New NASA software to assist air traffic controllers was presented to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) at a special ceremony in Washington.
TSS (Terminal Sequencing and Spacing) technology will allow controllers to better manage distances between aircraft, aiming for more economical and efficient approaches to airports, saving fuel and reducing emissions.
TSS is another step in NASA's support for the development of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) - a collaborative effort of agencies and industry companies to modernize and upgrade the U.S. air traffic control system.
"With TSS, NASA's aeronautics pioneers are delivering another valuable tool to the FAA that will soon benefit the environment, the economy and every individual traveler," said Jaiwon Shin, NASA administrator.
This software allows the introduction of so-called Performance Based Navigation procedures, which aim to reduce course and altitude changes, while reducing the need for communications between controllers and pilots.
The TSS provides information to controllers on the speeds they should "assign" to aircraft as they follow fuel-efficient descent routes to the runway, while they are operating within the airport's TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control) airspace, with a radius of 80 kilometers.
NASA's Airspace Systems Program, part of the agency's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, began the research that led to the development of the TSS in 2009, with prototype development beginning in 2011.
The TSS was then tested in 16 high-fidelity simulations, including controllers and pilots. The FAA is seeking to establish the tool's use within the next five years.
Source: defencenet.gr
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