Concept for multiple operations at non-tower non-radar airports during instrument meteorological conditions

A concept for multiple operations during Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC) at non-tower, non-radar airports is described. The objective is to provide an automated service which supports separation assurance for aircraft operating in the airport airspace. This type of service enables the use of a large number of airfields which currently have limited use in IMC. The service must be provided with minimal infrastructure and at low cost. The concept is based on a centralized automated airport management module and distributed, on-board navigation tools. The airport management module serves as an arbiter and sequencer. It receives requests from aircraft via a data link and grants or denies access. The airport management module also provides estimated times of arrival when access is granted and an "expect further clearance" time when access is denied. On-board avionics tools provide situational awareness and generate advisories to be able to meet estimated times of interval. The concept is being developed such that operation into and out of the non-tower, non-radar airport are compatible with the existing National Airspace System (NAS). A system simulation has been developed based on this concept. This article describes the system functionality, system requirements, and operations. Preliminary results of the system simulation with various aircraft mixes, wind speed and directions, and arrival rates are presented. The work presented in this paper does not describe the SATS HVO concept of operations based on Small Aircraft Transportation System (2003). It is a feasibility study and used to develop methods for verification.