Bad weather brings unwelcome disruption to flight schedules and is the cause of approximately 13 % of Europe’s primary delays. Yet the impact can be mitigated by the timely sharing of information so that effective recovery strategies can be put in place.
Meteorological information is currently available in several message formats and also in the form of maps or charts and plain text. Although end users are accustomed to these formats, they limit the opportunity to use the data effectively, for example to prioritise key information, or highlight relevant weather phenomena. Access to more precise weather data can assist decision making when it comes to flight planning, resource planning, and route planning, and can help to avoid unnecessary delay.
SESAR researchers developed a mechanism by which meteorological data generated by European meteorological agencies can be seamlessly integrated into aeronautical information service provision; this is known as the four-dimensional (4D) weather cube.
The 4DWxCube is a (virtual) repository of shared consistent and translated meteorological information, produced by multiple meteorological service providers (METSPs) and made available to airspace management stakeholders via its system-wide information management (SWIM) compliant MET-GATE.
Sharing this weather information and its integration within the air traffic management decision-making process enables airspace users, airports and air navigation service providers to stay up to date with the latest weather situation, and to plan accordingly and effectively. Weather conditions influence all aspects of air traffic operations, for example by increasing or decreasing tailwind, by changing pressure or temperature or by introducing low-visibility conditions.
The meteorological information exchange uses SWIM to enable seamless interchange of meteorological data with different partners, and involves SWIM-compliant services such as legacy forecasts (METAR/TAF/SIGMET) and new ones such as hazardous weather (convection, turbulence, icing) developed under the scope of this solution. This solution is available for industrialisation.
MET information exchange is being deployed as part of initial SWIM as part of Europe-wide synchronised deployment. .
SJU references: #35/Release 5
Benefits
- Improved safety
- Improved planning, leading to fuel reduction
- Increased cost efficiency through improved service provision
Datapack
OSED
SPR
OCD
SAR
INTEROP
GEN
Human Perf
Demonstration report
Validation Report 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5
SWIM compliance
Security assessment