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Systemic propagation of delays in the air-transportation network

Fleurquin, Pablo, (Supervisors: Eguiluz, VM and Ramasco, JJ)
PhD Thesis , (2016)

Thesis defended March 11, 2016 at 11:30 AM .

The focus of this dissertation is to quantitative describe, analyze and model a paradigmatic socio-technical complex system such as the air-transportation system. The generation, propagation and eventual amplification of flight delays involve a large number of interacting mechanisms. Such mechanisms can be classified as internal or external to the air traffic system. The basic internal mechanisms include aircraft rotations (the different flight legs that comprise an aircraft itinerary), airport operations, passengers’ connections and crew rotation. In addition, external factors, such as weather perturbations or security threats, disturb the system performance and contribute to a high level of system-wide congestion. Although this socio-technical system is driven by human decisions, the intricacy of the interactions between all these elements calls for an analysis of flight delays under the scope of Complex Systems theory. Complexity is concerned with the emergence of collective behavior from the microscopic interaction of the system elements. Several tools have been developed to tackle complexity. Here we use Complex Networks theory and take a system-wide perspective to broaden the understanding of delay propagation.

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