A multi-agent learning approach to air traffic control

Reinforcement learning has shown that, when combined with deep learning techniques, is able to provide solutions to complex and dynamic problems. Air traffic control is considered to be an problem of such nature, which bears the question to mind; Can reinforcement learning be used to solve the problem of air traffic control. This work explores...

The Impact of Electric Aircraft Taxiing: A Probabilistic Analysis and Fleet Assignment Optimization to find Potential Cost- and Emission Reductions

On-board electric motors can be used to drastically reduce the fuel usage during the taxiing phase of aircraft, leading to cost reductions for airlines and lower amounts of harmful emissions. This study analyses the current state of this innovation and its potential impact on aviation. On a global level, full adoption of electric aircraft...

Improving Airport Taxiway Systems: Exploring challenges and opportunities based on the Amsterdam Airport Schiphol case

The almost ceaselessly growing Air Transportation System has led to concerns across airports on how to deal with this growth. Also Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AAS) experienced large increases in number of passengers and movements over the last decades: the current limit of 500,000 annual movements of the airport is (nearly) reached. Before...

Development of an Evaluation Framework to Assess Airport Demand Management Strategies

In the current economy, many airports are operating close to their maximum capacity with high utilisation rates. This raises the need for airports to implement demand management measures. This need is further exacerbated when the capacity is further limited due to weather-based capacity shortfalls. Therefore, the development of an Evaluation...

Operational Gate Allocation Using a Sliding Time Window

The steady growth of air traffic volumes and the subsequent increase of congestion at major airports require airports to increase their operational efficiency. Inefficient or the absence of gate reassignment models increase the possibility and occurrence of gate blockage and at the same time reduce the comfort of passengers as they often receive...

Capacity-based Arrival Sequencing and Trajectory Optimization for Continuous Descent Operations

Due to the rapid growth of air traffic and the corresponding increase in demanded landing capacity of airports, much research has been done on arrival scheduling and approach trajectory optimization aiming to not only maximize the effective runway throughput of an airports runway system but also significantly reduce fuel consumption. This thesis...

Point Merge: A Feasible Arrival Procedure at Brussels National Airport?

In order to efficiently accommodate the future, continuously growing air traffic demands at Brussels National Airport (EBBR), as well as to avoid an impending saturation of the terminal airspace, the concept of point merge has been identified as a potential solution. The characteristics of point merge that made it at first glance an interesting...

Humanitarian Flight Optimization

Humanitarian organisations have a goal to help people in need by providing help in all kinds of ways.<br/>Supplies and humanitarian workers have to be transported to every place where support is required. Even remote locations, where transport over conventional roads might be impossible, have to be accessible. Aviation is the solution for these...

Modelling the Effects of Gate Pit-Stops on Apron Congestion

Demand for air traffic is growing worldwide. In order to accommodate this growth, existing infrastructure such as gates should be used more efficiently. One technique to increase gate utilization is by introducing gate pit-stops. Introducing gate pit-stops leads to additional towing movements which can potentially interfere with other traffic on...

The feasibility of a fully electric aircraft towing system

Operational towing is a taxiing strategy to reduce the fuel consumption during the taxiing phase of a flight, which decreases the cost and environmental impact of taxiing. Currently, no operational electric towing systems are available that are fully electric, independent from the APU and are capable of towing both narrow- and wide-bodied...

Robust model for operational stand and gate planning Schiphol

The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of individually established buffer times, based on historical delay data, on the robustness of an operational stand and gate allocation schedule. Using flight schedules and the structural lay-out of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, a stand and gate allocation model is created using BEONTRA...

Airport Demand Management Strategies: Discrete event simulation approach for evaluation of airport demand management strategies

The master thesis is about testing the effectiveness of the Airport demand management strategies. Based on the problem of increasing pressure on airport capacity, due to the increase of the demand on flying. The goal is to find a system which supports planning of air traffic control by generating knowledge about the throughput of arrivals. A...

Optimize Landside Airport Operations Using A Discrete Event Simulation

With this research the landside departure processes of four airports have been simulated using a discrete event simulation. By increasing today’s passenger numbers the bottlenecks of each of these airports are determined. An optimization to the used equipment has been performed in order to make the process more efficient. Furthermore, the...

Aircraft Stand Capacity Model for Strategic Airport Planning: A Schiphol Case Study

The main objective of a Master Plan is to develop an integral long-term development plan to guide the future of an airport. One important element is the capacity analysis as a first step in strategic airport planning. The research commissioned by NACO is boiled down to the main research objective: to contribute to the development of Strategic...

Development Of A Preliminary Lifing Analysis Tool For The F135-PW-100 Engine

In the near future the Royal Netherlands Air Force will replace their fleet of F-16’s with the F-35. In the past the NLR has aided the Air Force with life cycle and deterioration analysis work on the F100-PW-220 engine, which powers the F-16. Understanding the physical system of the engine allows for on-condition maintenance. The same is...

Value analysis of integral bird control at an airport

The effect of pushback accuracy on static apron capacity at AAS

Schiphol Airport has to cope with a passenger demand that will double over the next 20 years. In reaction to this growth Schiphol is designing new and redesigning existing piers to increase its capacity. Besides expanding and rebuilding the apron area, more efficient ways of handling passenger<br/>air traffic movements are currently under...

A Many-objective Tactical Stand Allocation: Stakeholder Trade-offs and Performance Planning: A London Heathrow Airport Case Study

Airports are highly complex systems that can generate economic growth<br/>on their own. Accordingly, airports should take proactive actions to<br/>create a status quo between the stakeholders(the airport itself,<br/>airlines, passengers) in the tactical planning of the aircraft stand<br/>allocation. Namely, the harmonization between the...