Bi-Objective Optimization of Aircraft Tow Tractors Routing Problem Considering Attributes

Resource constraints are commonly seen at major airports around the world. The aircraft tow tractor is a major piece of ground support equipment (GSE) and an important resource in the airport flight area. In this paper, an integer programming model is developed with the objectives being the minimum fleet size and minimum operation cost for better scheduling of aircraft tow tractors. The model is constrained based on characteristics and service constraints of aircraft tow tractors. The model is solved by using the NSGA-II algorithm with flight data of a Chinese airport in one day during the peak season, including flight number, stands in use, arrival or departure time, and aircraft type. The results show that this work can find optimized results on fleet size and driving path under airport operational constraints. This study can help airport operators better plan their GSE fleets and support further research on total airport management.