Modeling Airport Flow Using Discrete Event Systems

Abstract

The performance of airport systems has become increasingly significant in a globalized world. Efficient management of aircraft flow at airports is of utmost
importance, especially from a financial perspective, and thus requires that operations be carried out as swiftly as possible to maximize aircraft productivity. To achieve this, it is crucial to understand how these operations function. To this end, a simplified airport system was modeled, considering a single runway for takeoffs and landings, taxiways for arrivals and departures, a parking apron with a capacity for six aircraft, and ground services provided after aircraft parking. This modeling utilized the Production Flow Schema (PFS) approach and Petri nets, characterizing the system as a discrete event model. This approach also enabled the programming of a logical controller using Ladder Diagram (LD). The developed model proved to be robust and easily adaptable, allowing the study of specific airport cases to gain a detailed understanding of their operations, identify potential optimization points, and facilitate process automation.