved two universities representing academia, civil aviation authorities, public funding bodies, and air navigation services representing the government bodies, in addition to aviation industries from Sweden and the United Arab Emirates. The focus of the collaboration was the development of knowledge-based open innovation in the form of a traffic management tool that optimizes, simulates, and visualizes delivery scenarios of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).This paper aims to formalize the collaborative framework that has been used in the international collaboration mentioned above, and that combines the THM and PMBOK models so that it can be used for managing innovation projects of similar nature throughout their lifecycle. Moreover, the challenges that have been encountered by the teams involved in the collaboration are discussed in this paper in addition to the mitigation strategies that have been used to overcome them which can be beneficial for other similar collaborations. Finally, the study results encourage industries, governments, and universities to establish further projects based on the same framework to spur and maximize knowledge-based innovation for social and financial growth.

Impacts of COVID-19 on Air Traffic Control and Air Traffic Management: A Review

The global air transportation system continues to be greatly impacted by operational changes induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. As air traffic management (ATM) focuses on balancing system capacity with demand, many facets of ATM and system operations more broadly were subjected to dramatic changes that deviate from pre-pandemic procedures. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic when air travel became one of the first transport modes to be impacted by lockdown procedures and travel restrictions, a geographically diverse cohort of researchers began investigating the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on air navigation service providers, airline and airport operations, on-time performance, as well as airline network structure, connectivity, crew scheduling, and service impacts due to pilot and crew shortages. In this study, we provide a comprehensive review of this aforementioned body of research literature published during one of the most tumultuous times in the history of aviation, specifically as it relates to air traffic management and air traffic control. We first organize the reviewed literature into three broad categories: strategic air traffic management and response, air traffic control and airport operational changes, and air traffic system resilience. Then, we highlight the main takeaways from each category. We emphasize specific findings that describe how various aspects of the air transportation systems could be improved in the domestic and global airline industry post-COVID. Lastly, we identify specific changes in operational procedures due to the COVID-19 pandemic and suggest future industry trends as informed by the literature. We anticipate this review article to be of interest to a broad swath of aviation industry and intercity transportation audiences.

Drones in the Airspace of the Republic of Poland - steps to Safe Flights of UAS Over Poland

The emergence of a new user of the airspace of the Republic of Poland, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles - drones, as part of regular flights, implies the need not only to provide an appropriate legal framework, but also to rebuild the entire air traffic management ecosystem for the integration of manned and unmanned aviation. The first attempts to include UAS in the integrated air traffic system in the Warsaw FIR were based on the electronic/digital planning, coordination and management of UAS flights called Pansa UTM (Polish Air Navigation Services Agency Unmanned Traffic Management). This system is an innovative solution used by the Polish Air Navigation Services Agency (PANSA) and potential drone users. The operation and development of the Pansa UTM system generates the need for air traffic management entities to take specific actions by planning and establishing regulations, rules, safety criteria and flight conditions for the new airspace user. This requires involvement in projects, pilotages and technology demonstrators aimed at creating adequate tools for the safe implementation of UAS flights in Poland. These activities, both already implemented and at the planning stage, aim to achieve a state in which it will be possible to talk about integrated and safe controlled air traffic over Poland. Due to the dynamic nature of the subject matter, this study is only an attempt to present a number of projects undertaken by a wide range of aviation-related entities that may allow achieving an acceptable level of air traffic management over the territory of the Republic of Poland.

Evaluation of DME network capability using combination of rule-based model and gradient boosting regression

The future development of aeronautical navigation foresees an infrastructure rationalization of radionavigation aids with the aim of maintaining only the Minimum Operational Network, which brings benefits in terms of operational cost savings, promotes sustainability and optimal use of the radio spectrum. To ensure that the necessary navigation performance is preserved, the Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) plays a significant role, as DME/DME navigation is a short-term contingency solution when Global Navigation Satellite System is unavailable. Therefore, new DME ground stations are put into operation even though other navigation aids are being decommissioned at the same time. This paper addresses a question of possible DME network rationalization by developing a software model using a combination of a rule-based model, approximating of airborne DME interrogators interacting with DME ground transponders, with the implementation of the Gradient Boosting Regression to predict load of DME ground stations. The model is validated by comparing the results with the real load data obtained from an Air Navigation Service Provider. Several test cases are performed to evaluate the capability of the European DME network, simulating a reduction in the number of en-route DME stations and increases in air traffic using clustering methods. The results show that the ground station load limit was rarely reached, demonstrating the robustness and the potential for rationalization of the DME infrastructure.

