GPS technology breaks Perth Airport gridlock...?
The issue when I worked at the tower wasn't how quick we could launch them, but how quick the surrounding airspace (mainly centre) could accept them. Given the lack of radar coverage outside of about 90nm (ovbiously depending on height) meant we had to have at one point, 2 mins between departures on the same SID. That went away but we can still launch them quicker than Centre can accept them. Would more radar help? I don't know, I am but a simple tower controller 
Awol! More and better radar would be great. An extra northerley SID for diverging aircraft would be great too! (Though Bloggsy's point is noted.) The worst problems arise during IF conditions at the airport and fog on the tarmacs is almost 'terminal' to all ops. A turbo prop runway and faster launches are still needed though.
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More and better radar would be great.
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a 21 parallel runway to suit turbo props only
using left and right turns for aircraft departing on different routes could clear departing traffic more quickly
Remember, as soon as you call departures from tower your aircraft becomes 3 miles wide and 3 miles long. When you call centre its 5 miles wide and 5 miles long. Also, inbound traffic takes up the same amount of space. Then complicate the issue with different speeds. You can't have a B717 five miles behind a B146 (or anything 5 miles behind a F50
). It's a shame we can't post a video of an outbound push, because its so much easier to show then explain.
It is 'kind of ' implicit that a parallel turbo prop runway will also help with arrivals! (I didn't think I'd have to spell that out.) It would also help with departures simply because a Heavy or fast jet won't be waiting to line up (or land) when a Metro or similar is occupying a slot. (Spelling it out; - parallel ops.) It helps even more in IFR conditions when spacing is so critical to Controllers and arrivals and departures slow even further. The whole point is that if aircraft can be launched and 'retrieved' at a greater rate, then that should actually happen. Change the SIDS, STARS and routes to make it work. This requires 'action' instead of excuses. Perth does not have the worlds greatest density of air traffic, nor is it surrounded by dozens of other large airports. If you can't get enough routes and separation of aircraft in an airspace like WA possesses, then some department, person or persons are not capable of doing their jobs.
Here is a link to the Perth Airport master Plan 2009...
http://www.perthairport.com/getfile....&ObjectID=3981
Have a look at the size of the proposed parallel 03/21 that is shown.
Then have a look at where they are building warehouses.
http://www.perthairport.com/getfile....&ObjectID=3981
Have a look at the size of the proposed parallel 03/21 that is shown.
Then have a look at where they are building warehouses.
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The whole point is that if aircraft can be launched and 'retrieved' at a greater rate, then that should actually happen.
Parallel rwys help with rwy sep, thats all. If a B717 is behind a metro, it doesn't matter if it takes off from the same rwy, or a parallel one, it still has to go around the outside, by 3 miles. One landing, one taking off doesn't help the twr get departures away any quicker because they can already get departures away too fast. For departures, rwy capacity is not the limiting factor, nor is it the route structure, it is the physical volume of airspace. There is a limit to how many 5 mile circles 1000 feet high that you can put into a given volume of airspace.
Its an interesting exercise to try designing a SID/STAR scheme yourself. Draw a 40 mile circle, airport in the middle. On the circle, between 10 o'clock and 5 o'clock, mark 3 sets of gates. Each gate needs an 2 inbound (turboprop/jet) and 2 outbound points, all 5 miles apart. Now, join up each of those 12 points points with 4 rwy thresholds, keeping lateral separation or vertical with height requirements for crossovers. I thought it was easy too, until I tried it.
Interesting points Nautilus Blue. A good way to view the issue.
However...
Surely the fact that these circles (cylinders?) are moving AWAY from the airport at 150-250 knots helps a great deal?
Perth seems to make life difficult. Understood they are dealing mostly with 150 degrees of departure angle but there are similar airports elsewhere in the world that process more. I know Pearce is major issue but all capital cities have constraints.
However...
There is a limit to how many 5 mile circles 1000 feet high that you can put into a given volume of airspace.
Perth seems to make life difficult. Understood they are dealing mostly with 150 degrees of departure angle but there are similar airports elsewhere in the world that process more. I know Pearce is major issue but all capital cities have constraints.
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Surely the fact that these circles (cylinders?) are moving AWAY from the airport at 150-250 knots helps a great deal?
Unfortunately that only helps the one sector. As the circles move they become someone else's problem, so each sector works the capacity that it can. TWR can throw more at the TMA than they can handle, who in turn can throw more at ENR than they can handle. So the departure rate and capacity is set by the receiving sectors and when a lot of destiantions are off radar coverage, below ADSB coverage that necessarily means that the last bloke who can see them must have enough room/time to arrange them in a pleasing and eye catching manner for the final bit.
