Evaluating Air Traffic Controllers’ Workload Through Computer Simulations

Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) has become one of the key technologies in modern-izing the National Airspace System (NAS) by enhancing air traffic surveillance and improving situational awareness. In this study, we used the Global Oceanic Model - a fast-time computer simulation tool- to evaluate the potential workload of air traffic controllers (ATC) using satellite-based ADS-B and reduced separation standards in the North Atlantic (NAT) oceanic airspace. This study uses two metrics to quantify the potential ATC workload. First, the number of tactical resolution maneuvers (changing flight levels, changing Mach number and lateral deviations) used by ATC to resolve potential conflicts. Second, the number of events that ATC need to monitor when aircraft pairs are located within a protection boundary of 50% above the separation minima. Our results show that equipping aircraft with ADS-B technologies can reduce the ATC workload and increase the efficiency and capacity in the NAT airspace.