Optimization of daily flight training schedules

Abstract

The daily flight schedule at Training Air Wing-Two (TW-2) is built manually each day by squadron scheduling officers (SKEDSOs). They rely on their intuition, experience and sound judgment to output a flight schedule. Each SKEDSO spends eight hours a day on this task, but currently there is no measure of the efficiency a given flight schedule. Our goal is to enhance the current planning process by alleviating many of the tedious tasks through an automated optimization program. To that end, this research develops Flight Training Scheduler (FTS), an optimization-based tool, to aid the SKEDSO in production of daily flight schedules. FTS allows the SKEDSO to place an objective, value-oriented metric on the total events scheduled. A typical instance of this problem for TW-2's Phase II students consists of approximately 30 students, 65 flight events and 35 instructor pilots. FTS provides fast, automated guidance to the SKEDSOs that can help them increase throughput of students in the advanced strike training syllabus.