Defining sector capacity is a black art, in Europe we have the CTFM (Central FLow) whose job it is to blend and sequence all the aircraft trails so that aircraft arrive at the correct point in space and the correct time. With balnket radar coverage this still does not allow unfettered access to the airspace due to the volume of traffic. Example - BA travelling FRA-LHR has a slot departure time FRA which is designed to help it meet its slot arrival time at LHR. However due to bad winds, slight delays in loading etc they end up missing the DEP/ARR. End result they go round in circles at one of LHRs bed posts. And this is what happens after 20 years of experience.
Perth traffic has exploded - unforecast growth so that movements are now at 2020 levels. This traffic is being handled by the same number of control positions that were there in 1999. Very similar airspace (the Pearce areas have not diminished significantly since then) and less controllers are there than in 1999. So Perth operates with an APP, DEP, RAS and FLOW (who can only 'see' aircraft at about 160nm), these guys hand them off to one of 3 ML based ENR sectors. These numbers have not changed and nor has the TMA sectorisation since 1999.
Whilst Perth ATC may seem to make it difficult I would suggest that planning 70 departures between 0530 and 0700 is not the smartest piece of airline strategy ever. If you are in the first bunch and happen to be 15th to taxy your delay is automatically 20 minutes due to runway capacity. Add a heavy or 2 and this may blow out to 30 minutes, simply due to the number of aircraft not ATC, not procedures.
Now if you had 2 departure runways this delay would be transferred to when you are airborne due to sector capacity. Because you need to be separated by the 5nm/1000ft that NB spoke about. Be great for the TMA and the TWR, off frequency quickly!! But then the ENR guy/girl has to blend this mix, cause guess what they all want to exit radar coverage close to each other. So do we make you wait on the ground or give you an ENR hold or a track stretch? Bear in mind that at about the time you are getting to 200nm the other guys are starting back so we need to have lateral/vertical between the outbound trail and the inbound.
There is a lot more that can be done, but the present structure and design does not allow Perth the freedom to process more than they are unfortunately.
Unfortunately that only helps the one sector. As the circles move they become someone else's problem, so each sector works the capacity that it can. TWR can throw more at the TMA than they can handle, who in turn can throw more at ENR than they can handle. So the departure rate and capacity is set by the receiving sectors and when a lot of destiantions are off radar coverage, below ADSB coverage that necessarily means that the last bloke who can see them must have enough room/time to arrange them in a pleasing and eye catching manner for the final bit.
Defining sector capacity is a black art, in Europe we have the CTFM (Central FLow) whose job it is to blend and sequence all the aircraft trails so that aircraft arrive at the correct point in space and the correct time. With balnket radar coverage this still does not allow unfettered access to the airspace due to the volume of traffic. Example - BA travelling FRA-LHR has a slot departure time FRA which is designed to help it meet its slot arrival time at LHR. However due to bad winds, slight delays in loading etc they end up missing the DEP/ARR. End result they go round in circles at one of LHRs bed posts. And this is what happens after 20 years of experience.
Perth traffic has exploded - unforecast growth so that movements are now at 2020 levels. This traffic is being handled by the same number of control positions that were there in 1999. Very similar airspace (the Pearce areas have not diminished significantly since then) and less controllers are there than in 1999. So Perth operates with an APP, DEP, RAS and FLOW (who can only 'see' aircraft at about 160nm), these guys hand them off to one of 3 ML based ENR sectors. These numbers have not changed and nor has the TMA sectorisation since 1999.
Whilst Perth ATC may seem to make it difficult I would suggest that planning 70 departures between 0530 and 0700 is not the smartest piece of airline strategy ever. If you are in the first bunch and happen to be 15th to taxy your delay is automatically 20 minutes due to runway capacity. Add a heavy or 2 and this may blow out to 30 minutes, simply due to the number of aircraft not ATC, not procedures.
Now if you had 2 departure runways this delay would be transferred to when you are airborne due to sector capacity. Because you need to be separated by the 5nm/1000ft that NB spoke about. Be great for the TMA and the TWR, off frequency quickly!! But then the ENR guy/girl has to blend this mix, cause guess what they all want to exit radar coverage close to each other. So do we make you wait on the ground or give you an ENR hold or a track stretch? Bear in mind that at about the time you are getting to 200nm the other guys are starting back so we need to have lateral/vertical between the outbound trail and the inbound.
There is a lot more that can be done, but the present structure and design does not allow Perth the freedom to process more than they are unfortunately.
