modeling and simulation of airship logistics heavy lift for military applications
An airship is a self-propelled lighter-than-air aircraft with directional control surfaces. Airships are being considered by the Canadian Forces (CF) as potential platforms to address deficiencies in logistics transportation. This paper presents an assessment of the airship capability for logistics heavy lift in support of CF Northern operations. Performance measures were developed to assess the effectiveness and the responsiveness of the airship lift. A Monte Carlo simulation framework was also developed to simulate various logistics lift scenarios. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to address the impact of different operational parameters on the airship lift effectiveness. The study indicates that airships could potentially improve the sustainability of CF Northern operations. Significant potential cost avoidance and response time reduction could be realized on sustainment lift by using airships versus fixed and rotary wing aircraft.
simulation airship logistics transport optimization