A Proposal for Model‐Based Systems Engineering Method for Creating Secure Cyber‐Physical Systems

AbstractRising levels of risk as cyber‐attackers look to exploit system vulnerabilities threatens the Air Traffic Control industry. Attacks on Air Navigation Service Providers' communications systems may lead to airspace closure and even cause safety issues. This paper presents a novel Model‐Based Systems Engineering method that enables systems engineers, in collaboration with system security and software engineers, to perform threat‐modeling analysis of cyber‐physical systems early in the system development process and incorporate mitigation strategies into the system design. The proposed model‐based method covers few security concepts, including misuse cases, system assets, threats, risks, vulnerabilities, and security control identification. The study found that the proposed method is suitable for conducting security analysis for complex cyber‐physical systems early in the system development process.

FIR agreement Indonesia – Singapore: What are the legal implications?

This paper explores the implications of Indonesia's agreement to delegate the Flight Information Region (FIR) of air navigation services to Singapore, specifically in the airspace of the Riau and Natuna islands, as stated in Presidential Regulation Number 109 of 2022. Using the normative juridical method, this study examines the intricate details of the agreement, with a focus on its potential legal consequences for Indonesia's national and international obligations.Although Indonesia retains sovereignty over its territory, this analysis scrutinizes the nuanced provisions of the agreement and their implications, particularly in terms of the technical aspects of air traffic services provided by the Singapore Air Traffic Services Provider above Indonesia's territories, which the agreement does not explicitly delineate the responsibilities or shared consequences in law. The purpose of this paper is to elucidate Indonesia's increased responsibility under the new agreement and emphasize the importance of a careful approach to its implementation. By exploring the multifaceted dimensions of national and international interests, this study seeks to highlight the imperative for Indonesia to navigate the agreement prudently.Ultimately, this analysis aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of Indonesia's obligations, potential challenges, and essential considerations under the renewed agreement of 2022, underscoring the significance of a balanced approach in safeguarding Indonesia's interests on both national and international fronts.

ATM strategies for, and impacts of, space launches

There is a rapid growth of national space launch ambitions and capabilities, e.g. delivering satellites into low-earth and sun-synchronous orbits. With vertical and horizontal delivery methods, and numerous locations under consideration in several continents, the industry has faced early challenges, such as failed launches and licencing timescales. This paper explores the increasing intersection between aviation and air traffic management (ATM) with higher airspace operations (HAOs). It introduces the background and principles of space launches, before addressing the particular impacts on aviation and ATM. The strategic challenges of planning launch windows to align both with orbiting asset congestion and ATM demands, plus promulgating such information to airspace users, is discussed. In the tactical phase, the consequences of impacts on airspace users (such as the re-routing of flights) and on air navigation service providers (such as the demands of coordinating airspace closures in the context of considerable re-entry/splashdown uncertainty) are discussed. A key contribution we make in this paper is the first aircraft-specific, fuel and operating cost analysis of HAO impacts, and the first such European cost assessment, with basic impact geometries. We also propose improved aircraft-specific impact models, which include passenger-centric costs.

An agent-based model for technology adoption in Air Traffic Management

Technology adoption depends not only on the development of new technologies, but also on the existence of regulations able to foster the implementation of such technologies. To facilitate the exploration of different policy options aimed at accelerating the adoption of new Air Traffic Management (ATM) technologies, an agent-based model that represents the behaviour of the European ATM system has been developed. This model includes representations of the main stakeholders in the ATM ecosystem: regulatory bodies, technology providers, labour unions and technology adopters, including Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs), airlines and airports. New ATM technologies, policies imposed, behavioural biases (e.g., loss aversion) and exogenous variables (e.g., fuel price) drive the actions of the agents, leading to the emergent global behaviour of the system. A calibration and validation process involving historical data, gaming experiments and participatory simulations was performed. The model was used to evaluate various policies that included economic incentives and penalties in two scenarios: one based on past events and another focused on the future. The results allow us to analyse which individual stakeholders benefit the most from each policy and to identify the mechanisms that emerge and drive the path of technology adoption, finding that a combination of economic incentives and penalties provides promising economical and operational results.

Temporary Standard Operating Procedure Design about Medical Evacuation Helicopter from Pertamina Mandalika International Circuit to General Hospital of West Nusa Tenggara Province

This research was conducted based on the discovery of a hazard that arose due to the flight path of the medical evacuation helicopter from the Pertamina Mandalika International Circuit to the General Hospital of West Nusa Tenggara Province. This research was conducted at Lombok Branch Office of Indonesian Air Navigation Service Provider, AirNav Indonesia, from September to December 2022. It was carried out using qualitative research methodology which is observation. The data and facts was processed using descriptive analysis. Based on the analysis of the data obtained, author concluded that a temporary standard operating procedure regarding medical evacuation helicopter is required and the author has come up with one.

