Aspects of the disclosure are directed to systems and methods for receiving operating state parameters associated with an operative state of an aircraft, determining a clearance value between a first structure of the engine and a second structure of the engine, where the clearance value is determined based on the operating state parameters and a passive clearance model that includes a specification of an uncertainty in the clearance value, determining that the clearance value deviates from a clearance target in an amount that is greater than a threshold, and engaging an active clearance control (ACC) mechanism based on the deviation.