Analysis of Influence of Cruise Speed and Flight Level Change on Fuel Consumption in Air Traffic Flow Management

Abstract

The problem of flight planning in case of delay demands is considered. The criterion restrictions between fuel consumption and the required flight time when the nominal cruise speed changes are investigated. It is proved that flight delay in the air can be realized without additional fuel costs, which is determined and estimated in the absence or presence of wind. The impact of choosing a different flight level and using additional fuel to obtain a longer delay was also considered and analyzed. The results show that for different flight levels and wind direction the delay may be varied from 3 minutes to 13 minutes. The initial flight level is defined as one of the main parameters that affect the amount of delay in the air.