Fuel Efficiency

Characteristics of
Regional Aircraft
Ashish Gupta
99D01003
Regional Aircraft
„ Aircraft with less then 100 seats.
„ Turboprop and Regional Jets.

Example:
TP: Bombardier Q300
RJ: Bombardier CRJ200
Demand for Air-Travel:
• 9.0% average growth rate since 1960.
• Growth of 4.5% per year over the last Decade.
• Estimated future worldwide growth at 5.0% till 2015.

Environmental:
• Attributes 3.5% of total emissions.
• Aircraft emissions at altitude is potentially twice severe with
respect to climate changes compared to ground level
emissions.
Importance of Regional Aircrafts:
• Traffic flown by regional airlines grew almost 20% in 1999
• Expected annual growth of 7.4% during next decade
• Expanded hub-and-spoke operations
• Creation of new hub-bypass routes
• 7% of jet fuel use
• 40-50% of total departures
• 4% of domestic revenue passenger kilometers (RPK)
The Energy Efficiencies of Aircraft:
• Specific energy usage (Eu)
Units of energy consumed per available seat kilometers (ASK)

• Specific energy intensity (EI)

Units of energy consumed per RPK

Eu is closely related to environmental performance of

aircraft system.
• Load factor (α)
Ratio of Eu to EI
Turboprops are more efficient then Regional Jets
Regional aircrafts are less efficient then large aircrafts.
Technological Influences on Energy Usage:
Three aircraft performance metrics
• Engine efficiencies
Thrust Specific Fuel Consumption (TSFC)
• Structural efficiencies
Operation Empty Weight (OEW)
Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW)
• Aerodynamic efficiencies
Maximum Lift to Drag Ratio (L/D)
Cruise value of TSFC have improved by 25% since 1960 for both TP
and RJ
Structural efficiencies of all aircraft have decreased between 10 - 25%
Aerodynamic efficiencies has improved by 15% for all aircraft
Using aircraft performance metrics the value of specific energy
usage at cruise (Eu,cr) is estimated using:

Where:
• No distinct technological advantage which results in lower fuel consumption
• Difference in Eu and Eu,cr is caused by fuel consumption incurred during
non-cruise portions of aircraft operations.
Influence of Operations on Energy Usage:
Aircraft operations – airports served, stage lengths flown, and flight
altitude – have significant impact on the Eu of regional aircraft.
• Shorter stage length
• More time at airports taxing, idling, and maneuvering into gates
Ground Efficiencies (ηg):
A useful efficiency metric for evaluating the amount of time aircraft
spend on the ground compared to in the air is the ratio of airborne hours to
block hours
Airborne Efficiencies (ηa) :
• Define as ratio of minimum flight hours to airborne hours.
• Minimum flight hours means time to cover stage length only by cruise.
• Captures the influence of others in-flight inefficiencies.
Total Impact of Operations on Energy Usage:
The ground and airborne efficiencies together captures the
important operational characteristics of commercial aircraft and explains
the difference between Eu and Eu,cr.
Influence of Load Factor:

• Load factor for large aircraft has improved by 50% for large aircrafts
• No distinct improvement in load factor for both TPs and RJs
• But load factor of RJs is always higher by 10 -30% from TPs
Cost Characteristics of Regional Aircraft:
Regional Aircraft Unit Cost:
• Defined as the ratio of direct operating cost (DOC) to available seats
kilometers (ASK)
• Regional Aircraft are 2-5 times more expensive to operate than large aircraft
• Using multivariable regression analysis the relationship for unit cost as a
function of stage length (SL) and Eu was found

• 1/SL term represent the contribution of fixed cost to total cost

• Eu represent the cost of fuel and pilot wages
Higher the stage length lower the unit cost
Conclusions:
• No distinct technological advantage that results in lower fuel consumption
under optimal cruise conditions.
• Operational efficiencies has clear relation with fuel consumption
• Cost of operation depends upon the stage length
References:
1. Babikian, R., Lukachako, S.P., Waitz, I.A., 2002. The historical fuel
efficiency characteristics of regional aircraft from technological,
operational, and cost perspectives. Journal of Air Transport
Management 8, 389-400.
2. Lee, J.J., 2000. Historical and future trends in aircraft performance,
cost and emissions. MS Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Cambridge.
3. Lee, J.J., Lukachko, S.P., Waitz, I.A., Schafer, A., 2001. Historical
and future trends in aircraft performance, cost and emissions. Annual
Review of Energy and the Environment 26, 167-200.
4. Dresner, M., Windle, R., Zhou, M., 2002. Regional jet services: supply
and demand. Journal of Air Transport Management 8, 267-273.
5. Wu, C.L., Caves, R.E., 2000. Aircraft operational costs and
turnaround efficiency at airports. Journal of Ait Management 6, 201-
208.