Abstract:
There is a growing demand for new technologies and
ight procedures that will enable
aircraft operators to burn less fuel and reduce the impacts of aviation on the environment.
Conventional approaches to trajectory optimisation do not include aircraft
systems in the optimisation set-up. However, the fuel penalty due to aircraft systems
operation is signi cant. Thus, applying optimised trajectories which do not account for
systems o -takes in real aircraft Flight Management System (FMS) will likely fail to
achieve a true optimum. This is more important in real scenarios where the ambient
conditions in
uence the systems operation signi cantly. This research proposed an ice
protection methodology which enables the development of a decision making process
within the FMS dependent on weather conditions; thus transforming the conventional
anti-icing method into a more intelligent system.
A case of a medium size transport aircraft
ight from London - Amsterdam under
various levels of possible icing was studied. The results show that fuel burn due to
anti-icing operation can increase up to 3.7% between climb and cruise altitudes. Up to
5.5% of this penalty can be saved using icing optimised trajectories. A 45% reduction
in awakenings due to noise was achieved with 3% fuel penalty. The novelty of the study
was extended using 3D optimisation to further improve
ight operations. It was found
that the simulation successfully changed the lateral position of the aircraft to minimise
the time spent and distance covered in icing conditions. The work here presents a
feasible methodology for future intelligent ice protection system (IPS) development,
which incorporates intelligent operation.