Overview Of Approach Control Unit Cabin Facilities Related To Noise

As an ATC, we should be able to give our full focus when providing air traffic services. If we cannot focus when working due to noise in the cabin, then the safety of the aircraft can also be threatened. Therefore, an ATC should get a work environment that can support his performance so that he can work optimally. This article delves into the challenges encountered by Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) during their duties at the Tarakan Approach Control Unit, a crucial component of Juwata International Airport in Tarakan, North Kalimantan, Indonesia. The study revolves around the adverse effects of excessive noise levels within the ATC cabin on controller performance and aviation safety. Through qualitative descriptive methodology, this study explores the factors contributing to the noise problem within the Tarakan APP cabin. It identifies two major sources of noise: gaps in windows and doors, permitting external sounds to infiltrate the cabin, and the lack of sound insulation in the flooring. The results section introduces alternative solutions proposed by the author to mitigate the noise issue and enhance the ATC work environment. These solutions encompass the use of headsets, transitioning to a Voice Communication Control System (VCCS), installing sound-absorbing materials on the cabin floor, and incorporating UPVC to seal gaps in windows and doors. In conclusion, this study highlights the critical need for an enabling work environment that supports ATCs in ensuring aviation safety. The author encourages relevant authorities to consider and implement the proposed solutions to establish a more efficient, effective, safe, and comfortable air traffic control environment at Tarakan APP, ultimately benefiting air navigation services.

Scenario analysis of the impact of ANSP mergers on traffic distribution and congestion

Economic efficiency gains are one potential advantage that Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP) mergers might bring to the European Air Traffic Management system. An ANSP merger might also affect the use of airspace and consequently the level of congestion. In this paper, we analyze possible effects of an ANSP merger on traffic distribution i.e., route choices of an airline, congestion levels in different parts of the airspace, and consequences for airline's costs. We analyze four scenarios for an OD-pair market with a monopoly airline and two neighbouring ANSPs. For each scenario, we consider both cases: two ANSPs operate as competing providers and set different unit rates for the airline, and a merged ANSP operates as a monopoly service provider that sets a uniform unit rate for the airline. In all scenarios, we assume that the ANSPs are regulated based on a full cost recovery scheme. The numerical examples show that the different unit rates create an incentive for the airline to take detours in order to avoid the airspace with the higher en-route charge, resulting in additional fuel burn and emissions. Meanwhile, the uniform unit rate incentivizes the airline to choose the shorter route more often, leading to higher congestion levels on the shorter route and higher total congestion cost for the airline. However, in our numerical example, the decrease in the total distance-related cost outweighs the increase in the total congestion cost, leading to higher airline profits. We conclude that an ANSP merger that leads to a uniform unit rate can bring positive effects to airlines even if its potential efficiency gains are not taken into account.

АНАЛИЗ ПРИНЦИПОВ ОБРАБОТКИ НАВИГАЦИОННОЙ ИНФОРМАЦИИ И ПОСТРОЕНИЯ РАБОЧЕЙ ЗОНЫ МНОГОПОЗИЦИОННОЙ СИСТЕМЫ НАБЛЮДЕНИЯ

The use of modern surveillance equipment in accordance with ICAO recommendations is aimed at improving the efficiency of air transportation, increasing the capacity of airspace and airfields, and improving the safety of flights and ground operations. The introduction in the Russian Federation of a multi-position surveillance system (MPSS) based on automatic dependent surveillance of the broadcast type (ADS-B) is intended to facilitate the implementation of state and regional aviation development programs in terms of creating conditions for improving flight safety, availability and quality of air navigation services for airspace users. Therefore, the analysis of the principles of constructing a working area and processing navigation information in a multi-position surveillance system for improving the accuracy of aircraft position-fixing is an urgent research task. An approach to improving the efficiency of the MPSS operation when processing information in conditions of noise and interference has been considered. Analysis of the results of modeling the proposed algorithm based on the discrete Kalman filter shows high accuracy of estimating the planned coordinates of an aircraft. Specialized software has been developed to automate the process of calculating and constructing working areas of a multi-position surveillance system.

