Multiple Aircraft in a multi-criteria Trajectory Optimization

In recent years, the optimization of the trajectory has developed into a philosophical problem with arbitrary objective functions and assumptions made by conflicting stakeholders. What has remained since 1987 is that trajectories that have been locally optimized in advance must share an airspace that is severely limited by the local optima without getting into conflicts. This problem is now being solved on various numerical scales by various entities with differently weighted foci on either the (local) trajectory side or the (global) interaction side. Most of the approaches make some serious compromises on the non-focused side. The simulation-based environment for single aircraft trajectory optimization, TOMATO, has been developed for high accuracy of optimized single trajectories and has now been expanded for aircraft separation concerns. In this study, TOMATO is used to construct a set of single optimum conflict-free trajectories. By identifying overloaded airspaces, determining main tracks in overloaded airspace, and providing track- and flight level-specific airspace costs, we could reduce the number of overloaded airspaces from 9 to 2 and the total number of potential conflicts from 336 to 198 without a significant increase in fuel burn or flight time. The approach could be used in decision support tools for a network manager by providing feedback for flight planning and air traffic service entities.