The paper presents a method for plotting an avoidance route around a dynamically changing thunderstorm area, based on the use of a weighted dynamic graph with a fixed set of nodes and a changing set of edges. The proposed approach allows for accounting for the spatiotemporal variability of thunderstorm cells and also contributes to reducing the computational complexity of the planning task and enhancing the safety of the avoidance route when predictive information on the development of thunderstorm cells in the very short term is available. The results of developing a route optimization algorithm based on a visibility graph, which ensures a reduction in route length without loss of avoidance correctness, are also presented. A statistical analysis was conducted, confirming the method effectiveness and the comparability of its results with the baseline approach at lower computational costs. The practical significance of the work lies in the possibility of integrating the developed method into intelligent decision support systems and automated flight trajectory planning systems for circumventing hazardous weather phenomena, which can contribute to enhanced flight safety and efficiency.

Scientific and methodological research by leading scientists in the field of aircraft operational efficiency management has developed a comprehensive approach to determining the quantitative parameters of operational and technical characteristics. Significant accumulated experience in continuing airworthiness allows not only to define but also to objectively evaluate and confirm operational and technical characteristics at all stages of the aircraft lifecycle, creating a unified methodological framework. The developed model is based on an analysis of the aircraft operational cycle, which consists of the flight duration according to a typical profile and the ground stay duration. Key interrelated parameters for design and planning are the estimated annual flight time, defined by industry standards, and the serviceability factor. It has been established that with increasing flight duration and annual flight time, the number of operational cycles decreases, which objectively leads to an increase in the required ground stay duration to fulfill the plan. The practical value of this work lies in the calculation results obtained, which allowed for standardizing the values of ground parking duration and the possible number of operating cycles for various aircraft classes: from local airliners to long-haul aircraft. A methodology for graphical and analytical determination of the minimum required aircraft availability factor for achieving a specified annual flight time is presented. This allows for the identification of critical combinations of parameters when plan fulfillment becomes impossible without changing operating conditions. The presented methodology goes beyond a formal description of the relationships and provides a practical tool for designing new aircraft with optimized characteristics, for planning airline production activities, and for the operational management of maintenance processes. The main result is the ability to quantitatively substantiate management decisions aimed at improving the efficiency of technical operations and reducing labor and material costs for airlines.

This article presents a concept for an automated airworthiness management system (AAMXS) that integrates elements of artificial intelligence (AI). The aim of this work is to develop an architectural approach that ensures end-to-end processing of operational data (telemetry, ERP, OEM) to formulate well-founded recommendations for maintenance while maintaining the key role and responsibility of engineering personnel. The methodology is based on the multi-level architecture principle, that includes a heterogeneous data collection layer, an analytical core based on the ensemble of models (LSTM networks, Cox survival analysis, Weibull distribution), and a decision support layer with mandatory human control through the Human Verification Gateway mechanism. As a result, a system concept is proposed, aimed at implementing predictive analytics to assess the risk of critical component failures and to optimize maintenance schedules using integer programming methods. The key principle is the subordinate role of AI, acting as an analysis tool rather than an autonomous decision-maker, which meets the requirements of the regulatory framework. The main conclusion is that the proposed conceptual approach creates a theoretical basis for the transition from scheduled to predictive-optimized maintenance, potentially contributing to improving aircraft operational readiness through proactive work planning. The concept provides for integration with digital twins and regulatory documentation, forming a guideline for the development of service-oriented maintenance models in aviation.

Currently, thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are used on the turbine blades of gas turbine engines (GTEs) in order to reduce the gas temperature on the blade material, which improves the performance and efficiency of the turbine blades. The authors have accumulated experimental data that allow them to obtain TBCs of the required microstructure and composition on the turbine blade using electron beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD). The TBCs protect the metal base of the GTE blades from the hightemperature effects of the gas flow. The article discusses a new approach to the technological process of applying a heat-resistant coating using the electron-beam method. The experience of applying thermal protection coatings by electron beam evaporation and condensation in a vacuum show that the thickness of the ceramic pillars and their orientation relative to the turbine blade have a significant impact on the performance of such a coating, as well as on the thermal conductivity and heat resistance of the coating. In this article, the process of electron beam evaporation and condensation in a vacuum is examined from the perspective of a methodology adapted to the process of applying thermal protection coatings, the thickness of the coating, the materials chosen for the coating, and the desired microstructure of the coating. The presented work focuses on the ability to control the concentration of the vapor flow on the deposited parts in order to reduce the coating formation time and the consumption of the evaporated material. The article discusses the features of coating thickness and microstructure formation, depending on the substrate position relative to the crucible. A method for coating formation is proposed, which allows to increase the density of the steam flow on the blade and increase the material utilization rate. Experimental studies of the influence of the angle of steam incidence on the turbine blade on its density during condensation on the part are presented.

