Optimal re-routing of aircraft around closed airspace in free flight

Nowadays, airspace users have very little say in determining alternative routes in the case of airspace closure. Traffic managers have little understanding of how a re-route might affect airspace users. The decisions they make are based on safety, not on efficiency (especially from the user's point of view). Some tools have been developed to aid traffic managers in decision making, but since authority with the current air traffic control system still lies with 'ground-based' Air Traffic Control (ATC), regarding safety as the only goal to be achieved, none of them lead to a truly optimal solution for the 'air-based' airspace users. This is where the combination of the concept of free flight and a re-routing tool can be a very powerful one in the future: moving authority and responsibility for re-routing from the ground to the air, thus yielding an optimal solution for all users involved. The main goal of this research project is to analyse optimal re-routing options of aircraft in a free flight environment in the case of airspace closure, develop software for re-routing aircraft around the closed airspace (including a module for conflict resolution on its rim) and demonstrate the software's feasibility and potential for installation on-board future 'free flight' aircraft.