Civil Aircraft Design For Economics Methology And Its Application In New Technology Assessment

The demand for air travel generally increases in line with the socialand economic development. This increase, along with a graduallyderegulated global aviation market, has led to an increase in competitionamong airlines. As a result, aircraft manufacturers are under constantpressure to design, manufacture and service more efficient aircraft. It hasseen a shift from more technology focused approach to an increasedemphasis on economics. This paper focuses on the methods used foraircraft design for economics and applications of these methods in order todeliver between balance among usually conflicting design requirementsand objectives.Aircraft design is an iterative, complex process. In order to deliver adesign which not only has a superior cost efficiency but also meets designcriteria on aerodynamics, performance and others, a methodology ofcost-driven civil aircraft design method is needed. This paper firstsummarized the methods and processes used in civil aircraft conceptualdesign. This is followed by discussions on two major models-the lifecycle cost model and direct operating cost model, in order to estimate theeconomic characteristics. The two costing models are then incorporatedinto a framework to drive the design for better product and processes.This paper used a multi-level mixed-language programming approachto construct the framework of civil aircraft cost-driven design. The designsystem incorporated the weight, configuration, aerodynamics, performance,economics, and noise and emission modules. The methods have beenvalidated using existing aircraft data the results proved the effectiveness of the method. At the same time, this paper also defined the relationshipsbetween the aircraft design parameters, providing a support tool foranalysis of the complex parameter relations. Finally, the program was usedto study the cost implications when some advanced technologies are usedin newly developed aircraft.This cost-driven conceptual civil aircraft design framework was usedboth as a design tool to perform parametric analysis and to evaluate theeconomic impact of new technologies.