ICAO has made available an unedited, advance version of the Continuous Descent Operations (CDO) Manual as approved, in principle, by the Secretary General. Although the final, edited version may still undergo editorial alterations, the substance should stay the same.
The purpose of this Manual is to provide guidance and harmonize the development and implementation of continuous descent operations (CDO). To achieve this, airspace and instrument flight procedure design and air traffic control techniques should all be employed in a cohesive manner. This will then facilitate the ability of flight crews to use in-flight techniques to reduce the overall environmental footprint and increase the efficiency of aircraft operations.
The generic term “continuous descent operations”, has been adopted to embrace the different techniques used to maximize operational efficiency while still addressing local airspace requirements and constraints. These operations have been variously known as, continuous descent arrivals, continuous descent approaches, optimized profile descent, tailored arrivals, and 3D/4D path arrival management forming part of the business trajectory concept.
Continuous descent operations (CDO) is one of several tools available to aircraft operators and air navigation service providers (ANSPs) to increase safety, flight predictability, and airspace capacity, while reducing noise, controller-pilot communications, fuel burn and emissions. Over the years, different route models have been developed to facilitate CDO and several attempts have been made to strike a balance between the ideal fuel efficient and environmentally friendly procedures and the capacity requirements of a specific airport or airspace.
Future developments are expected to allow different means of realizing the performance potential of CDO without compromising the optimal airport arrival rate (AAR). The core CDO concept at the heart of this manual will also apply to increasingly sophisticated methods of facilitating CDO.
Standardization of procedures is important for flight safety and need to be designed and presented in an unambiguous manner. For the procedure designer, it is important to understand the flight characteristics, limitations and capabilities of aircraft expected to perform CDO, as well as the characteristics of the airspace and routes where it will be used. For airport operators and environmental entities, it is important to understand the extent and limitations of environmental benefits, aircraft performance, and airspace limitations when proposing to introduce CD operations. Considering the high cost of fuel and growing concerns about the environment and climate change, collaborating to facilitate CDO is an operational imperative where all stakeholders will benefit.
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