Simulation CAST in a new light

As the main international hub for the UK, Heathrow Airport has been running close to its maximum capacity for a long time. Traditionally, runway capacity is seen as the most critical factor which limits the growth of airports.

However, an airport itself operates as a system where passengers are being processed within the passenger terminal and finally dispersed to and from aircraft.

Passengers also bring a large number of pedestrians such as escorts, greeters and staff to the passenger terminal. These demands bring congestion to the terminal complex and jeopardise the overall airport performance and the growth of the airports, especially those with constrained capacity.

BAA, the operator of Heathrow Airport, has invested in an innovative modelling and simulation tool – CAST Terminal – for its terminal planning, design review and performance evaluation. CAST (Comprehensive Airport Simulation Tool) is a high-performance, three-dimensional (3-D) fast-time simulation tool for all airport processes based on multi-agent technology.