{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]],"date-time":"2025-09-26T00:22:47Z","timestamp":1758846167421,"version":"3.44.0"},"reference-count":8,"publisher":"Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,25]],"date-time":"2025-09-25T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1758758400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["dl.acm.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Commun. ACM"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,10]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Large-scale events such as the Hajj attract two to three million participants annually, creating significant challenges in mobility, security, and connectivity. Existing solutions may be limited and prone to overload. This article proposes the use of aerial solutions, specifically networked tethered flying Platforms (NTFPs), to address these issues. NTFPs, which remain tethered to the ground for continuous power and data access, offer advantages such as high-altitude deployment, wide coverage, and robust backhaul capacity. By integrating NTFPs into the event infrastructure, this approach aims to enhance the overall experience and efficiency of the Hajj.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1145\/3736712","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,24]],"date-time":"2025-09-24T14:58:11Z","timestamp":1758725891000},"page":"40-41","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Aerial Solutions for Supporting Large-Scale Events: A Case Study of the Hajj Pilgrimage"],"prefix":"10.1145","volume":"68","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7634-4032","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Baha Eddine Youcef","family":"Belmekki","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4827-1793","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mohamed-Slim","family":"Alouini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Makkah Province, Saudi Arabia"}]}],"member":"320","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,25]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_1_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Abbasi O. Yanikomeroglu H. and Kaddoum G. Hemispherical antenna array architecture for high-altitude platform stations (HAPS) for uniform capacity provision. IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications\u00a0(2024).","DOI":"10.1109\/WCNC57260.2024.10570799"},{"key":"e_1_3_1_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.29333\/ejeph\/8424"},{"key":"e_1_3_1_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Belmekki B.E.Y. et al. Cellular network from the sky: Toward people-centered smart communities. IEEE Open J. of the Communications Society\u00a0(2024); (10.1109\/OJCOMS.2024.3378297).","DOI":"10.1109\/OJCOMS.2024.3378297)"},{"key":"e_1_3_1_5_2","unstructured":"Belmekki B.E.Y. and Alouini M.-S. Unleashing the potential of tethered networked flying platforms: Prospects challenges and applications. (2020); arXiv preprint arXiv:2010.13509."},{"key":"e_1_3_1_6_2","unstructured":"Belmekki B.E.Y. and Alouini M.-S. On the usage of networked tethered flying platforms for massive events\u2013case study: Hajj pilgrimage. (2021); arXiv preprint arXiv:2111.00900."},{"key":"e_1_3_1_7_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Belmekki B.E.Y. and Alouini M.-S. Noma as the next-generation multiple access in nonterrestrial networks. In\u00a0Proceedings of the IEEE. (2024).","DOI":"10.1109\/JPROC.2024.3496775"},{"key":"e_1_3_1_8_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/23311916.2018.1480303"},{"key":"e_1_3_1_9_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Zaid A.A. Belmekki B.E.Y. and Alouini M.-S. eVTOL communications and networking in UAM: Requirements key enablers and challenges. IEEE Communications Magazine\u00a0(2023).","DOI":"10.1109\/MCOM.004.2300061"}],"container-title":["Communications of the ACM"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1145\/3736712","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,25]],"date-time":"2025-09-25T18:48:41Z","timestamp":1758826121000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/10.1145\/3736712"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,25]]},"references-count":8,"journal-issue":{"issue":"10","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,10]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1145\/3736712"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/3736712","relation":{},"ISSN":["0001-0782","1557-7317"],"issn-type":[{"type":"print","value":"0001-0782"},{"type":"electronic","value":"1557-7317"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,25]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2025-02-05","order":0,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2025-09-25","order":3,"name":"published","label":"Published","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}}]}}