GARDN II Projects (2014-2019)

Turboprop Flight Advisory System (FAS) for Cruise Fuel Burn Reduction

SRS-21

Objectives:

Reducing the fuel burn and corresponding CO2 emissions of small commercial turboprop aircraft (19 or less seats) during the cruise flight phase using a software application installed on stand-alone Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) device.

The motivation for developing an EFB-based solution stems from the need to:

• Achieve an average improvement in fuel efficiency of 1.5% per year from 2009 to 2020 per industry target
• Support Canadian regional airlines to operate more cost-effectively
• Develop a more cost-effective approach than a traditional Flight Management System with integrated performance capability

The resulting solution will be effective, affordable, suitable for rapid in-service implementation, as well as innovative.

Results:

Further developed the iPad Flight Advisory System app developed in SRS-21 with its partners Carleton University and AeroSafety. A single-engine turboprop aircraft model and enhanced meteorological data were added to the app. Both single- and twin-engine aircraft models were validated with flight data thanks to the University of Sherbrooke and North Wright Airways Ltd. An engine thermodynamic model for cruise conditions was developed and implemented into the app, supporting a more generalized approach to fuel burn calculation. An aircraft dynamics model was also developed, and an analysis of engine dynamics on fuel
burn was conducted.

Up to 10% in block fuel burn savings and commensurate CO2 emissions reductions were calculated based on actual flight data.

Partners: