Four-Dimensional Aircraft En Route Optimization Algorithm Using the Artificial Bee Colony

Abstract

Fuel burn releases polluting particles to the atmosphere. Aeronautical operations have been estimated as being responsible for 2% of the total amount of carbon dioxide liberated to the atmosphere each year. Fuel is also one of the major expenses for airlines. Reducing the amount of fuel required to power flights brings benefits to both the environmental and economic aspects of the aeronautical industry. This paper aims to develop a new optimization algorithm that computes fuel-efficient aircraft reference trajectories inspired by the artificial bee’s colony and based on a numerical performance model. The flight trajectory is optimized in terms of speeds, altitudes, and geographical positions, while respecting the required time of arrival constraint. The optimal trajectory is composed of waypoints placed in each of the available dimensions (coordinates, altitudes, and speeds). Winds and temperatures are taken into account. These trajectories will be improved by taking all of the dimensions into consideration simultaneously, instead of improving them one after the other. Results have shown that, when flying under the free-flight concept and fulfilling the required time of arrival constraint, the algorithm saved around 5% of the fuel burn with respect to as-flown flights.