Aviation disaster statistics indicate that it often takes a long time to locate aircraft crash sites. Individual disaster sites remain unidentified. Moreover, not all disasters with a long time to detect crash sites occur above the water surface. Many such disasters occur above the earth’s surface. The difficulty of searching for aircraft crash sites and aircraft debris in this case is due to the large area of probable aircraft crash sites, the impossibility of examining the entire area by walking groups of people, the relatively high speed and altitude of the search aircraft, the small size of aircraft debris, and the concealment of disaster sites by vegetation or precipitation. In recent years, the radar method of searching for aircraft debris has been considered as one of the promising methods. However, the dimensions of a radar station capable of detecting high-contrast aircraft debris from the heights at which manned search aircraft are currently flying are not acceptable for putting such a station on board an aircraft at the current level of technology development. Acceptable dimensions of such a radar are achieved by lowering the flight altitude, which is impossible for manned aircraft due to the difficulty of ensuring an acceptable level of flight safety at low altitudes. At the same time, the rapid development of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the emergence of a compact target load in the form of optical and thermal range cameras, and small radars opens up opportunities to create specialized search UAVs that, according to the authors, can dramatically reduce the time it takes to detect aircraft crash sites. The presented review article analyzes the statistics of aviation accidents over the past ten years. The aviation disasters that have occurred are divided by type of terrain, as well as by the duration of search activities to identify crash sites. The factors that make it difficult to find crash sites and aircraft debris are highlighted. The prospects and problems of using UAVs in search operations are analyzed. The prospects and the possibility of creating mobile search unmanned aircraft systems based on heterogeneous UAVs and mobile drone ports are shown. As one of the problems that need to be solved on the way to creating these search UAS, the problem of synthesizing the control of a group of UAVs is identified, providing a survey of a given search area while avoiding obstacles in the path of the UAV flight.

The article analyzes the structure and effectiveness of state regulation in air transport concerning the development of regional air transport systems in the Russian Federation. The definition of the system is proposed from the standpoint of the process approach, which allows considering the regional air transport system as interconnected processes of air transport enterprises that ensure the implementation of a set of strategic and tactical tasks of the region in logistics and economics. Since the strategic development of a region requires state involvement, and drawing on international experience, the article provides an overview of the tools and methods of state regulation of air transport systems. In Russia, it is essential to develop the state policy for maintaining and advancing the transport industry, which would also stimulate the mobility of the regional population. The study identifies the primary powers and instruments of state regulatory entities in aviation activities and examines the extension of the legislative framework to the segments of the air transport system. A comprehensive analysis of problematic issues in regulating aviation activities within regional air transport systems is conducted. A scheme of the mechanism for state regulation of the integrated functional territory of the air transport system is developed. Possible directions for the development of regulatory instruments, considering the dynamics of the external environment, are outlined. Given the lack of a comprehensive legislative framework and unified approaches to the formation of air transport clusters, the paper proposes a concept for establishing effective interaction between regional industry enterprises, based on legally established cooperation between airports, airlines, and aircraft repair enterprises in servicing air transportation technological processes. Finally, a formula for calculating the effectiveness of applying the mechanism for forming integrated functional zones through aviation mobility is presented to evaluate the proposed cluster system for enterprise placement.

Due to the growth of the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market and the specific tasks they perform, the design of convertible aircraft, such as convertiplanes, is becoming increasingly relevant. These aircraft combine the advantages of helicopters and airplanes: they can take off and land vertically from unprepared surfaces and have higher cruising speeds and ranges than helicopters. The key problem of convertiplane aircraft is transient modes, characterized by complex unsteady aerodynamics and an abrupt change in the dynamic properties of the device. This paper presents a comparative analysis of two kinematic configurations of the aircraft: tilt-wing and tilt-rotor. The primary focus of the study is on the transitional flight modes, during which the aircraft transitions from vertical flight in helicopter mode to horizontal flight in airplane mode. The goal of the study is to quantify the effect of the type of kinematic scheme on the integrated aerodynamic characteristics of an aircraft. To achieve this goal, a 3D model of the aircraft was developed, based on the Bell Eagle Eye prototype. The simulation was carried out in the Ansys Fluent software package based on the solution of nonstationary Reynolds equations (URANS) using the Spalart–Allmaras turbulence model. A number of rotation angles of the power plant were calculated for each kinematic scheme. (0°, 30°, 60°, 90°). The flight speed and rotational speed of the propellers for each design case were selected iteratively to ensure a uniform horizontal flight (equal to zero the sum of the forces acting on the aircraft). The flight speed and rotor speed for each case were iteratively selected to ensure the condition of steady horizontal flight (the sum of forces acting on the aircraft equals zero). The numerical modeling characteristics resulted in obtaining the required power and torque at the rotor shaft, flight speed. It was concluded that the configuration with a fixed wing demonstrates a higher flight speed (22 m/s compared to 10 m/s at a 30° angle) and a more favorable ratio of required power to flight speed compared to the rotary-wing layout.

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are rapidly gaining popularity and are widely used across various fields, including military, civilian, and research domains. Special attention is paid to the development of systems and means for UAV complexes, since these are key components for the effective use and integration of UAVs into air transport sectors when solving a wide range of tasks. An important trend in the development of helicopter-type unmanned aerial vehicles (helicopter-type UAVs) is the approach to forming their rational fleet. The relevance of this approach is determined by the need to develop a methodology for forming a fleet of helicopter-type UAVs for joint use with manned helicopters and heterogeneous robotic systems in order to solve a large number of tasks. A fleet is understood as the aggregate of single-purpose and multi-purpose helicopter-type UAVs intended to solve a specified list and volume of tasks. The methodology for forming a fleet of helicopter-type UAVs includes: problem statement; formalization of its description; determination of an area of acceptable solutions; and the development of particular methods. The implementation of particular methods involves: reducing the initial set of solutions; developing special methods and techniques for composing a fleet from single-purpose and multi-purpose helicopter-type UAVs; and evaluating the formed fleets to ensure a given level of task-solving effectiveness while minimizing cost. To assess the effectiveness of tasks execution by helicopter-type UAVs, a multicriteria optimization method is applied to the configurations of each type of single-purpose and multi-purpose helicopter-type UAV. When determining the cost of helicopter-type UAVs, the method of summing the cost of a single-unit single-purpose helicopter-type UAV and the additional cost of equipment for a multi-purpose helicopter-type UAV is used. Taking into account the large dimensionality of the problem, a hardware-software complex for automated calculation of helicopter-type UAV fleet variants has been developed to evaluate fleet options.