RECAT-EU
for Paris-CDG & Le Bourget
A FINE-TUNED WAKE VORTEX RECATEGORISATION
AT PARIS-CDG & LE BOURGET AIRPORTS
TO OPTIMISE SEQUENCING ON ARRIVAL
DSNA, the French air navigation service provider, has put into service RECAT-EU
at Paris-CDG & Le Bourget airports, a new wake turbulence scheme developed
by EUROCONTROL for Europe to apply to arrival traffic. A first in Europe!
“CDG 2020’’, A STRATEGIC PLAN
FOR HIGH-PERFORMING AIRPORT OPERATIONS
The impact of traffic growth in Paris airspace is amplified by significant seasonal trends, a concentration of demand during peak morning
landing and take-off periods and an increased percentage of heavy aircraft [Link] safely increase runway capacity up to 82 incoming flights
per hour by 2020 at Paris-CDG airport, DSNA and its partners – Groupe ADP, the Paris Airports operator, and Air France – have jointly
drawn up an ambitious performance roadmap. In this regard, the European Wake Separation Recategorisation (RECAT-EU) has
been identified as a lead project in the safety and ATC capacity domains.
Paris-Le Bourget: 1st European business airport. Paris-Charles de Gaulle: 4 runways, 3 control towers, 1,500 flights per day.
Its location near Paris-CDG airport requires strong ATC coordination between During peak hours, 1 take-off every 50 seconds and 1 landing every
the two air navigation service units. 50 seconds.
RECAT-EU @ PARIS-CDG & LE BOURGET:
SAFER AND CLOSER
New categories of aircraft and more accurate separations NM Upper Heavy
A major
4
integrated in triple parallel approach procedures A330
to optimise wake sequencing on arrival since 2016. achievement
NM
3 Upper Heavy
B777 Within CDG TMA, for the in-
NM
coming flights at Paris-CDG &
7 Upper Medium
B737-800 Le Bourget airpor ts, 6 catego-
ries of aircraft and separation
M
3N between leader / follower air-
Super Heavy
M
A380 craft have been defined.
5N
Upper Medium With RECAT-EU, the ap-
A320
proach controller fully opti-
Upper Heavy mises approach separation
B747
minima, with a reduction of
up to 30% of spacing distance
depending on the sequencing
of aircraft.
RECAT-EU AT PARIS-CDG & LE BOURGET,
THE OPERATIONAL CONCEPT
With the modernisation of airline fleets and the boost in technology, ICAO wake vortex separation rules in 4 categories of aircraft
need to be updated to streamline a number of over-conservative separations. For example, both A320 and EMB 145 are in the Medium
category while their wingspans have a difference of more than 12 metres.
EUROCONTROL has adapted the ICAO standards to improve runway throughput in major European platforms.
RECAT-EU defines 6 categories of aircraft taking into account the strength and evolution of the wake turbulence
generated and the resistance characteristics of the following aircraft. The two ICAO categories Medium and Heavy
are divided, each one into ‘Upper’ and ‘Lower’. Aircraft wake data collected with Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR)
radar at Paris support these reduced minima.
On this basis, Paris-CDG and Le Bourget Air Navigation Services have deployed this new standard, adapted to
the aircraft mix that operate to the airports, delivering safe and more accurate separations between pairs of
aircraft. RECAT-EU @ Paris-CDG & Le Bourget was born!
The A320 family and B777/A330/A340 rep-
resent more than 70% of the arrival traffic mix Breakdown of incoming aircraft categories
during the two main key peak hours. It was a crit-
ical change to reduce the spacing between these
Super Heavy (A380)
types of aircraft. Benefits are also expected for Upper Heavy (B787/B777, A350/A330)
new aircraft types such as the A320 Neo, B737 Paris- Lower Heavy (B767/B757) Paris-
Max family, B777/787, A350/A330. Upper Medium (A320/A321, B737-800)
Le Bourget CDG
Lower Medium (EMB190, ERJ145,
A380: separation reduction behind this giant has CRJ-700, ATR42/72)
Light (DA10/20, Learjet 60, DO328)
had a significant impact on capacity considering the
very large separation previously imposed by an
ICAO State [Link] was revised and included an
extension of the Light wake category, increasing the
associated separation providing better protection 10th october 2014 22nd march 2016
for the most vulnerable aircraft types. The European Aviation Safety Implementation of RECAT EU within CDG TMA
Agency (EASA) endorsed for Paris-CDG and Le Bourget airports. RECAT
EUROCONTROL’s safety case deployment was accompanied by a comprehensive
report. The major European air traffic controller training programme and
airports can now use RECAT-EU stakeholder awareness information.
wake turbulence separation In the near future, fine-tuned time based
scheme as a basis to update separations on departure will also be implemented
their current schemes and their supporting the full potential of RECAT-EU’s
national regulation. expected capacity benefits.
Benefits with
RECAT-EU @ PARIS-CDG & Le Bourget
“RECAT-EU enables an increase of the runway
SAFETY throughput without any onboard technology
> Increased flexibility in traffic separation delivery upgrade. This a good point!
Going from four to six categories, the controller’s task is facilitated. Thanks to a deployment in full collaboration
> A better integration of light aircraft and differences in tonnage with the airlines, and especially an information
Aircraft are better protected when sequenced in the various traffic mixes. campaign targeting our pilots, this DSNA
initiative rapidly demonstrated operational
Publisher: Maurice Georges / Editor: DSNA / Layout: All-write / Pictures: DSNA, Groupe ADP / Printing: DSNA/SIA – March 2018
CAPACITY benefits and improved our punctuality during
> Enhanced runway throughput summer 2017’s peak hours.”
Paris-CDG capacity at peak periods has increased by 2-4 aircraft movements
Olivier Janicaud Air France OCC
per hour.
> Peak throughput maintained with unfavorable traffic mix
in adverse situations
Paris-CDG: closure of inner runway / runway 27R with RECAT-EU: 11% increase
in the average throughput; no loss of throughput with 2 X Heavies and Super;
actual separation reduced by 1 nautical mile (NM). “Paris-CDG is a pionneer for RECAT-EU
implementation in Europe. CDG has
Separation distribution between Upper Medium (follower) demonstrated that this innovative concept
and Upper Heavy (leader) on arrival facilitates high performance for the Single
Rate observed European Sky.
0.050 Leipzig-Halle airport also deployed RECAT-EU
0.045 June 2016 (27R): 1,318 Pairs to update its wake turbulence scheme to
June 2015 (27R): 797 Pairs
optimise their Heavy freight peaks. Vienna and
0.040
London-Heathrow have planned deployment
0.035
of RECAT-EU in 2018.”
0.030
Vincent Treve EUROCONTROL Runway
0.025 Throughput Project Manager
0.020
0.015
About DSNA
0.010 DSNA, the French Air Navigation Service Provider,
1 NM handled 3.1 million flights in 2017 with the record
0.005 one-day peak in Europe: 11,016 flights on July 7th,
0.000 2017.
2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 DSNA is member of FABEC, SESAR JU and the A6
Distance separation (NM) Alliance. It is also member of the consortium in charge
of SESAR Deployments.
Thanks to RECAT-EU, separation has been reduced by 1 NM.