• 

Airspace Operations and Safety Program 

Akbar Sultan 

Director, Airspace Operations and Safety Program 

Cheryl Quinn 

Deputy Director, Airspace Operations and Safety Program Pre-Decisional: For NASA Internal Use Only 
• 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ATD-2: Objectives† 

TC: Develop and deliver an integrated metroplex traffic manager to the FAA NextGen and Air Traffic 

Organizations, flight operators, and airport operators, that leverages NASA, FAA and industry technologies to 

enable simultaneous improvement of the predictability and efficiency of arrival, departure and surface 

operations 

• DEVELOP an integrated arrival/departure/surface (IADS) prediction, scheduling and management 

system for a metroplex environment 

• ENABLE use of collaborative decision-making that is consistent with FAA's Surface Collaborative 

Decision Making (CDM) ConOps 

– through increased information sharing of prediction and scheduling information between airport, flight 

operator, and ATC 

• QUANTIFY current day shortfalls and evaluate the system-level performance for benefits in terms of 

predictability, efficiency, and throughput 

– using metrics established by NASA and stakeholders 

• DEMONSTRATE the ATD-2 technologies in an operationally relevant environment with system capable 

of performing under continuous daily use 

• TRANSFER an integrated set of technologies to the FAA, airlines, airports, and suppliers 

† paraphrase of ATD-2 Level 1 System Requirements 2 
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•~1-~ 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 

ATD-2 Phase 3: TOS-based Digital Departure Reroutes 

3 

Preconfigure TOS Parameters 

• ATC and operators identify acceptable alternative routes 

• Alternative routes codified in ATD-2 system 

• Operator-specific Relative Trajectory Cost (RTC) algorithms 

codified in ATD-2 system 

Candidate TOSs are Presented to Operators 

• ATD-2 system assesses delay savings on alternative routes 

• Candidate TOSs identified when RTC thresholds are met 

• Operator selects and submits TOS request to ATC 

Delay savings > Relative Trajectory Cost ? 

2 Terminal Predictive Engine Monitors Demand & Capacity 

4 Operator Submitted TOSs Presented to ATC 

• ATC is notified of the Operator submitted TOS route 

• ATC evaluates the TOS routes for operational feasibility 

• If approved, all users are notified, the filed route is 

amended, and pilots are cleared on the TOS route 

ATD-2 system 

continuously assesses 

demand/capacity 

imbalance 

5 Post Ops Eval 

• Benefits 

• Lessons 

• Refinements 

• Analyses 

• Reports 

3 
 

 

 

 

 

Example of ATD-2 Phase 3 TOS Digital Reroute 

• Southwest 2230 was initially filed on the magenta 

route 

• ATD-2 projected surface delay due to constraints on 

the west departure gate 

• Based on Southwest’s TOS preferences, ATD-2 

recommended the orange re-route out the north 

gate 

• Even though the orange route is 37nm longer, 

Southwest 2230 flight saved 7 minutes of surface 

delay by taking the alternate reroute 

DAL 

PDX 

DAL 

DFW 

3 of 4 westside departure 

fixes closed 

On July 22, 2019, Southwest 2230 flew 

Dallas (DAL) to Portland (PDX) on the 

first reroute approved using the ATD-2 

Phase 3 system. 4 
• 

Benefits totals from Phases 1 & 2 of the ATD-2 field demonstration at 

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (29 Sep 2017- 30 Sep 2020) 

Saved 

803,227 gal 

of fuel 

~ 

Reduced delay by 

704.5 hours 

Saved 

16,921,750 lbs 

of CO2 = 

125,829 

urban trees 

4,136 hours 

of en_gine ~ 

runtime <f\T 

Saving passengers an estimated 

$3,381,757 in value of time and 

operators an estimated 

$987,009 in flight crew costs 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ATD-2 Phase 3 – Status 

Develop an integrated arrival/departure/surface (IADS) prediction, scheduling and management 

system for a metroplex environment 

• ATD-2 Phase 3 system was ready for 2020 stormy season operational evaluation despite COVID19 constraints 

– Software development, checkout, deployment and user training completed on schedule 

– Novel approach to deliver training and end-user tech support remotely 

• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, FY2020 air traffic volume was dramatically reduced such that 

there was insufficient data to demonstrate 

the ATD-2 Phase 3 Technologies 

– Project was extended for one year to collect 

data in summer 2021 

– FAA ZFW ARTCC/D10 TRACON/DFW 

Tower/DAL Tower, DFW Airport, DAL Airport, 

American Airlines, Envoy Air, Southwest 

Airlines, and NATCA ready and prepared 

for 2021 operational evaluation 

5 
SOUTHWEST 

AIRLINES 

""'F\A/ Loi VY 

·~ 

---~ 

Dallas Love Field 

~ CDM -·~ 

~ Collaborative Decision Making 

 

ATD2 Partnerships / Stakeholders 

6 

Alaska 

American 

Southwest 

United 

DFW 

CLT 

NextGen Organization 

Air Traffic Organization 

• Decision Support Programs 

• Surveillance & Broadcast Services 

• System Requirements 

• System Operations 

Flight 

Operators 

Solution 

Providers 

Airport 

Operators 

FAA 

Boeing 

Honeywell 

NATCA 

PASS 

DLR 

KARI 

International 

FAA 

Labor 

Unions 

FAA 

Industry 

Forums 

NASA 

ATD 

Project 

Industry 
ATD-1 FLIGHT TEST 

Dynamic Routes for Amvals in 

Weather (DRAW) 

