Best Practice in Asia Pacific

Arrivals Management

Continuous Descent Arrivals (CDAs) and Tailored Arrivals (TAs)

Continuous Descent Arrivals are a flight descent procedure that has been optimised so that the aircraft can be flown with engines at idle thrust from a high altitude - potentially from cruise - until touch down on the runway.

A variety of CDAs have been developed for air traffic management purposes through the careful analysis of traffic patterns, aircraft descents and performance and airspace restrictions. This includes the modification of published standard arrival routes. 

Another form of CDA is known as a Tailored Arrival. This is a procedure where trajectories are dynamically optimized for each aircraft to permit a fuel-efficient, low-noise descent that will provide separation assistance and meet arrival sequencing requirements and other airspace constraints.

Aircraft executing a CDA realise far more efficient fuel burn during the descent and arrivals phase of flight, as compared to a traditional arrival path.

Performance Based Navigation (PBN) Separation

Performance Based Navigation procedures enable aircraft and airports to utilise CDAs and TAs and optimise efficiency in the terminal environment. For more information about PBN please see the Oceanic Flight page.

Required Time of Arrival Management

A sophisticated sequencing tool is required in order to achieve consistent CDAs and TAs.  This tool needs to take advantage of the RTA function and Flight Management System (FMS) calculations of suitably equipped aircraft, and be able to accommodate non-equipped aircraft.  Modeling tools able to compute four dimensional (4D) trajectories for aircraft of varying equipages and share that information with all stakeholders will be required.