Weather-adaptive noise abatement procedures

Abstract

The most common operational measure
in aviation to reduce the effect of environmental noise pollution is noise
abatement procedures. Noise abatement procedures are recommended flying
techniques based on noise optimal trajectories, which aim at reducing the noise
impact on local communities as much as possible. Atmospheric conditions
influence sound propagation, however the noise abatement procedures are often
fixed and independent of weather conditions.

This research has been set up in
order to analyse whether the implementation of weather-adaptive noise abatement
procedures result in different noise optimal trajectories in different weather
conditions. The research objective is to assess the influence of weather on
optimised noise abatement departure procedures for one fly over, by developing
an optimisation tool that allows for the synthesis of weather adaptive noise abatement
procedures within the terminal manoeuvring area.

To analyse the influence of
different atmospheric conditions on the noise optimal trajectories in various weather
conditions, a sound propagation model has been developed with the inclusion of
variable air temperature and lapse rate, relative humidity, wind profile and
ground surface type. Together with an aircraft performance model enhanced with
varied atmospheric conditions and a noise impact model, the noise optimal
trajectories in different weather conditions are obtained using optimal control
theory in GPOPS. The model can be adapted to various requirements and aircraft
types.

The resulting trajectories are used
to evaluate whether weather-adaptive noise abatement procedures should be
implemented or not and to evaluate the performance of optimal control theory in
this framework.