Modelling Strategy of Airline Tankering with Nonlinear Programming

Year 2023, Volume: 57 Issue: 2, 365 - 392, 28.04.2023

Niyazi Cem Gürsoy , Nesrin Alptekin

https://doi.org/10.51551/verimlilik.1065007

Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to reduce the fuel costs, which constitute the largest share of total cost that airline companies have, with extra fuel transportation.

Methodology: A nonlinear programming model has been developed for tankering application that takes advantage of the different fuel prices at the airports. General Reduced Gradient Method (GRG) is used to solve the generated nonlinear programming problem. MS EXCEL solver add-in is used to solve the problem.

Findings: In the application part of study, two application has been studied on and one of them is parametrical and other assumes Istanbul as an hub airport in order to analyze the effect of flight distance, load rate, fuel price difference between the airports and altitude of cruise flight on tankering and cost. It has been observed that the fuel cost can be saved when tankering is applied to flight distances of 1300nm and less. Although the load rate is high and the fuel price difference is low, flights have been conducted between the centers which have short flight distances, the model allowed to tanker. It was observed that when the amount of fuel recommended by the problem result was taken for the designed scenarios, the fuel consumption increased by 2.5-3% compared to the trips without tankering. Despite the increase in fuel consumption, it has been found that a total fuel cost can be saved of 1% to 47% for round trips.

Originality: The efficiency of the original optimization model created with non-linear modeling was developed and tested for various scenarios.

Keywords

Tankering, Airline fuel management, Nonlinear programming, General Reduced Gradient Method, Optimization

Doğrusal Olmayan Programlama ile Havayolu Fazladan Yakıt Taşıma Stratejisinin Modellenmesi

Abstract

Amaç: Bu çalışmanın amacı havayolu firmalarının en büyük maliyetini oluşturan yakıt maliyetlerini fazladan yakıt taşıma ile azaltmayı amaçlamaktadır.

Yöntem: Havalimanlarında yakıt fiyatlarının farklı olmasından faydalanan fazladan yakıt alma uygulaması için bir doğrusal olmayan programlama modeli geliştirilmiştir. Oluşturulan doğrusal olmayan programlama problemini çözmek için Genel İndirgenmiş Gradyan Metodundan yararlanılmıştır. Problemin çözümü için MS-EXCEL çözücü eklentisi kullanılmıştır.

Bulgular: Çalışmanın uygulama kısmında uçuş mesafesinin, doluluk oranının, uçulan merkezler arasındaki yakıt fiyat farkının ve düz uçuş yüksekliğinin fazladan yakıt taşıma ve maliyet üzerine etkisini analiz etmek amacıyla parametrik ve İstanbul’u merkez alan iki uygulama yapılmıştır. Fazladan yakıt taşımanın 1300nm ve daha kısa olan uçuş mesafelerine uygulandığında yakıt maliyetinden tasarruf edilebileceği görülmüştür. Uçuş mesafesi kısa olan merkezler arasında gerçekleşen seferlerde doluluk oranı yüksek ve yakıt fiyat farkı az olsa da model fazladan yakıt taşımaya izin vermiştir. Tasarlanan senaryolar için problem sonucunun önerdiği miktarlarda yakıt alındığında, fazladan yakıt alınmadan gerçekleştirilen seferlere kıyasla uçağın yakıt sarfiyatının %2,5-3 artırdığı gözlemlenmiştir. Bu yakıt sarfiyatının artışına rağmen gidiş-dönüş seferleri için toplam yakıt maliyetinden %1-%47 arasında tasarruf sağlanabileceği tespit edilmiştir.

Özgünlük: Doğrusal olmayan modelleme ile oluşturulan orijinal optimizasyon modelinin verimliliği çeşitli senaryolara ortaya geliştirilerek test edilmiştir.

Keywords

Tankering, Havayolu yakıt yönetimi, Doğrusal olmayan programlama, Genel İndirgenmiş Gradyan Metodu, Eniyileme.

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