Model-Based Simulation for Design of nn Airport Autonomous Approach and Landing System

Spacing on the final approach segment while landing at an airport is critical to safe and efficient operations. Spacing on this segment is subject to a large number of stochastic factors that affect the ability of pairs of landing flights to achieve and maintain a desired separation. Due to the combinatorics of these stochastic factors, rule‐based automation cannot meet the performance requirements or adapt as the system characteristics migrate over time. Previous research described the design of a closed‐loop stochastic control system for an autonomous approach and landing system (A 2 LS) to manage spacing requirements to achieve safety and efficiency goals. This paper describes the design of a model‐based simulation used to test the A 2 LS concept‐of‐operations. The simulation includes a model of the sequence of flights on the approach, the flow spacing closed‐loop control law for the A 2 LS, and a user‐interface to adjust plant and control law parameters and visualize the results. The limitations and implications of the simulation on the Model‐based System Engineering process are discussed.