Tech translerto FAA s Time Based 

Flow Management /TBFM) program 

Traffic Aware Strategic A;rcrew 

Requests (TASAR) 

Tech transfer to Electronic Flight 

&,g (EFB) and avionics vendors 

'"=.:~.. ' 

Flight Deck 

t'. • 

_ ..,... _ • __ :::: __ ar• ~ ---_-_'::: :11.11-~ ' - ------ ~ ­ , Air Traffic Con 

------ Multi-f'llght Common Route (MFCR) 

Airline Op Center 

Tech transferto FAA's Traffic Flow Management Sysrem (TFMS) program 

Tech transfer to developers of n,grit planning and management tools tor 

airline dispetchers 

NASA prototype ,s called 

Traffic Aware Planner (TAP) 

Multi-Agent AJrJGround 

Integrated Coordination 

(MAAGIC) 

Tech transfer to providers 

of Integrated solutions for 

night operators 

NASA prototype 1s celled 

NAS Constraint Evaluation 

and Nol1hcauon Tool 

(NASCENT) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Additional NextGen Accomplishments 

• Terminal Sequencing and Spacing (TSAS) and Flight 

Deck Interval Management (FIM) – ATD1 

– Forecast $500 million national fuel savings 

– FAA national deployment in Time Based Flow 

Management (TBFM) starting with Denver in 2020 

• Efficient re-routes around weather which are more 

direct, fuel-efficient, wind optimal, conflict free, and 

avoid congested airspace – ATD3 

– Multi-flight Common Routes (MFCR) and Dynamic Routing 

Around Weather (DRAW) informing FAA Traffic Flow 

Management System (TFMS) 

• Low-altitude small UAS operations in dense urban 

environments 

– Reno, NV, June 17-28, 2019 and Corpus Christi, TX, 

August 12-23, 2019 

– Enable FAA’s UTM Pilot Program and UAS 

Integration Pilot Program 

Source: Boeing 
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29 92 IN 

CAST I The Commercial Aviation 

Safety Team 

• 

 

 

 

 

Flight Deck and Pilot Safety Technologies 

Technologies for Airplane State Awareness 

Complete research specified for six Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST) 

Safety Enhancements to reduce loss-of-control events 

CAST SE TASA Technical Area 

207 State and Prediction Technologies 

• Prediction and alerting for loss of control Attitude & Energy and spatial disorientation State Awareness • Crew and system interactions 

208 

Airplane Systems 

Awareness 

209 

Simulator Fidelity 

Simulator Fidelity 

• Refine simulator modeling requirements 

for stall training 

210 

Flight Crew 

Performance Data 

Flight Crew Performance 

• Tools and methods to collect and analyze 

flight crew performance 

211 

Training for Attention 

Management 

Training for Attention Management 

• Detect and measure attention limitations 

• Develop methods and guidelines for 

training scenarios 

200 

Virtual Day-VMC 

Displays 

Virtual Day-VMC Displays 

• Technologies and standards for displays 

under upset or loss of control conditions 

8 
FAA 

ATD Technology & Knowledge Transfers 

Flight Operations 

Flight Deck 

FIM (2017) 

9 
Market: Large UAS & HALE 

Supersonic 

Manned Aircraft 

HALE UAS 

Class A 

Airspace 

Future Airspace with Dramatically Varied Users 
Vl 

QJ 

> 

~ 

::J 

u 

I 

V} 

Evolution of Airspace Operations and Safety 

sofetY 

Procedural 

Estimate the current 

and planned a/c 

positions 

Radar 

: Know the current and estimate : 

planned a/c positions 

Human-centered safety mo~itoring, assessment and mitigation 

Highly-Automated 

MUAI - based dynamic, robust 

performance and safety 

Machine-to-machine 

interactions and humans 

collaborate 

Trajectory 

Know & exchange 

current and planned a/c 

positions 

Digital Transformation of ATM 

Automated in-time safety Integrated predictive risk Automatically-assured adaptive 

monitoring and alerting services mitigation across domains in-time safety threat management 

Collaborative 

Con ected, 

performance-based, 

collaborative ATM 

Introduces 3rd-party 

service providers 

. oriented 

+ serv1~e cture for 

orch1ted rnission 

toilore d services 

oriente 

Epoch 1 Epoch 2 Epoch 3 Epoch 4 Epoch 5 

(~2035) (~2045) 
 

 

 

 

ATM 

Capabilities and requirements 

to enable transformation of 

the NAS -

Commercial 

Transports 

High 

Altitude 

Airspace 

Supersonics 

Autonomous Cargo 

Initial UAM 

Mature UAM 

XTM 

Capa'Sffiifes and 

requirements to enable 

new vehicles and concepts 

of operation 

Enabling Safe, Scalable Airspace Access for Diverse Mobility Solutions 

In-time Aviation Safety Management System Safety Demonstrators: 

• Airline Operations Center Integrated Multi-Parameter Safety Dashboard 

• Disaster Monitoring and First Responder 

• Urban to Rural Medical Emergencies and Forest Fires 

• Urban emergency response in a major disaster