Coordinated capacity and demand management in a redesigned ATM value chain. Strategic network capacity planning under demand uncertainty

We present a model and a numerical example to analyse capacity decisions within a re-designed Air Traffic Management (ATM) value-chain. We assume a new role for the Network Manager (NM), having contractual relations with Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) and Aircraft Operators (AOs). The NM orders en-route airspace capacity from ANSPs at strategic level and defines/adjusts sector opening schemes at pre-tactical level (capacity management). On the demand side, the NM offers trajectory products to AOs, which are defined based on both AOs’ business/operational needs and network performance goals (demand management). In this context, we develop a mathematical model which underlines a part of this joint capacity and demand management process. The model aims at minimizing the sum of cost of capacity provision and cost of delays and re-routings, by managing airspace sector configuration over time and trajectory assignments. We use a realistic numerical study on a small-scale network to illustrate joint capacity and demand management decisions, as well as trade-offs between different performance indicators