Non-Speech Audio to Communicate Runway Status

This paper describes a concept that uses non-speech audio to communicate an aircraft's status on and directly above airport runways. This concept seeks to restore airport capacity lost during low visibility weather conditions, without increasing the controller's visual processing workload. This paper describes three activities conducted as part of the concept development process: a needs analysis, a benefits analysis simulation, and a human-in-the-loop simulation. A scenario-based needs analysis with subject matter experts revealed that information critical for capacity included whether a runway was occupied and whether an aircraft was airborne. A benefits analysis simulation showed that if having this information could release the air traffic controller from dependence on pilot reports in low visibility, it could result in a considerable capacity gain. A subsequent HITL simulation sought to evaluate controller operational acceptance and investigate capacity improvements. The results showed that the controllers found value in the concept, but the objective capacity data did not provide conclusive results. This paper concludes with discussion of possible future work for developing the concept.