Modeling and simulation analysis of microscopic traffic flow in multi-airport terminal airspace

In order to study the microscopic spatial and temporal characteristics and evolution law of air traffic flow in multi-airport terminal airspace, considering the operation characteristic of single, converging, and crossed traffic flow flying to the target point, a local sorting model, a aircraft-following model, and a maneuverable model for air traffic flow were established using the first-come-first-service principle and the stimulus-response aircraft-following theory. A multi-agent simulation platform based on the above models was then set up with NetLogo to simulate the traffic flow. The correlativity and sensitivity of basic traffic flow parameters as well as the interaction between arrival and departure traffic flow were analyzed through simulation experiments. The result indicates that notable phase transitions and hysteresis characteristic exist in the evolution process of the arrival traffic flow. The fundamental phase states can be divided into free, unconstrained, pseudo-congestion, and synchronization phases. There is a linear relationship between the traffic flow rate and the product of velocity and density. The control interval has a great influence on the traffic flow. There is an optimal control interval, and its value at the arrival intersection point is 8 km.