Affiliations: Institut für Meteorologie und Klimatologie, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover, Germany
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Prof. Dr. Thomas Hauf, Institut für Meteorologie und Klimatologie, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Herrenhäuser Str. 2, 30419 Hannover, Germany. Tel.: +49 511 7622678; Fax: +49 511 7624418; E-mail: hauf@muk.uni-hannover.de
Abstract: Concept and first results are presented of a model development DIVMET for providing guidance for two-dimensional, horizontal navigation of an aircraft on an arbitrary prescribed flight level around or through adverse weather. In this paper we focus on thunderstorms but a later model development will allow for other weather hazards such as icing or volcanic ash. Adverse weather is represented as impermeable polygons on vertically staggered horizontal planes. The model concept maps the joint decision making process of pilot and air traffic controller into an algorithm, which encompasses (1) the recognition of thunderstorms within the pilot's field of view. The latter may consist either of the typical on-board weather radar display of varying range, or of the visible range determined by atmospheric conditions, or of the spatially unlimited “full view”. DIVMET then (2), in accordance with international flight rules, applies a minimum safety distance to any recognized adverse weather object, and (3) determines a reasonably short route not only around a single weather object but also through a whole field of them. Finally (4), DIVMET moves the aircraft purely kinematic along the previously determined diverted route ignoring so far any potential aircraft-aircraft conflicts. That movement may also be achieved by an externally coupled air traffic model which then also avoids the latter conflicts, accounts for aircraft performance and thus enables to study the combined effect of weather and traffic. Here we present the concept of the path finding through a storm field from a meteorological perspective and outline its potential applications.
Keywords: Air Traffic Management (ATM), Collaborative Decision Making (CDM), thunderstorm, horizontal circumnavigation