Efficiency assessment in European air traffic management—A fundamental analysis of data, models, and methods

The European air traffic management system is characterized by its dynamic and diverse nature. To effectively address future challenges, it is crucial to enhance efficiency and resilience within the system. As an integral part of the air traffic system, air navigation services operate as natural monopolies and are subject to regulatory measures. While operational and academic studies regularly address performance benchmarking, no comparative analysis is currently evaluates the different approaches. This paper introduces a fundamental analysis for evaluating the technical efficiency of air traffic control at the air navigation service provider (ANSP) level. Our research encompasses the development of an economic model, the application of various analytical methods, and the careful selection of units for evaluation. Our findings demonstrate that the standard Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method is highly effective. Additionally, we emphasize that not all ANSPs shall be included in the analysis, and we caution against incorporating monetary inputs and outputs in the model.

Estimating the Volatility of Flights and Risk of Saturation of Airspaces in the European Core Area: A Methodological Proposal

Despite having some fluctuations and the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, the demand for flights had a general growing trend for the past years. As the airspace is limited, efforts to better manage the total number of flights are noteworthy. In addition, volatility (i.e., unpredicted changes) in the number of flights has been observed to be increasing. Efforts to improve flight forecasting are thus necessary to improve air traffic efficiency and reduce costs. In this study, volatility in the number of flights is estimated based on past trends, and the outcomes are used to project future levels. This enables risk situations such as having to manage unexpectedly high numbers of flights to be predicted. The methodological approach analyses the Functional Airspace Block of Central Europe (FABEC). Based on the number of flights for 2015–2019, the following are calculated: historic mean, variance, volatility, 95th percentile, flights per hour and flights per day of the week in different time zones in six countries. Due to the nature of air traffic and the overdispersion observed, this study uses counting data models such as negative binomial regressions. This makes it possible to calculate risk measures including expected shortfall (ES) and value at risk (VaR), showing for each hour that the number of flights can exceed planned levels by a certain number. The study finds that in Germany and Belgium at 13:00 h there is a 5% worst-case possibility of having averages of 683 and 246 flights, respectively. The method proposed is useful for planning under uncertainties. It is conducive to efficient airspace management, so risk indicators help Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) to plan for low-probability situations in which there may be large numbers of flights.

Design Of Fuel Dumping Area at PERUM LPPNPI of Samarinda Sub-Branch

This study aims to determine and design the appropriate location for aircraft to dump fuel to support Air Traffic Controllers (ATC) in air traffic services. The research was conducted at Perum LPPNPI of Samarinda Sub Branch, where fuel dumping area is not yet available in the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). The method used is the Research and Development (RnD) level 1 research method. The population in this study is ATC personnel of Perum LPPNPI of Samarinda Sub Branch. The sample selection in this study used techniques such as Simple Random Sampling and Purposive Sampling. The sample is ATC personnel of Perum LPPNPI of Samarinda Sub Branch, Academic Lecturers, and Procedure for Air Navigation Services and Aircrfat Operations (PANS OPS) experts at Airnav Indonesia Head Office. Data collection techniques used are documentation studies and interviews. The data analysis technique used are data reduction, data presentation, and verification. The results of this study show that the design of the Fuel Dumping Area must pay attention to the airspace around the design area. According to the results of interviews, the author places the fuel dumping area in south east Samarinda. The existence of a fuel dumping area can improve the quality of service and safety of air traffic.

Rostering of air traffic controllers – current practices in Europe, key performance trade-offs and future opportunities

The process of staff planning and rostering is one of the key factors affecting the performance of an Air Navigation Service Provider in terms of capacity and cost-efficiency delivered to airspace users. This paper gives a summary of previous works and current rostering practices applied at Area Control Centres (ACCs) in Europe. Furthermore, it identifies key trade-offs between rostering flexibility, capacity and productivity by establishing a relationship between ACC demand, rostering flexibility in place and the number of Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOs) needed, as well as by exploring how varying rostering practices applied in ACCs affect spare capacity in the system. To that end, an initial mathematical model for optimizing ATCO staffing requirements has been proposed and tested on a case study involving three representative ACCs, reflecting different hourly variability in demand. The results suggest that - for different combinations of shift patterns and capacity profiles - substantial variation exists in both the minimum number of ATCOs and the associated spare ACC capacity. It has also been shown that a certain amount of spare capacity is inevitably present in the system due to inability to perfectly match ATCO hours with demand. Different options and enablers for exploiting such capacity are also discussed in the paper.

