Evaluation Analysis of Seasonal GPV Meteorological Data with SSR Mode S Surveillance Data

SSR (Secondary Surveillance Radar) is used in air traffic control to identify aircraft and determine their positions. SSR Mode S with EHS (Enhanced Surveillance) capability also downlinks DAPs (Downlink Aircraft Parameters) which are intended to enable more accurate ground-based surveillance and trajectory estimation than conventional SSR Mode A/C. However, DAPs has not been positively adopted by current air traffic management systems in Japan because of the limited number of equipped aircraft. In this paper, static air temperature and wind speed are calculated from DAPs data and statistically compared with NWP (Numerical Weather Prediction) GPV (Grid Point Value) data released by the JMA (Japan Meteorological Agency) using RMSE (Root Mean Squared Error). The results show that RMSE increases with the prediction time of the NWP GPV data. The estimation error due to the minimum resolution of DAPs parameters and the effects of aircraft turning maneuvers upon static air temperature and wind speed are also analyzed. The estimation errors due to DAPs resolution are approximately 1.0[K] in static temperature and 0.35 [m/s] in wind speed. Keywords-Surveillance; SSR Mode S; Meteorological Data