Wind-Profile Estimation Using Airborne Sensors

Wind is one of the major contributors to uncertainties while flying continuous-descent operations. When aircraft are issued a required time of arrival over the runway threshold, as is foreseen in some of the future air-traffic-system concepts, the onboard availability of both dependable and accurate wind estimates becomes a necessity for spacing. This paper presents a method for real-time estimation of a wind profile in the terminal maneuvering area, based on data transmitted by nearby aircraft. The algorithm produces high-resolution and real-time wind-profile estimates, usable for accurate trajectory prediction to improve continuous-descent operations and spacing performance. The wind-estimation algorithm is tested with mode-S derived meteorological data from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. It combines multiple measurements from different aircraft to estimate the current wind profile using a Kalman filter. Using these wind-observation data, the algorithm showed an rms in the estimation error of 1.35 kt, which is lower than the observed rms measurement error of 1.94 kt, reducing the uncertainty when used in trajectory prediction. Another simulation study investigating aircraft spacing showed a clear benefit of using accurate wind estimates along the own trajectory by reducing the spacing time error and improving control space.