Take-off Support Lights: A Pilot Support System for Super Close Runway Operations (SupeRO)

In order to cope with future capacity bottlenecks, the Institute of Flight Guidance of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) is developing the Super Close Runway Operations (SupeRO) concept. In the near term, this concept provides for segregated operation of two very closely spaced parallel lanes, i.e. arrivals on one runway and departures on the other. A precisely timed beginning of the take-off run will support the capacity increasing effects of SupeRO significantly. For this reason, a pilot support system, the so-called Take-off Support Lights, was developed and subsequently validated with airline pilots in the Generic Experimental Cockpit Simulator of the DLR. The trials showed that a large proportion of pilots would prefer the Take-off Support Lights to the current procedure using radiotelephony. Evaluation of the simulator data also supports the use of Take-off Support Lights when operating the SupeRO concept. The times between the transmission of the respective signal for take-off clearance and the subsequent reaction of the pilots in the form of applying thrust could be reduced by an average of up to 77 percent compared to the standard procedure via radiotelephony. In the case of a request to abort the take-off, which can also be signaled by the Take-off Support Lights, the braking reaction times could be improved by an average of up to 27 percent compared to the standard procedure.