Enabling strategic planning

The aim of the ADAPT project is to adapt, create and test models and metrics that enable strategic planning (early information sharing), by providing the information on flight flexibility and network hotspots, which can eventually be integrated into the Network Operations Plan (NOP) and serve as a basis for stakeholder collaboration.

Early information sharing

A part of the capacity-demand imbalances, and consequent delays, is caused by unforeseen factors, like weather. The other part is triggered by the lack of accurate information exchange at the required time horizons. The ANSPs plan capacity provision months ahead (information not used by AUs), while the more accurate traffic demand is known on the day of operations, leading inevitably to congestion in parts of the network. In order to close this gap, we are developing a set of linked models that exploit the past and current information in the early planning stages, for mutual benefit of all stakeholders. The past and early-shared flight-route information can be used to find the best distribution of the proposed flights that respect the capacity of the proposed network configuration or configurations.

Flexibility for airspace users

Next, the trajectories obtained in this process are assigned a measure of flexibility, that we term time windows (Time windows). The time windows measure the flexibility of a flight in terms of time slack available to a flight, within which no capacity problems are expected to be created along the agreed trajectory. Apart from Time windows assigned to flights, the critical elements of the planned network configuration (i.e. sectors or airports) are also identified. Thus, already at the strategic level, an indication of the flexibility or criticality of flights and critical network elements can be obtained.
The ADAPT strategic approach will be then evaluated against the tactical horizon both at a network level and from a flight centric point of view.