A next generation architecture for air traffic management systems

In an effort to increase the efficiency and safety of air travel while accommodating the growing demand for air traffic, the aviation community is working towards designing next generation Air Traffic Management (ATM) systems. ATM will replace the completely centralized, ground based, Air Traffic Control procedures. Within ATM, the concept of Free Flight allows each aircraft to plan four dimensional trajectories in real time, thus replacing the rigid and inefficient discrete airspace structure. These changes are feasible due to GPS and various other technological innovations. In this paper, we propose a decentralized ATM architecture, where much of the current ATC functionality is moved on board each aircraft. Within this framework, we present various issues that arise in the emerging area of hybrid systems based on our work in conflict resolution strategies between aircraft, and in flight mode switching logic.