Fuel Reduction for the Mobility Air Forces
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Research Report Fuel Reduction for the Mobility Air Forces Christopher A. Mouton, James D. Powers, Daniel M. Romano, Christopher Guo, Sean Bednarz, Caolionn O’Connell C O R P O R A T I O N For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/RR757 Library of Congress Control Number: 2015931912 ISBN: 978-0-8330-8765-2 Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. © Copyright 2015 RAND Corporation R® is a registered trademark. Limited Print and Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited. Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.html. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. Support RAND Make a tax-deductible charitable contribution at www.rand.org/giving/contribute www.rand.org Preface The Department of Defense (DoD) is the largest U.S. government user of energy, typically accounting for about 80 percent of the total government energy consumption. In particular, aviation fuel accounts for about half of DoD’s total energy use. In the context of significant fuel price increases—DoD spending on petroleum rose 381 percent between fiscal year (FY) 2005 and FY 2011 whereas DoD’s petroleum use decreased 4 percent over the same period—the current Air Force Energy Plan aims to reduce the consumption of aviation fuel 10 percent from a 2006 baseline by 2015. As of March 2013, the Air Force had already exceeded that goal, achieving a 12 percent reduction. To help achieve this goal, energy efficiency and conservation measures have been implemented during this time, and additional initiatives are being considered as a way to further reduce fuel consumption. These measures include technology improvements (aerodynamics, aircraft weight, propulsion, etc.) and fleet, flight, and ground operations optimization. This report provides a detailed analysis of the fuel and cost savings potential of fuel efficiency initiatives being considered by Air Mobility Command (AMC), the biggest consumer of aviation fuel in DoD. A summary of this report is also available: Christopher A. Mouton, James D. Powers, Daniel M. Romano, Christopher Guo, Sean Bednarz, and Caolionn O’Connell, Fuel Reduction for the Mobility Air Forces: Executive Summary, Santa Monica, Calif.: RAND Corporation, RR-757/1-AF, 2015. The research reported here was commissioned by the AMC Director of Operations and conducted within the Resource Management Program of RAND Project AIR FORCE as part of a project entitled “Reducing Mobility Air Forces (MAF) Energy Costs: Best Practices in Aviation Operations and Training.” It should be of interest to mobility air operations planners and those concerned with energy use within DoD. RAND Project AIR FORCE RAND Project AIR FORCE (PAF), a division of the RAND Corporation, is the U.S. Air Force’s federally funded research and development center for studies and analyses. PAF provides the Air Force with independent analyses of policy alternatives affecting the development, employment, combat readiness, and support of current and future air, space, and cyber forces. Research is conducted in four programs: Force Modernization and Employment; iii Manpower, Personnel, and Training; Resource Management; and Strategy and Doctrine. The research reported here was prepared under contract FA7014-06-C-0001. Additional information about PAF is available on our website: http://www.rand.org/paf/ iv Contents Preface ............................................................................................................................................ iii Figures............................................................................................................................................ ix Tables ............................................................................................................................................. xi Summary ...................................................................................................................................... xiii Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................ xxi Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................. xxiii 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 Background ........................................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose .................................................................................................................................................. 2 Analysis Approach ................................................................................................................................ 2 Key Assumptions ............................................................................................................................. 2 Flight Modeling ............................................................................................................................... 4 Annualized Costs ............................................................................................................................. 5 Fleet Retirements ............................................................................................................................. 5 Cost-to-Carry ................................................................................................................................... 7 Caveats ............................................................................................................................................. 8 Observations .......................................................................................................................................... 8 Fuel Reduction Potential .................................................................................................................. 8 Fuel Reduction Options ................................................................................................................... 9 How This Report Is Organized ............................................................................................................ 11 2. Fuel Efficiency in Commercial Aviation .................................................................................. 13 Background ......................................................................................................................................... 13 Information Sources ............................................................................................................................ 14 Differences Between Commercial Aviation and the Air Force .......................................................... 15 Technological Improvements .............................................................................................................. 16 Propulsion ...................................................................................................................................... 16 Aerodynamics ................................................................................................................................ 17 Weight Reduction .......................................................................................................................... 18 Operational Improvements .................................................................................................................. 20 Ground Efficiencies ....................................................................................................................... 20 Airborne Efficiencies ..................................................................................................................... 23 Fleet Efficiencies ........................................................................................................................... 24 Implementation .................................................................................................................................... 26 v Information System ........................................................................................................................ 27 Integrating Fuel Conservation into Company Culture ................................................................... 28 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................... 29 3. Cost-Effective Options for Reducing Fuel Use ........................................................................ 31 Engine-Out Taxiing ............................................................................................................................