Design Of Helicopter Entry Point At Perum LPPNPI Kendari Branch

This research aims to design a helicopter entry point design that matches the needs of users at Kendari Airport. The method that will be used in this research is the Research and Development method, to be precise Research and Development Level 1. The population used in this research are ATC personnel at Perum LPPNPI Kendari Branch, expert teaching staff in the ATC field, and experts in Procedures for Air Navigation Services and Aircraft Operations (PANS-OPS). Data collection techniques used are documentation studies and interviews. The data processing technique used is the data analysis technique which consists of data reduction, data presentation, and verification. The author made this design based on the applicable rules using the AutoCAD 2022 application media, Global Mapper, and Google Earth Pro. At present, there is no helicopter entry point at Perum LPPNPI Kendari Branch, so when the air traffic controller provides service to the helicopter it will make confusion for the helicopter pilot regarding the flight path that must be passed for the approach.

A quasi-dynamic air traffic assignment model for mitigating air traffic complexity and congestion for high-density UAM operations

In spite of the significant effects of COVID-19, UAM operations are still expected to grow smoothly and healthily in the near future. If such dense UAM traffic relies on tactical planning to resolve conflicts in a decentralized control scheme, urban airspace could soon be heavily congested and airspace complexity could be overwhelming. In this paper, we propose a Quasi-dynamic Air Traffic Assignment (QATA) model, which aims to allocate traffic flows among air routes in the planning horizon in order to organize UAM traffic flows and reduce air traffic congestion and complexity within a centralized strategic planning scheme while meeting the demand and respecting some criteria. Firstly, UAM traffics are modeled as flows that operate on a 3D two-way UAM route network. Next, the QATA problem is formulated as an optimization problem involving network dynamics to minimize the air traffic complexity evaluated by the linear dynamical system and congestion defined by traffic density and energy consumption. A simulation-based rolling horizon framework is introduced to decompose the QATA problem into several modified static air traffic assignment problems in each time interval. In order to overcome the limitations of conventional dynamic traffic assignment algorithms, a simulated annealing algorithm using parallel computing and a novel neighborhood generation strategy is proposed to efficiently optimize the problem. By applying the model to a pre-designed large-scale UAM route network in Singapore’s urban airspace, Experimental studies demonstrate the performance of the proposed framework and its applicability. Parallel computing can achieve up to three times faster than the original algorithm. The proposed algorithm significantly reduces the value of the objective function by (32.20±0.29)% in 143.47±3.74 seconds at the 95% confidence interval of 100 experiments, far better compared to the representative conventional dynamic traffic assignment algorithms. This study could be useful to assist air traffic control authorities and air navigation service providers in addressing various issues in unmanned traffic management.

Application of Severe Weather Nowcasting to Case Studies in Air Traffic Management

Effective and time-efficient aircraft assistance and guidance in severe weather environments remains a challenge for air traffic control. Air navigation service providers around the globe could greatly benefit from specific and adapted meteorological information for the controller position, helping to reduce the increased workload induced by adverse weather. The present work proposes a radar-based nowcasting algorithm providing compact meteorological information on convective weather near airports for introduction into the algorithms intended to assist in air-traffic management. The use of vertically integrated liquid density enables extremely rapid identification and short-term prediction of convective regions that should not be traversed by aircraft, which is an essential requirement for use in tactical controller support systems. The proposed tracking and nowcasting method facilitates the anticipation of the meteorological situation around an airport. Nowcasts of centroid locations of various approaching thunderstorms were compared with corresponding radar data, and centroid distances between nowcasted and observed storms were computed. The results were analyzed with Method for the Object-Based Evaluation from the Model Evaluation tools software (MET-10.0.1, Developmental Testbed Center, Boulder, CO, US) and later integrated into an assistance arrival manager software, showing the potential of this approach for automatic air traffic assistance in adverse weather scenarios.

The Impact of Cloud Computing on Firms: A Case Study of Cloud Adoption in Saudi Airline Navigation Services Company

The world has become increasingly digital. Companies rely on technology to assist them in improving their business processes. They are searching for an information system capable of handling massive work. An Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP) comes into play at this point. Most ERP systems have been implemented on-premise, also known as traditional ERP systems. ERP system offers a variety of advantages, including integrated submodules, mature system functionality, and enhanced customization and integration capabilities. Other software applications have shifted to cloud computing over the past decade, which has become one of the fastest-growing segments of the IT industry. In addition, cloud computing is a modern trend that reveals the architecture of the next generation of applications. In this paper, we present a case study of Saudi Air Navigation Services company regarding their migration to cloud computing, highlighting the key concepts and services that cloud computing provides today and its impact on their businesses. This research aims to provide a better understanding of the cloud computing transformation.