Airport
Collaborative Decision Making (CDM)
Recommendations and Next Steps
Improving Departure Information
Exchange of CFMU Messages (FUM/DPI)
Recommendations and Next Steps
At the end of 2003, EUROCONTROL was
invited by BAA (British Airport Authorities) and Aeroportos
de Portugal SA (ANA) to investigate the potential value of implementing
CDM practices at London Heathrow Airport and Lisbon Airport in order
to further optimise the operations at the airports.
The studies involved EUROCONTROL
experts working closely with Airport partners in order to detail the
current state of operations and identify the requirements that the
airports need to fulfil in order to become CDM airports. At the same time
the experience gained at the airports was used to continue the development of
the Elements that are being defined as part of the EUROCONTROL Airport CDM
project.
At both Airports the Authorities
have accepted the Work Package 1 Reports and have agreed to continue with CDM
Implementation of the initial elements and EUROCONTROL are again assisting the
partners in this phase of the project. The following text gives
a brief description of each project and the link to the associated EEC Note.
Lisbon
Introduction
Following the successful LISBON
AIRPORT CAPACITY ENHANCEMENT PLANNING pilot exercise conducted in 2003 by
EUROCONTROL. The conclusion (document 030729-1) identified Airport CDM
implementation as a way to enhance operational efficiency of the airport with
improved information sharing between partners
The kick-off meeting of the Lisbon
CDM project was held on the 7th October
2003 with representatives from ANA, Navegacao
Aerea de Portugal (NAV), Aircraft Operators
(including Air Portugal – TAP) and ground handlers.
Interviews
and meetings with the various Stakeholders were carried out between November
2003 and March 2004 and this document was reviewed and agreed by Lisbon Airport
partners on the 28th April 2004. Following this it was agreed with
the pending EURO 2004 Championship being hosted by Portugal and coupled with
the summer 2004 busy airport schedules the project would be temporary put on
hold until September 2004.
Initial Gaps Identified
It was
determined from an early stage that the quality of arrival
information at Lisbon airport was good. This is achieved by reliable NAV data
(entry into Portuguese airspace) and continually updated by radar data
generating accurate landing estimates for the airport community. Longer range
arrival estimates will be available with the introduction of Flight Update
Messages described later.
Basically,
departure information is subject to much more parameters than arrival in
consequence departure is more difficult to predict. Uncertainty parameters such
as CTOT, limited ground handling resources, late aircraft arrival, late
passengers, lack of situational awareness etc influence the accuracy of
departure data.
Departure must refer to take off
time as well as off block time. ATC is requested to generate Target Take Off Time out of a Target Off Block Time using flexible Taxi
Time, and the CFMU is interested to get an accurate prediction of the Target
Take Off Time. Obtaining a more accurate
Off Block Time (TOBT) can be achieved by updating the events (milestones) that
occur during a turn-round and providing that information to the concerned
partners CSA (Common Situational Awareness).
Common situational awareness gives a
better view of partners intentions, thus departure
management will become more efficient – better punctuality, reduced queuing,
enhanced resource management, fewer wasted slots and less stress for many of
the partners involved in the turn-round.
In order to reach this situation, the current system and operational
processes will need to be modified by the partners and could result in changes
to Letters of Agreement / Service Level Agreements.
Recommendations and Next Steps
The CFMU is currently
modifying their software to be able to send and receive new messages (FUM/DPI)
to/from an airport. The aim of these
messages is to enhance the overall flow of European Air Traffic by firstly
providing a CDM airport (CDM-A) with an accurate estimated landing time up to 3
hours before, and then to use an accurate take off estimate from the airport to
update the flight plan for ATFM purposes.
The airport will have to ensure that the departure data sent to the CFMU
conforms to certain requirements, therefore, it will be essential that the
airport introduces CDM applications such as the TOBT procedure and variable
taxi times in order to reach a high data quality. The messages
will be managed by the airport’s CDM platform and exchanged automatically
with the CFMU from one address at the airport.
By providing precise information on departure times, one of the main
benefits Aircraft Operators can expect to receive will be more flexibility from
the CFMU regarding slot shifting.
The foundation for CDM is for the
partners to provide and have access to accurate and timely information. There are many systems currently used by the
different partners and many feed into the main ANA interface UFIS. The
situation can be improved by linking/upgrading the current systems so that the
partners have access to a platform that displays the best data available at the
right time. Enhanced functionalities should be integrated in order to process
CFMU FUM/DPI messages.
The results from the CAMACA ( February 2005) study concerning flexible taxi times at
Lisbon Airport should be taken into consideration for the CDM platform.
Full report
EEC
Note 02/05, Collaborative Decision Making at Lisbon Airport
London Heathrow
Introduction
The project began on the
22 September 2003 and after interviews and meetings with the airport partners,
EUROCONTROL developed this document and it was reviewed and agreed by the
partners in September 2004. The document
details the current state of operations at LHR and identifies the requirements
that LHR needs to fulfil in order to become a CDM Airport (CDM-A).
Key Findings
Improving Arrival Information
Improving the information concerning
arrivals (estimates and actual times) will be the first essential step to
establishing a CDM-A platform at LHR. It is seen by the partners as a
potential quick win and will act as a catalyst towards providing accurate
departure times. The CDM project has
identified several methods of improving arrival estimates, from the Flight
Update Message (FUM) sent by the CFMU three hours before landing, to the
A-SMGCS providing instant and accurate landing and in-block times. It is important that these changes are
implemented as soon as possible in order to show the partners that CDM can make
a difference, maintaining commitment and support from the partners and
encouraging them to provide accurate departure information in return. It would also be useful for LTCC to have
access to airport information concerning arrivals, such as terminal, stand
availability and delay.
