Airline Programme Planning in British Airways European Division

Two years ago, in British Airways European Division, the conventional airline planning process was completely reversed. Now before schedule decisions are made, planners simultaneously evaluate many factors by using on-line computer terminals. A single interactive computer program, the Profit Analysis Model (PAM), has almost completely replaced previous planning systems. Using PAM, the airline objectives are designed into the scheduled programmes. Previously this was impossible.

This paper concerns perhaps the most advanced planning system used by any airline. In describing it, we will consider (1) the planning environment, (2) the technical principles of the models, (3) the achieved results and (4) the organizational impact.