Reducing ramp delay

By assigning airport gates, passenger time and ramp delay can be significantly minimized, as the findings of research on this important subject from the Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT) reveal in this article. While the traditional focus on solving the gate assignment problem (GAP) has been on accommodating passenger demands and the robustness of gate assignment, the research presented here goes one step beyond, with an algorithm that also considers the effects of gate assignments on ramp congestion. This is important because congestion on the ramp, as well the associated delays, can have a significant negative effect on the integrity of an airline's schedule and, consequently, the passenger experience. Details of the mathematical model used are presented here. The research suggests that a new formulation of the GAP through the study of weighted aircraft taxi times, as well as passenger transit times, is effective. Additionally, aircraft-side demands and passenger-side demands are balanced. The results show that an optimal balance between total passenger transit time and total weighted aircraft taxi time can be achieved by the proposed approach.