A Model for the Airlines’ Fuel Management Strategies

In this paper, a model for the airlines’ optimal fuel management strategies is presented. The model determines the optimal amount of ferry fuel to be loaded at each airport for a given aircraft route. The problem is formulated in the form of a mathematical program with an objective function that captures the trade-off between cost saving associated with loading excess fuel at airports with lower fuel prices, and extra fuel burn cost and extra maintenance cost associated with flying the aircraft with heavier fuel weights. A set of experiments is performed using the model to examine the potential benefits and limitations of the proposed fuel ferrying strategies. The experiments consider different fuel price scenarios and various operational conditions for the flights. The results of these experiments are presented along with a case study that uses real aircraft routing data.