SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MONITORING CONFORMANCE OF AN AIRCRAFT TO A REFERENCE 4-DIMENSIONAL TRAJECTORY

摘要

Methods and systems are provided for monitoring conformance of an aircraft to an actual and predicted 4-dimensional (4D) trajectory with respect to a reference business trajectory (RBT). First, a flight plan for the aircraft is acquired from an onboard flight management system (FMS) computer. A predicted flight trajectory is generated based on the latitude, longitude, altitude, speed and time of the flight plan for the aircraft. An onboard trajectory conformance monitor that is independent of the FMS computer, monitors the present flight trajectory of the aircraft and anticipates any actual or future deviations from the RBT. The trajectory conformance monitor will generate an advisory of any actual or anticipated deviations from the RBT.