# FlightKooba: A Fast Interpretable FTP Model

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.19885 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.19885/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 19 of its 52 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 24 Jun 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 19 of 19)

- [Mamba: Linear-Time Sequence Modeling with Selective State Spaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.00752/) (2023)
- [Efficiently Modeling Long Sequences with Structured State Spaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.00396/) (2021)
- [Informer: Beyond Efficient Transformer for Long Sequence Time-Series Forecasting](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2012.07436/) (2020)
- [Dream to Control: Learning Behaviors by Latent Imagination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1912.01603/) (2019)
- [World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1803.10122/) (2018)
- [Mastering Diverse Domains through World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.04104/) (2023)
- [Mastering Atari with Discrete World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2010.02193/) (2020)
- [HiPPO: Recurrent Memory with Optimal Polynomial Projections](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.07669/) (2020)
- [xLSTM: Extended Long Short-Term Memory](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.04517/) (2024)
- [Dynamic Graph Convolutional Recurrent Network for Traffic Prediction: Benchmark and Solution](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2104.14917/) (2021)
- [Linear predictors for nonlinear dynamical systems: Koopman operator meets model predictive control](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1611.03537/) (2016)
- [Koopa: Learning Non-stationary Time Series Dynamics with Koopman Predictors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.18803/) (2023)
- [ClimODE: Climate and Weather Forecasting with Physics-informed Neural ODEs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.10024/) (2024)
- [Deep Dynamical Modeling and Control of Unsteady Fluid Flows](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1805.07472/) (2018)
- [Learning Compositional Koopman Operators for Model-Based Control](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1910.08264/) (2019)
- [Deep Koopman Operator with Control for Nonlinear Systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2202.08004/) (2022)
- [Identification of MIMO Wiener-type Koopman Models for Data-Driven Model Reduction using Deep Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2201.12669/) (2022)
- [Reduced-order Koopman modeling and predictive control of nonlinear processes](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.00553/) (2024)
- [Incorporating ESO into Deep Koopman Operator Modelling for Control of Autonomous Vehicles](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.10157/) (2024)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Flight trajectory prediction (FTP) and similar time series tasks typically require capturing smooth latent dynamics hidden within noisy signals. However, existing deep learning models face significant challenges of high computational cost and insufficient interpretability due to their complex black-box nature. This paper introduces FlightKooba, a novel modeling approach designed to extract such underlying dynamics analytically. Our framework uniquely integrates HiPPO theory, Koopman operator theory, and control theory. By leveraging Legendre polynomial bases, it constructs Koopman operators analytically, thereby avoiding large-scale parameter training. The method's core strengths lie in its exceptional computational efficiency and inherent interpretability. Experiments on multiple public datasets validate our design philosophy: for signals exhibiting strong periodicity or clear physical laws (e.g., in aviation, meteorology, and traffic flow), FlightKooba delivers competitive prediction accuracy while reducing trainable parameters by several orders of magnitude and achieving the fastest training speed. Furthermore, we analyze the model's theoretical boundaries, clarifying its inherent low-pass filtering characteristics that render it unsuitable for sequences dominated by high-frequency noise. In summary, FlightKooba offers a powerful, efficient, and interpretable new alternative for time series analysis, particularly in resource-constrained environments.