Enabling 4-dimensional trajectory based operations of manned and unmanned aircraft

This article presents the conceptual design of an innovative ground-based Air Traffic Management (ATM) system providing automated 4-Dimensional Trajectory (4DT) Planning, Negotiation and Validation (4-PNV) functionalitities. The 4-PNV system is conceived to operationally deploy the multi-objective optimisation, negotiation and validation of 4DT intents in combination with Next Generation Flight Management Systems (NG-FMS) on board manned aircraft and Next-Generation Mission Management Systems (NG-MMS) for Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS). In this article we focus on the 4-PNV functionalities required for mixed fleet optimized Arrival Management (AMAN) operations. Simulation case studies in representative complex scenarios show that the adopted negotiation algorithms achieve feasible, efficient and safe 4DT solutions well within the timeframe of online tactical rerouting tasks, meeting the set design requirements.