You are looking at a demonstration of the Surface Operations Simulator and Scheduler application, a tool used to study and visualize more efficient ways to manage airport operations. NASA Ames developed this simulation tool to support its research for the future air traffic management system.

This video shows how traffic moves around at the Dallas/Forth Worth Airport when using a method to schedule and sequence departure times according to the rule that the first in line gets served. Moving colored rectangles represent the aircraft. Green rectangles show aircraft travelling at their usual speeds.

At times, aircraft may need to come to a stop or slow down, and these are indicated in red and orange, respectively. They stop to wait for a clearance to depart or perhaps to wait for crossing traffic. At other times, they may need to slow down when too close to the aircraft in front of them. When all issues have been resolved, aircraft will typically accelerate back to their normal speed, and those are shown in yellow.

Any stops by the aircraft, along with slow movement, contribute to the congestion at the airport. NASA is currently working on shortening the amount of time an aircraft spends on the surface before takeoff, which alleviates some of the congestion and lessens adverse environmental effects. Reducing the number of times aircraft stop or decelerate, for example, will reduce the amount of fuel used. Not only will this allow a reduction in operating costs, it will also cut the amount of CO₂ and other emissions that are released into the air.