Utilization of Doppler Weather Surveillance Radar for Wind-Shear Detection in Airport

Abstract

Low-level wind-shear due to microburst is a dangerous phenomenon for aircraft takeoff and landing activities which generally occur from the surface to an altitude of 500 m (1500 feet). To detect wind-shear associated with microburst, observations can be made through the LLWAS (Low-level Wind Shear Alert System) Anemometer and Terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR) instruments. Although not completely identical to TDWR, especially in terms of beamwidth, with a much lower operational cost Doppler weather surveillance radar (DWSR) can also be used to detect wind-shear at airports. The use of DWSR for windshear detection can be carried out in four aspects, i.e. applying the same scanning strategy concept as TDWR, placing radar locations near the middle runway, applying detailed clutter filters in their operations, and finally applying microburst and gust-front with wind-shift phenomenon detection algorithms. Potential shortcomings that may be obtained in applying Doppler weather radar for wind-shear detection are miss detection and false alarms which are higher than TDWR. This deficiency can be minimized by involving human operators in disseminating wind-shear information to users.