ASLT / Documentation

Contest Manager Guide: Orchestrating an Event

As a Contest Manager, you are the architect of the competition. ASLT provides powerful tools to handle complex logistics, real-time scoring, and advanced scheduling.

1. Establishing Your Contest

To host a contest, you need Organizer status. This is automatically approved for all registered users.

Step 1: Activate Organizer Status

  1. Log in to your account at https://airsports.no/.
  2. In the navigation bar, click the button labeled “Become an Organizer”.
  3. Approval is instantaneous. A new “Management” menu will now be visible in your navigation bar.

Step 2: Create the Contest

  1. Access the Contest Management Dashboard by selecting “My contests” from the Management menu.
  2. Click “Create New Contest”.
  3. Name & Location: Provide a descriptive name and geolocation.
  4. Sharing:
    • Private: Only visible to the creator.
    • Unlisted: Accessible via a direct link.
    • Public: Publicly listed on the global map.

2. Creating Navigation Tasks

Once a Contest is established, you can create one or more Navigation Tasks (e.g., Task 1: Navigation, Task 2: Poker Run).

Building a Navigation Task requires:

  1. A Route: The physical path and gates.
  2. A Scorecard: The specific competition rules and penalties.

For detailed, step-by-step instructions on designing routes and configuring task parameters, please refer to:

  • Guide 04: Route Creation and Task Configuration

3. Team Registration and Resource Management

ASLT manages teams based on three key resources: Crew Members, Aircraft, and Tracking Devices.

Registering Teams

  1. From the Contest Detail page, select “Teams”.
  2. Add Team: Enter the Pilot and Navigator (Crew 1 & Crew 2).
  3. Assign Aircraft: Input the registration (e.g., LN-ABC).
  4. Assign Tracker: Choose “Airsports App” or “Flymaster”. Enter the Tracking ID.
    • Note: Multiple teams can share the same aircraft or crew member. The scheduler handles this.

3. The Flight Scheduler Optimizer (Deep Dive)

Scheduling a 30-team competition with 10 shared aircraft and limited trackers is a complex mathematical problem. ASLT includes an advanced Linear Programming Optimizer to solve it.

Scheduling Parameters

  • Takeoff Interval (min): Minimum gap between successive aircraft departures (to ensure safety and separation).
  • Finish Interval (min): Minimum gap between successive arrivals (to manage runway occupancy and judge capacity).
  • Aircraft Switch Time (min): The time required for a plane to land, taxi, swap crews, and refuel before its next mission.
  • Crew Switch Time (min): If a pilot is flying in multiple teams, this is the rest period required between flights.
  • Tracker Switch Time (min): The time required to physically move a tracker (like a Flymaster) from one aircraft to another.
  • Tracker Lead Time (min): This defines when the system starts recording. For example, a 15-minute lead time means the app starts tracking 15 minutes before the scheduled takeoff.
  • Planning Time (min): The time allocated for the crew to prepare their maps and flight plan.

Using the Optimizer

  1. Go to the “Contestant Schedule” tab in your Navigation Task.
  2. Select “Generate Schedule”.
  3. Algorithmic Greedy Solution: This is the default. It quickly places teams in the first available slot.
  4. Optimal Solution (Linear Programming): Checking the “Optimize” box activates a mathematically rigorous solver. It doesn’t just find a solution; it calculates the schedule that minimizes the total duration of the entire contest while respecting every single constraint.
  5. Frozen Teams: If a specific team must fly at a certain time (e.g., they have a maintenance slot or a VIP departure), you can “Freeze” their time before running the optimizer.

4. Operational Controls

Recalculation

Mistakes happen. If a pilot flies a task but later it is discovered that the wind was 10 knots instead of 5, or if a judge wants to re-run the numbers with a different scorecard:

  1. Navigate to the Contestant Track.
  2. Adjust the task parameters (e.g., update the Wind Speed).
  3. Click “Recalculate”. The system re-processes the entire raw GPS track against the new rules without requiring a re-flight.

Calculation Delay

To prevent “Live Cheating” (where a crew on the ground could watch a rival’s track), you can set a Calculation Delay.

  • A 30-minute delay means the public map and leaderboard only show data that is 30 minutes old.
  • The system still records in real-time but buffers the display of the results.

5. Flight Order Configuration

The Flight Order is the document package (PDF) generated for each contestant. Contest Managers can customize this to fit the specific needs of the task.

Key Settings

  • Document Size & Orientation: Choose between A3 or A4, and Portrait or Landscape.
  • Map Zoom Level: The default is Zoom 12, which is typically the best balance for navigation maps.
  • Map Source: Select from various providers (CyclOSM, satellite imagery, or your own uploaded maps).
  • Annotations: You can toggle minute marks and leg headings. When enabled, the generated map provides a “ready-to-fly” experience for the pilot.
  • Aerial Photos: You can configure the DPI, the zoom level, and the physical area (meters across) for turning point and observation photos. High-resolution photos help pilots identify targets during the flight.

6. User Uploaded Maps and Permissions

Organizers can upload their own maps to be used as backgrounds in the tracking map or within the Flight Orders.

Map Uploads

  • Formats: Supports georeferenced map formats.
  • Size Limit: The maximum allowed size for map uploads is 100 MB. For larger maps, consider removing zoom levels or splitting the map into multiple parts.
  • Recommended Zoom: Experience shows that zoom level 12 is typically the best for navigation maps.
  • Source Preference: You can set an uploaded map as the primary source for a task’s Flight Order, overriding the global map defaults.

Permissions and Security

ASLT utilizes a granular permission system to protect sensitive data.

  • Contest Permissions:
    • change_contest: Allows a user to edit the contest, manage teams, and run the scheduler.
    • view_contest: Allows a user to see the contest details but not make changes.
  • Map Permissions:
    • Unprotected Maps: These are available for any organizer to use in their tasks.
    • Protected Maps: Access is restricted to users who have explicit view_useruploadedmap permissions.
    • Automatic Access: Contest managers can automatically access maps uploaded by other staff members associated with the same contest.
  • Public vs. Private: Remember that setting a Navigation Task to is_public=false hides the tracks from the global map, which is essential for maintaining the “quarantine” of pilots during a major event.

Last updated: April 2024

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