Weighted Time-Band Approximation Model for Flight Operations Recovery considering Simplex Group Cycle Approaches in China

The time-band approximation model for flight operations recovery following disruption (Bard, Yu, Arguello, IIE Transactions, 33, 931–947, 2001) is constructed by partitioning the recovery period into time bands and by approximating the delay costs associated with the possible flight connections. However, for disruptions occurring in a hub-and-spoke network, a large number of possible flight connections are constructed throughout the entire flight schedule, so as to obtain the approximate optimal. In this paper, we show the application of the simplex group cycle approach to hub-and-spoke airlines in China, along with the related weighted threshold necessary for controlling the computation time and the flight disruption scope and depth. Subsequently, we present the weighted time-band approximation model for flight operations recovery, which incorporates the simplex group cycle approach. Simple numerical experiments using actual data from Air China show that the weighted time-band approximation model is feasible, and the results of stochastic experiments using actual data from Sichuan Airlines show that the flight disruption and computation time are controlled by the airline operations control center, which aims to achieve a balance between the flight disruption scope and depth, computation time, and recovery value.