Point Merge (PM) arrival procedure is implemented at multiple airports around the World. There are different PM design variants: with overlapping, partially overlapping or separated sequencing legs, a position of the sequencing legs inside or outside the TMA, different geometry of the flows to PM or merging to a point; each coming with a different impact on the trade-offs associated with the structure. In this work, we investigate the usage of PM procedures in several airports around the globe using open-access ADS-B-based data provided by the OpenSky Network. We analyse arrival flows at the airports with PM, and propose a catchment algorithm to see which flights from the blend are actually adherent to the procedure. Then quantify the PM utilization by applying the performance indicators specifically designed for this purpose.
The Point Merge procedure was developed in 2006 by the EUROCONTROL Experimental Centre (EEC). The main goal of PM development was to facilitate more environmentally efficient arrivals, including Continuous Descent Operations (CDOs) and noise reduction [EUROCONTROL 2003; Boursier et al. 2007; Favennec et al. 2010]. Since the development of the PM procedure, many airports implemented and started using it. There are a number of variants of the PM system implementation such as overlapping, partially overlapping, or separated sequencing legs. The positioning of the PM system and different geometry of the flows to PM or merging to a point also differs among airports based on their design goals. The authors of [Raphael et al. 2021] proposed a data-driven computer vision approach for identification of the PM structures in the large datasets containing historical flight tracks. In [Olive et al. 2023] the authors analyzed arrival trajectories of five major European airports to assess the inefficiencies associated with holding patterns, PM, and CDOs. To detect the trajectories adhering to PM systems at different airports, the authors relied on the method implemented in the \(traffic\) library [Olive 2019]. In our previous work [Hardell et al. 2023], we investigated PM usage and utilization at Oslo Gardermoen airport, and we concluded that the PM systems are significantly underutilized. In this work, we enhance our PM catchment algorithm, applying it to analyse the PMs at other airports worldwide, and evaluate the overall usage and utilization of the PM systems.
In this section, we present the methodology used for our investigation. We describe the airports chosen for the studies, the data, the catching algorithm and then the KPIs used for PM evaluation.
We investigate the PM procedure usage and utilization at several airports. According to Eurocontrol [EUROCONTROL Experimental Centre], Point Merge is now operational for 38 airports through 19 countries and 4 continents. In this work, we consider the following airports: London-City Airport (United Kingdom, Europe), Dublin (Ireland, Europe), Bergen (Norway, Europe), Oslo Gardermoen (Norway, Europe), Bogotá El Dorado (Colombia, South America), Seoul-Incheon airport (South Korea, Asia), and Pulkovo Airport St. Petersburg (Russia, Euro-Asia). Figure 1 shows example PM charts for the seven airports (please, note that the figure displays one example PM system per airport, not all the PM systems).
London City handled 49.000 movements in 2022 and has operated with PM since 2016. The PM procedures consist of two overlapping arcs, used for both directions of the airport’s single runway.
Dublin is currently the only Irish airport operating with PM. The procedures were introduced in 2012 to its 10/28 runway, with fully overlapping legs to runway 28 and fully dissociated legs to runway 10. Since August 2022, the airport has operated with a second parallel runway. In 2022 the airport facilitated 242.000 movements.
Bergen airport has operated with PM to its single runway since 2014, and had 82.000 movements in 2022. There are two fully dissociated arcs for each runway direction.
Oslo-Gardermoen implemented PM in 2011 to both of its parallel runways, and it is the busiest airport in Norway, handling 163.000 movements in 2022. The PM procedures are of the overlapping type, where aircraft may be vertically separated on the arcs.
The first South American airport to implement PM (since 2017) is Bogotá El Dorado airport, which features three fully dissociated systems serving the two parallel runways. In 2022, the airport handled 297.000 movements.
Seoul Incheon Airport in South Korea has operated with PM since 2012. It handled 94.000 movements in 2022. The arrival procedures consist of a mix of PM and trombone structures.
The Russian airport of Pulkovo operates with four dissociated PM systems connected to its two parallel runways. At the airport, which handled 41.000 arrivals in 2022, PM has been used since 2017.
| ICAO | Airport name | # of PM systems | Point Merge types | Runways | Movements 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EGLC | London City | One | Overlapping arcs | Single runway | 49.000 |
| EIDW | Dublin airport | Two | Both types | Two runways | 242.000 |
| ENBR | Bergen airport | Two | Dissociated arcs | Single runway | 82.000 |
| ENGM | Oslo Gardermoen | Four | Overlapping arcs | Two parallel | 163.000 |
| RKSI | Seoul Incheon | One | Overlapping arcs | Four runways | 94.000 |
| SKBO | Bogotá El Dorado | One | Overlapping arcs | Two runways | 297.000 |
| ULLI | St. Petersburg Pulkovo | Two | Overlapping arcs | Two parallel | 41.000 |