Reliability of a Multiple-Demand Multistate Air Transport Network With Flight Delays and Budget Constraints

Air transport plays an important role in supporting the global tourism industry. An unstable or uncertain air transport network leads to passenger dissatisfaction; therefore, a performance assessment is crucial to the management processes of travel agencies. Flights in an air transport network may be delayed by several factors when the travel time and cost significantly affect passenger satisfaction. This study evaluates reliability as the probability of successfully fulfilling multiple demands under the budget and time constraints with the impacts of flight delays, demonstrating the ability to satisfy passengers. Employing the minimal path concept, this study first models a multiple-demand multistate air transport network considering flight delays (MSAD) then identifies feasible minimal paths under the budget and time constraints and their maximum time-delay vectors. Reliability then is derived from all flow vectors that enable transport as required and their corresponding time-delay vectors. This study aims at an efficient algorithm that provides managers of travel agencies with insight into their MSAD and a basis for managerial decisions.