Improving Departure Information
Departure
estimates are generally more difficult to predict than arrival estimates, as
they are subject to many factors, such as late passengers, CTOT, ground
handling resources, late arrival of the aircraft etc. Analysis of Estimated Time of Departure (ETD) in June 2004 showed that
only 50% of flights departed within +-5 minutes of their ETD.
Departure can
also refer to take off time as well as off block time and here ATC and the CFMU
are interested to get an accurate prediction of the Target Take Off Time. Obtaining a
more accurate Off Block Time can be achieved by tracking key events
(milestones) that occur during a turn-round and providing that information to
the concerned partners. An accurate
Estimated In Block Time is essential to be able to estimate a turn-round time
and this can then generate a Target Off Block Time which is confirmed by
firstly the AO/GH and then adjusted by ATC (TSAT) subject to the operational
situation at the time. When an accurate
TSAT has been agreed it can be linked to a variable taxi time to provide an
accurate Target Take Off Time, which will be used by
the CFMU to enhance the European Air Traffic Flow Management.
With a
transparent view of partners intentions, departure
management will become more efficient – better punctuality, reduced queuing,
enhanced resource management, fewer wasted slots and less stress for many of
the partners involved in the turn-round.
In order to reach this situation, the current system will need to be
modified and partners will need to adapt the way they operate today, which
could result in changes to procedures and Letters of Agreement / Service Level
Agreements.
With the ever
increasing environmental pressures on the aviation industry, any mitigation
strategies deriving from CDM implementation should be capitalised on. Reduced
aircraft taxi times and queuing reduces fuel resource use, ground noise and
emissions to the atmosphere such as NOx, unburnt hydrocarbons and greenhouse gases. In addition to reducing the social and
economic burden arising from these impacts, such reductions can also alleviate
the risk or severity of local constraints and may also help to avoid breaches of
national or EU regulations. This may be of strategic importance to major
airports close to residential areas.
Improving the IT Platform
The foundation for CDM is for the partners to provide and have
access to accurate and timely information.
There are many systems currently used by the different partners and many
feed into the main BAA interface IDAHO.
A general Staff Information System (SIS) is available to most of the
partners providing arrival and departure information; however, it is generally
considered that the information on SIS is unreliable,
hard to read and inadequate for making operational decisions. The situation can be improved by
linking/upgrading the current systems so that the partners have access to a
platform that displays the best data available at the right time. Several new tools such as A-SMGCS are also
available to provide partners an improved awareness of the operational
situation and these can also be incorporated into the platform. System modifications need not be expensive as
much of the data exists at present and it could be distributed via an
intranet/extranet HMI.
With
many Airline Operation Centres (AOCs) not situated
locally, the benefits of any web based system would allow remote access to the AOCs worldwide. With a clearer picture of the local
situation at LHR operational decisions could be made a lot earlier than they
are now.
Exchange of CFMU Messages (FUM/DPI)
The CFMU is currently
modifying their software to be able to send and receive new messages (FUM/DPI)
to/from an airport. The aim of these
messages is to enhance the overall flow of European Air Traffic by firstly
providing a CDM airport (CDM-A) with an accurate estimated landing time up to 3
hours before, and then to use an accurate take off estimate from the airport to
update the flight plan for ATFM purposes.
The airport will have to ensure that the departure data sent to the CFMU
conforms to certain requirements, therefore, it will be essential that the airport
introduces CDM applications such as the TOBT procedure and variable taxi times
in order to reach a high data quality.
The messages will be managed by
the airport’s CDM platform and exchanged automatically with the CFMU from
one address at the airport. By providing
precise information on departure times, one of the main benefits Aircraft
Operators can expect to receive will be more flexibility from the CFMU
regarding slot shifting.
Recommendations and Next Steps
In April 2004 BAA took steps to commence improvements to the
arrival information based on the initial findings of this CDM study. These steps involve mainly improving the
source of information that is already provided and therefore should not
necessitate major system changes. As
previously stressed, improved arrival estimates should be the first step
towards CDM and will help to motivate partners in subsequent CDM
implementation.
Implementing changes for departures, CFMU messages and the
IT platform will require more time and complex management, as partners will
need to accept changes to their current way of working and this could mean
modifying SLA/LoAs, an element of training and
briefing partners on the changes.
It is recommended that BAA dedicates a full time Project
Manager (PM) to be responsible for implementing CDM at LHR. The PM will require technical and operational
advisors as well as the continued support of LHR CDM Working / Steering Groups
and EUROCONTROL. Due to the large amount
of on going projects at LHR (T5, preparation for the A380 and a new ATC TWR
etc.) it is appreciated that implementing CDM in one big step will be
difficult, therefore, a plan should be created that will establish a phased
implementation e.g. arrivals including inbound taxi times, TOBTs,
outbound taxi times, pre-departure sequencing and CFMU messages. A prototype HMI should be designed to help to
develop the CDM requirements and maintain the commitment by the partners.
The findings above concentrate on normal operations and
equate to the EUROCONTROL Airport CDM Levels 1 and 2. In the future, CDM could expand to include
Level 3 – CDM in adverse conditions, such as Low Visibility Procedures,
de-icing or blocked runways.
Establishing new procedures to deal with situations like these will
largely depend upon a stable CDM platform being in place and providing accurate
information.
Full report
EEC
Note 03/05, London Heathrow CDM WP1
For
further information please contact Roger
Lane