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ISSUE 2 SUMMER 2011
Fuel savings from EFB implementation
Pre-flight information supports serviceIT tools to minimise EU ETS compliance costs
Aircraft Data Special Getting the right data transmission
Data as a global business asset
White Papers:LinkSMART Aviation Intelligence Tasc4Aviation
Case Studies: Lufthansa Cityline Thai Airways International
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8 | CASE STUDY: LUFTHANSA CITYLINE| AIRCRAFT IT OPERATIONS| SUMMER 2011
FUEL EXPENSES HAVE always represented a large proportion o totalexpenditure or an airline. In the past year, the price trend o crude oiland uel prices associated with it demonstrated the need or airlines worldwide toact sustainably. And by acting, we understand, in this context, we mean finding
uel saving measures.
Even though the low hanging ruits have already been harvested, there remains
a possible measure with high savings potential that could be implemented in
the regional airlines sector. Tat measure is the implementation o a new flight
procedure on the basis o variable airspeeds which will entail turning away
rom the previous practice o a fixed airspeed, regardless o external parameters.
Tereore it is necessary to be able to calculate and identiy a speed that
generates the lowest costs within the given time slot (block flying time) with due
regard to a scheduled time o arrival.
o achieve this, a company-specific cost index (CI) can be applied. Tis so
called CI represents the ratio between event-related and flight time-dependent
costs, and the uel price.
While the CI unctionality is part o the standard equipment o every modern
flight management system on Airbus and Boeing aircraf, it has not yet been
established in the cockpits o regional aircraf. Te question as to why has to be
answered by the manuacturers o those aircraf in light o a changing sector.
Regional air traffic is no longer a 20 minutes flight with a turboprop. All over
the world, increasing numbers o regional jets are pushing orward into the
medium haul range with aircraf o up to, and sometimes even more than, 100
passenger seats. Te word regional does not so much reer to the geographic
operation radius, but rather to the size o the aircraf uselage.
Te savings potentials, available with a change rom fixed speeds to variablecost index based speeds are enormous. Fuel experts at IAA describe the savings
potential in their IAA Fuel Action Plan, Guidance material and best practices
or uel and environmental management as ollows: CI optimization o planned
speeds will yield savings rom 2 to 3 per cent and in some cases, as much as
10% when a flight is restricted to a low altitude or in unusually strong winds.
Te ollowing calculation outlines the size o the savings potential:
Fuel consumption o the Canadair and Embraer fleet o Lufhansa CityLine
amounted to 195,000 tons o kerosene in 2010. A supposed uel saving o 3%
leads to reduction in use o more than 5,800 tons o Kerosene. Furthermore a
supposed uel price o euro/ton 744 would lead to a savings potential o more
than 4.3 million euro and reduced emission o 18,400 tons o CO2.
PACELAB CI OPS
In order to use the cost index effectively or the fleet o Lufhansa CityLine, a
cost index operations optimization sofware was developed by PACE, a Berlin
based company or aerospace engineering and inormation technology.
Supporting the strategic flight planning process and on-board tactical economic
decisions, Pacelab CI OPS significantly reduces uel consumption and the
emission o CO2 and other pollutants. Compared to constant Mach speeds, CI
operations reduce uel burn and harmul emissions by at least 2%, and even up
How to implementfuel savings linked to EFBWith so many factors to consider, technology makes fuel eciency decisions so much better, writes
Capt. Joachim Scheiderer, Manager Flight Operations Engineering, Lufthansa CityLine
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to 10% in adverse conditions.
Until now the flight planning system used fixed
published speed schedules and was not capable
o calculating a CI based flight plan due to the
missing respective ime/Fuel/Distance data.
Pacelab CI OPS enhances existing flight planning
systems with supplementary CI perormance data or the
climb, cruise and descent flight phases.
As well as calculating the optimum flight plan, it also allows
on board tactical economic decisions in response to in-flight
changes such as delay or early arrival, AC cleared unplanned
flight level or AC requested speed change. Flight crews are
able to recalculate and update planned trajectories whenever
there are deviations rom the Operational Flight Plan (OFP).
