Flight trajectories comparison in the Baltic FAB

Abstract

Aviation is one of the types of transport which has a crucial role in the modern world and develops with unprecedent speed. As the number of flights tends to increase, the Air Traffic Management (ATM) system has to ensure the safety of these flights and effectiveness of them. The design and use of the European routes and use of the air route network are considered to be a major causal factor of flight inefficiencies in the continent. The present ATM system needs to be reorganised to satisfy airspace operator needs and maintain safety levels, because of the recent and future predicted traffic growth and not always satisfactory indicators of the efficiency of the ATM system.The airspace is currently fragmented along national borders that is why the efficiency of flights is not assured i.e. to perform flights along optimal trajectories avoiding delays, excessive fuel burn and emissions. One of the conditions for ATM system to be more effective is connection of the airspace blocks, into Functional Airspace Blocks (FAB), within which more efficient flight could be conducted based on more direct routes connecting entry and exit points of the FAB. According to the analysis on European and US ATM systems, where the European ATM system is the sum total of a large number of separate Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSP) whereas the US system is operated by a single ANSP, it was analysed and stated that the less fragmentation there is, the more efficient flights are.The focus of this paper is to show the differences between fixed routes and direct trajectories (Great Circle) in the Baltic FAB in terms of flight distance, fuel burn and emission. The airspace is currently fragmented along national borders that is why the efficiency of flights is not assured i.e. to perform flights along optimal trajectories avoiding delays, excessive fuel burn and emissions. One of the conditions for ATM system to be more effective is connection of the airspace blocks, into Functional Airspace Blocks (FAB), within which more efficient flight could be conducted based on more direct routes connecting entry and exit points of the FAB. According to the analysis on European and US ATM systems, where the European ATM system is the sum total of a large number of separate Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSP) whereas the US system is operated by a single ANSP, it was analysed and stated that the less fragmentation there is, the more efficient flights are. The focus of this paper is to show the differences between fixed routes and direct trajectories (Great Circle) in the Baltic FAB in terms of flight distance, fuel burn and emission.

Aviacija – viena iš greitai augančių transporto šakų, kuri yra svarbi šiuolaikiniame moderniajame pasaulyje. Kadangi skrydžių nuolatos daugėja, oro eismo valdymo (OEV) sistema turi užtikrinti skrydžių saugą ir efektyvumą. Europos oro maršrutų išdėstymas ir naudojimas laikomi svarbiausiais skrydžių neefektyvumo veiksniais žemyne. Dėl esamo ir numatomo oro eismo augimo ir ne visados patenkinamų OEV sistemos efektyvumo rodiklių esama OEV sistema turi būti reorganizuota, siekiant užtikrinti oro erdvės naudotojų poreikius ir palaikyti reikalingą saugos lygį.Šiuo metu oro erdvė yra sudalyta pagal kiekvienos šalies valstybines ribas, dėl to skrydžių efektyvumas nėra optimalus, t. y. atliekami skrydžiai nevykdomi pagal optimalias trajektorijas vengiant užlaikymų, mažinant naudojamo kuro sąnaudas ir emisijas. Viena sąlyga, siekiant OEV sistemą padaryti efektyvesnę, – sujungti oro erdvės blokus į funkcinius oro erdvės blokus (FOEB), kur skrydžiai būtų vykdomi tiesesniais maršrutais tarp įskridimo ir išskridimo į FOEB taškų.Atlikus Europos OEV ir JAV sistemų analizę matyti, kad Europos OEV sistema susideda iš daugybės atskirtų oro navigacijos paslaugų teikėjų, o JAV sistemą valdo vienas oro navigacijos paslaugų teikėjas. Konstatuota, kad ten, kur fragmentacija mažesnė, skrydžių efektyvumas didesnis.Straipsnio tikslas – parodyti skirtumus tarp fiksuotųjų ir laisvųjų maršrutų Baltijos funkciniame oro erdvės bloke skrydžių atstumo, sunaudojamo kuro ir emisijų faktoriais.