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Demonstration at Nice Airport (LFMN): Advancing Surface Operations in a Complex Environment Demonstration Site Overview

The third major demonstration under the SESAR Integrated Airport Operations (IAO) project is being conducted at Nice Côte d’Azur Airport (LFMN), the third busiest airport in France. Handling over 164,000 aircraft movements in 2016, Nice Airport is characterized by significant seasonal traffic peaks and a challenging operational environment. Its runway configuration comprises two dependent parallel runways: the inner runway exclusively dedicated to landings and the outer runway primarily used for departures. This arrangement, combined with stringent geographical constraints within the movement areas, creates a highly complex surface management scenario, providing an ideal testing ground for advanced ATM solutions. Project Partners and Collaboration

The Very Large Scale Demonstration (VLD) at Nice Airport is led by the Direction des Services de la Navigation Aérienne (DSNA), involving a dedicated team of technical specialists and experienced Tower Controllers at Nice. The collaborative effort includes experts focused on airport operational functionalities, technical support, and rigorous validation protocols. Airbus contributes actively to the demonstration, providing expertise and operational input for the air-to-ground components of the initiative. Additionally, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) supports dissemination activities to maximize the project’s outreach and impact. Demonstration Objectives and Content

The Nice demonstration aims to showcase a next-generation surface management system designed to optimize taxi routing and enhance controller situational awareness. The key functionalities include:

Provision of planned taxi routes for each aircraft, which tower controllers can dynamically update with all clearance information transmitted over radio communications.
Integration of the Departure Manager (DMAN) system that factors in real-time data derived from advanced surface movement planning, enabling more precise sequencing and departure scheduling.
Implementation of Conflicting ATC Clearances (CATC) detection and Conformance Monitoring Alerts for Controllers (CMAC), forming part of enhanced airport safety nets to proactively identify and prevent operational conflicts.
Demonstration of planned route sharing capabilities between ground controllers and airborne systems, contingent upon airline participation, allowing aircraft equipped with Airbus airborne solutions to receive and leverage taxi route information for improved coordination and safety.

This demonstration directly addresses the validation of the following SESAR PCP solutions:

Solution #53: Pre-Departure Sequencing
Solution #22: Automated Surface Routing and Planning
Solution #02: Airport Safety Nets for Controllers

Demonstration Setup and Methodology

The Nice Airport demonstration is conducted using a Shadow Mode operational context, consistent with SESAR V3+ maturity levels. This mode ensures full operational realism and allows tower controllers to utilize new SESAR functionalities actively while enabling careful management of safety risks in parallel with real-time air traffic operations.

Controllers engaged in the exercise receive and update surface movement plans in real-time throughout their operational shifts, allowing seamless integration of SESAR functionalities into daily workflows without interfering with live traffic management.

Furthermore, a related onboard demonstration is under consideration, contingent on airline participation, where live trials on revenue flights would enable testing of the end-to-end air-ground surface management integration in actual operational scenarios. Strategic Significance

The Nice demonstration stands as a cornerstone in validating advanced surface management technologies in complex and high-density operational environments. By integrating dynamic taxi routing, departure sequencing, and safety net solutions, the project supports SESAR’s strategic objectives to enhance airport efficiency, reduce environmental impact through optimized operations, and bolster controller situational awareness and safety. The successful execution at Nice provides both a critical proof-of-concept and a foundation for subsequent industrial deployment across European airports with similarly challenging operating environments.