APPLICATION OF DYNAMIC PROGRAMMING TO THE AIRPLANE MINIMUM-TO-CLIMB PROBLEM,

Abstract : The dynamic-programming technique developed at The RAND Corporation is applied to the solution of the airplane minimum time-to-climb problem. A brief introduction to dynamic programming is presented, followed by an exposition of the climb problem and the solution of a typical example case. It is concluded that dynamic programming offers a method of solution for the climb problem which is fast, is readily adaptable to routine engineering calculation, and allows the inclusion of the effects of variations in airplane weight and drag along the flight path. (Author)