Impact of Aviation Electrification on Airports: Flight Scheduling and Charging

Abstract

Electrification can help to reduce the carbon footprint of aviation. The transition away from the jet fuel-powered conventional airplane towards battery-powered electrified aircraft will impose extra charging requirements on airports. In this paper, we first quantify the increase in energy demands at several airports across the United States (US), when commercial airline carriers partially deploy hybrid electric aircraft (HEA). We then illustrate that smart charging and minor modifications to flight schedules can substantially reduce peak power demands, and in turn the needs for grid infrastructure upgrade. Motivated by our data analysis, we next formulate an optimization problem for flight rescheduling that incorporates HEA charging considerations. This problem jointly decides flight schedules and charging profiles to manage airport congestion and peak power demands. We further consider mechanisms via which airlines and airports can negotiate HEA assignments using said optimization problem. Finally, we illustrate the efficacy of our formulation through a case study on the John F. Kennedy International Airport.