My thesis on an airport with nobody in the tower got 82%

Today I got my final results from the University of Birmingham. Results day has never scared me. I’m usually a good judge of how I’ve done. But this was the most nervous I’ve ever been, because it wasn’t just a year of work. It was four years of university, and honestly everything since school, all leading up to this. I couldn’t open them myself, so two friends opened them for me, and their reactions were amazing.

A first-class MEng in Computer Science and Software Engineering, and 82% for my thesis, which was worth half of my final year of university. In the UK, 70% or above is a first. My hands were shaking for ages after.

For my thesis, I built a 2D simulation of Birmingham Airport with nobody in the control tower. Aircraft push back, taxi, queue, take off and land on their own. AI models drive them, predict conflicts and watch the runway, and simple rules turn that into clearances. In the final test, it handled 30 flights in 32 minutes with no incidents.

I’ve written it all up. The project page is the short version, and six chapters tell the full story, including every approach that didn’t work. The code is on GitHub.

Graduation is just under a month away. Until then, I’m working on some projects and spending time with my friends before I say my goodbyes. I’m going to miss them very much.