An automated, real-time decision support system for reassigning,
rescheduling, and rerouting aircraft in response to flight operation
disruptions, in which sets of optimal solutions are provided through use
of evaluation statistics to assist operations management in selecting the
optimal solution best conforming to operational constraints and user
requirements. Solutions are generated through the execution of unary
operations, binary operations, three-way operations, and reverse binary
operations on grounded aircraft routes, available aircraft routes, and
phantom routes which implicitly cancelled flights. Solutions are evaluated
for feasibility with respect to operations constraints and user
requirements. Marginal value calculators are used to differentiate
feasible solutions and identify optimal solutions. The marginal value
calculators are dynamic, hierarchical calculators that permit use of
multiple, prioritized, and weighted route and operation attributes in
comparing solution values. Marginal value calculators are selected by
means of a decision tree.