A system safety framework for analyzing future air transportation separation assurance and collision avoidance concepts

A statechart model of separation assurance and collision avoidance was constructed to evaluate the safety of air traffic concepts. This model follows the system safety framework, which considers safety a control problem. In the model, agents must apply control to ensure that the system does not enter undesirable states. Analysis of the system with respect to the model provides a conceptual description of how the activity is controlled by the different agents in the system - controllers, pilots, and an automated collision avoidance system. This is contrasted with how a proposed automated system would control the system. A framework for producing quantitative results from the model is also provided.