ATM Controller Support in Case of Spatious Severe Weather Constellations Illustrated Using Two Airspace Examples

An Extended Arrival Manager and an air traffic controller's radar display were expanded with procedures and functionalities needed to support approach controllers and pilots in severe weather situations. The sequencing and the 4D trajectory calculation processes can start long before the top of descent and consider available weather information and forecasts for more reliable approach planning. Moreover, the route planning can already be adjusted before convection zones develop when the weather forecast has a sufficient quality and current weather measurements and short-term forecasts - nowcasts - by different weather models are combined. As a consequence, a route change request by the pilot can often be avoided. Weather animations using both measured and predicted weather data can be activated on the radar screen to increase air traffic controller's situational awareness of the meteorological development in the airspace in certain situations. These support functionalities were then applied to the airports Munich and Milano/Malpensa. The corresponding airspaces were implemented in an Extended Arrival Manager and a traffic simulation environment to illustrate benefits of a controller support in the case of severe weather conditions.