Airfield simulation with optimization via decomposition

The United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) is responsible for managing our Air Forceʹs capability to move personnel, equipment, and cargo during wartime and peacetime from any origin to any destination within its global system of airfields. The analysis groups of USTRANSCOM and the Air Mobility Command (AMC) employ sophisticated computer models and simulations to help them better understand the capabilities and limitations of the many types of resources making up this complex transportation system. This study describes the development and use of the computer model that analyzes the complex activities that occur at a military airfield in order to assess the airfieldʹs ability to support many types of aircraft missions. It also outlines the optimizing of complex hybrid systems using a method of decomposition that allows for the use of classical methods to improve the performance of the airfield system. Previously known as the Base Resource and Capabilities Estimator (BRACE), the model and computer simulation are now referred to as the Airfield Simulation Tool (AST). BRACE/AST is used by the Air Force on a daily basis to analyze the capabilities of their many airfields throughout the world and has been used to support several major policy and infrastructure enhancement studies.