APPLICATION OF CI OPERATIONS
Cost index operation is based on a two-stage optimization approach:
strategic planning, made in advance o the flight and tactical planning, or in-
flight corrections to the flight plan.
Strategic planning in the context o cost index operations means the calculationand creation o the OFP. Tis orms the basis or the planned flight and urther
tactical optimizations. actical planning ollows strategic planning. It allows
or continuous checking and optimization during flight. Te crew is then in a
position o being able to react to any unpredicted changes during the flight. Te
tool or tactical planning is the Pacelab CI OPS sofware.
Te ollowing example indicates the necessity o tactical planning. Te crew
receives and OFP rom A to B which contains a taxi-out time o 10 minutes and
a taxi-in time o six minutes with a block time o 100 minutes.
According to the previously optimized OFP, the flight time is 84 minutes. Due to
a high traffic density in A the 10 minute taxi time becomes 18 minutes beore line-
up. Te time window or the flight is thereore reduced by eight minutes only 76
minutes are available. How can the trajectories be changed in order to achieve an
optimum ratio between flight time and uel burn, i.e. cost? Te main options arechanging the climb speed, the (optimum) flight level or the cruise speed
THE ECONOMIC FLIGHT PROFILE
Discounting external influences such as wind, it is generally possible to say that
flights at high altitudes use less uel than those at low altitudes. Normally, only
the cruise segment is optimized. However, as part o a total optimization, this is
not enough. In short-range flights, the horizontal segment is ofen only a small
part o the overall flight profile.
Te figure above shows that a high indicated airspeed in the climb segment
(i.e. higher cost index) leads to a gentler climb angle. Te cruise altitude is
Tactical PlanningStrategic Planning
Provision of CI performance
data for climb, cruise and
descent for improved OFPs
Support of in-flight economic
decisions on board following
OFP deviations of any kind
Cost Index Performance Data
for Your Flight Planning System
Electronic
Flight Bag
Paper
Booklet
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thereore reached later. Tis situation is reversed or a low cost index (CI=0) or
a low speed. Te extra power o the engines results in a high climb angle, so
that the cruise altitude is reached earlier. Both cases have implications or the
subsequent cruise segment and the overall flight time.
In the case o the descent segment, a higher cost index (higher flight speed)
leads to a steeper angle o descent, whereas a lower cost index (slower flight
speed) allows or a gentler angle o descent. Like the climb segment, there are
implications to the cruise segment. A steep and short descent results in a longer
cruise segment at the optimum altitude.
It is important to note that or each parameter set comprised o take-off weight
(OW), CI, distance and wind there is a particular combination o optimum
altitude and optimum speed triple, where speed triple denotes a particular
combination o climb, cruise and descent speed values. Te figure below shows
such a speed triple or an example parameter set with an altitude restriction (Alt
Cap) on FL340 as a point in three-dimensional space.
Each time the parameters are changed, the position o the point changes in
this space, making rule o thumb estimates impossible.
CI OPS USE IN COCKPIT
Lufhansa CityLine uses so called Class 2 EFB systems in the cockpits o their
Canadair and Embraer Jets. Class 2 EFB systems are generally commercial-off-the-shel (COS) based computer systems used or aircraf operations.
Tey are portable and connected to aircraf power through a certified power
source. Te Class 2 EFB system is considered as a controlled personal electronic
device (PED) and is connected to an aircraf mounting device during normal
operations. Moreover connectivity to Avionics is possible, but the systems
require airworthiness approval.
PERFORMING CALCULATIONS IN CI OPS
COCKPIT PREPARATION PREP
Beore flight, the Pacelab CI OPS must be initialized with basic flight mission
and weather data. Tese data can be supplied using an eOFP or by manually
entering the required data.
Afer having entered all data necessary or calculating the optimum trajectory,
the Calculate button can be used or a first optimum trajectory be calculated.
Te trajectories calculated in PREP are not time constrained and thereore
correspond to the most economical trajectory with regard to the total costs
(time and uel).
