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 The
current configuration at DFW Airport requires that aircraft
arriving
on the main (outboard) arrival runways cross the main (inbound)
departure runways to get to the terminal areas. In several
instances, depending on the direction of flow and whether or
not aircraft
are arriving on the three outboard runways, many arriving aircraft
have to cross two runways (both arrival and departure) to get
to the terminal area. On average DFW experiences over 1,700
runway crossings daily.
Under current operations, the Local Air Traffic Controller
conducts all runway crossings before releasing the aircraft
to the Ground Controller. This situation increases the Local
Controller's workload and creates radio frequency congestion.
During major arrival and/or departure pushes, tradeoffs in
airfield efficiency have to be made to safely balance all
operations.
This balancing partially consists of controllers delaying
departing aircraft so that arriving aircraft can cross the
departure runways to get to the terminal area. Because arrivals
stack up at the various runway-crossing points, the Local
Controller must “gap” departures to allow these
crossings to occur. These situations are most evident during
the peak traffic times.
In an effort to improve safety and airfield efficiency by
reducing the number of active runway crossings (with the
added benefit of reducing runway incursion potential and
reducing arrival and departure delays), a perimeter taxiway
(PT) concept is proposed. The concept includes new perimeter
taxiways on the east and west sides of the Airport.
 Many
fast-time simulations and paper studies have been conducted
that support the cost-benefit, efficiency and safety aspects
of the proposed Airport improvements. However, the perimeter
taxiway improvements had not been observed or assessed in
an operational setting using high fidelity simulation with
human operators.
Therefore, a partnership effort involving DFW Airport, the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA) was formed to conduct a real-time
human-in-the-loop simulation that demonstrated the effect
of adding perimeter taxiways to DFW. The DFW Airport Perimeter
Taxiway (DAPT) Demonstration was conducted in February 2003
at the NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) in Moffett Field,
California. Experts from the FAA William J. Hughes Technical
Center acted as Principle Investigators and provided support
for the research team.
DFW AIRPORT PERIMETER TAXIWAYS REPORT (DAPT)
The Technical Center staff also prepared a report documenting
all the statistical and anecdotal findings of the four-day
demonstration. That report can be accessed through the link
listed below:
DEMONSTRATION VIDEO
An informational video of the demonstration will be shared
with stakeholders and labor unions, among others. It
shows how both management and the user community were brought
together to complete the demonstration.
To view the video online, click the link below
to start the
video stream. The video file is very large and will require
broadband Internet service.
To download the video, click on the
link below to start the download. The video file is in a
zip format. Once the
download is complete, the file will need to be unzipped before
viewing.
 To request a copy of this video, Perimeter Taxiways at DFW,
available only on DVD, please send your complete contact
information to:
perimetertaxiways@dfwairport.com
RESPONSE FORM
Your opinion is very important to us. Below is a brief survey and space for comments and/or questions you
may have
about perimeter taxiways. Please fill in all spaces in order to successfuly submit a complete
the form.
Thank you for your interest in perimeter taxiways and DFW Airport
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