A COMPROMISE BETWEEN FREE AND CONTROLLED FLIGHT: A SYSTEM'S PERSPECTIVE

Often when a system such as the air traffic control system becomes critically congested, adversarial relationships evolve between those that manage the system and those that employ its services. The current debate between free flight versus controlled flight is such a relationship. As the debate is currently being waged, there is no middle ground as the two options appear to be complimentary to each other. Apparently, one must pick one option, the best one. In reality, it is likely that neither of these alternatives is ideal. The current inability to provide a compromise reflects a lack of knowledge pertaining to the system's dynamic behavior. If one views the system from an operational perspective, one soon observes that the system can simultaneously operate in both modalities. Moreover, the system can switch seamlessly from one modality to another when it is advantageous to do so. This paper discusses this compromise solution and then demonstrates how the compromise solution might also enhance security.