In the results window the (non-time constrained) trajectory or even and odd
flight levels together with additional inormation about uel and total cost are
displayed in the Profile View:
LINEUP T/O 60S
Afer line-up clearance has been obtained and take-off is expected to be initiated in
about 60 seconds, the pilot can click the /O 60s Button on the action toolbar to
calculate the optimum trajectory considering the actual take-off time. CI OPS takes
the system time and adds 60 seconds to estimate the take-off time. Based on this
take-off time, the application calculates the trajectory and displays the results.
By comparing the take-off time with the on-block time, delays or early-in-time-
scenarios (or example, caused by slot or taxi-out delay or shorter taxi-out times)are included in the time dependent trajectory. Te time window or the flight is
thus larger or smaller.
In case o a delay, Pacelab CI OPS will modiy the CI up to a maximum
allowable value. When this value is reached, a delay will be accepted. In case o
being ahead o time, the trajectory or the minimum CI will be calculated.
CHANGE OF SPEED
During the flight, AC might advise you to change speed in cruise. Tis is
requently caused by the staggering o aircraf ahead or behind.
Following the act that there is a specific optimum speed, the Speed use case
is available. In addition to the trajectory or maintaining the current FL and
applying the required speed, trajectories or our additional flight levels (two
above, two below) and the appropriate ECON speeds will be calculated.
DELAYED OR TOO EARLY IN CRUISE
Because o various external effects, it is ofen the case during a flight that the
pilots realize they will arrive too early (or too late) at the destination. Te
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reasons or this might be a stronger wind component or a short cut by AC
that was not known or included during the planning phase. For example: a
crew receives several short cuts rom AC during the flight, shortening the total
flight time by six minutes. Tis additional time could be used to reduce speed, i
the arrival delay is not a actor. By using Pacelab CI OPS, the pilot can quickly
check, i applying a new speed is beneficial or not. Te sofware would come up
with a recalculated speed suggestion, taking the new parameters in account.
DIFFERENT FLIGHT LEVEL
One o the most requent cases is a deviation in the real allocated flight level rom
the originally planned one. For example: during climb phase, AC tells the flight
crew to maintain an altitude below or even above that planned. Te question iswhether the ECON speed calculated or the original FL is still the optimum and i
there is an OPS or uel restriction at the target FL. For example, a higher head wind
in a lower FL can lead to a higher recommended ECON speed. As in the other
cases, the pilot can quickly determine the optimum speed or the new situation.
Te previously mentioned examples show, that Pacelab CI OPS is a very easy
to use and powerul tool, putting the pilot in the position o being able to make
inormed decisions on a knowledge-based trajectory analysis.
CAPT. JOACHIM SCHEIDERERJoachim Scheiderer started his ying career in 1995 at the Lufthansa Pilots
School in Bremen and Tucson/Arizona. He started ying as a
First Ocer in 1997 and since 2001 has served as a Captain
for Lufthansa CityLine, ying the Bombardier Canadair Jet 200,
700 and 900 eet.
From 1999 he was appointed to the Flight Operations
Management Team at Lufthansa CityLine, responsible for the area Flight
Operations Engineering. The main focus encompasses Aircraft Performance,
Flight Planning and Weight and Balance issues. Additionally, Joachim
was appointed to the environmental coordinator for the ight operations
sector. Within the scope of this task, Capt. Scheiderer has been responsible
for the planning and coordination of the airlines fuel saving measures.
He successfully developed and implemented the cost index operation
concept within Lufthansa CityLine, making it possible to create fully totalcost optimized trajectories for regional aircraft. Today he is focusing on
improving operational eciency by the ntroduction of adequate key
performance indicators.
Joachim Scheiderer holds a German university master degree in Industrial
Engineering with a course specialization in Trac System Engineering and
Corporate Management. In 2008 his rst book Angewandte Flugleistung
(Applied Aircraft Performance) was published at the renowned Springer
Verlag. The second one came out in 2010, named Human Factors im
Cockpit (Human Factors in the cockpit).
Joachim Scheiderer teaches Airline Management as a lecturer at the
Karlshochschule International University in Karlsruhe with a focus on
operational issues.
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