Semi-Continuous Descent Operation: A Fuel-Efficient Interval Management Algorithm

Abstract

This paper presents a fuel-efficient interval management algorithm called semi-continuous descent operation (semi-CDO) to support air traffic controllers in issuing altitude and velocity instructions to arriving aircraft to ensure proper separation. The control logic of semi-CDO is stated as an optimization problem of minimizing the fuel consumption of the descending trajectory based on the prediction model under the separation constraints. Numerical experiments simulating the arrival traffic at Kansai International Airport in Japan were performed to verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. The results showed that semi-CDO achieves the fuel-efficient descent for multiple arrival aircraft while maintaining proper separation between them.