Many of us have experienced it firsthand. Delayed flights and long waiting times have become common occurrences at airports, especially after COVID-19. ‘During the pandemic, airlines had to lay off a lot of their staff, especially baggage handlers, and this causes problems now,’ explains Mahekha Dahanayaka.
Mahekha Dahanayaka
PhD research topic: Leveraging airline operations through artificial intelligence and operations research
Work: PhD candidate at the Industrial Engineering & Business Information Systems group, Faculty of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences (BMS) at the University of Twente
Education: Master of Science, Department of Transport and Logistics Management, University of Moratuwa
Originally from: Sri Lanka
Many of us have experienced it firsthand. Delayed flights and long waiting times have become common occurrences at airports, especially after COVID-19. ‘During the pandemic, airlines had to lay off a lot of their staff, especially baggage handlers, and this causes problems now,’ explains Mahekha Dahanayaka.
Flights can sometimes be delayed only because there aren’t enough staff members to handle the luggage. As a UT doctoral candidate, Dahanayaka collaborates directly with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to tackle this issue. Using artificial intelligence (AI), she searches for ways to improve the airline’s ground operations, specifically focusing on staff scheduling.
‘The unpredictable issues that can arise on the day of operations, along with limited ground staff, highlight the importance of having a solid staff scheduling plan in place ahead of time,’ says the doctoral researcher.
Kickstart AI
Dahanayaka’s PhD project is part of the Kickstart AI program, which aims to accelerate the adoption of AI in the Netherlands and involves many major companies such as Ahold Delhaize, ING, NS and KLM. ‘Together we search for new approaches to use AI in various industries,’ says the researcher.
The request to develop an optimized schedule for baggage controllers came directly from KLM, explains Dahanayaka. ‘KLM doesn’t only fly the planes; they also provide services for ground operations. They have their own staff for baggage handling, catering and other services directly at the airport. There are more than 15.000 KLM employees at Schiphol alone. That is a huge number, which is why they want to find ways to improve the operations, save costs and minimize the impact of disruptions on passengers.’
Airport disruptions
Using AI for this purpose could make the running of airports and airline operations smoother and help deal with the many disruptions that happen on a daily basis.
‘There are a lot of uncertainties when it comes to airport operations,’ says Dahanayaka. ‘Flights might not be on time due to weather or other circumstances, there might be technical issues, employees might call in sick and so on. KLM would like to find a way to create staff schedules months in advance while taking all these possibilities into account.’
Currently, staff scheduling models are not capable of dealing with such disruptions, clarifies the UT researcher. ‘Because of this, they have to make many changes on the day of operation and that is not optimal. Using novel AI techniques, we can proactively take possible disruptions into account, which leads to a more robust schedule and stable operations.’
Reducing delays
Mahekha Dahanayaka is aiming to develop AI reinforced simulation optimization techniques that KLM and other companies can use. ‘With AI, we can evaluate and account for many scenarios. It can make the process smoother and handle large datasets, which is necessary in this case,’ she says. ‘There are more than 600 flights a day at Schiphol, which means thousands of flights a week.’
If successful, the PhD research can therefore help reduce flight delays. ‘And because there will be less delays, it will also lead to cost savings,’ says Dahanayaka. ‘It’s still too early to share any results, but at the end of my PhD, I should have a working system that KLM and other airlines could benefit from.’
Passion for aviation
And Dahanayaka is eager to make it happen because, as she says, aviation is her passion. From a young age, she was interested in becoming an air traffic controller and studied transport and logistics management in Sri Lanka, followed by an internship at SriLankan Airlines. ‘I’d say it was a turning point for me. I felt so enthusiastic and energized by the job, and I knew I wanted to pursue a career in aviation.’
It is the experience of ‘flying’ that draws her in, says the UT scientist. ‘I’m always excited to see different airports and experience different airlines. I’m still deciding on my plans after completing my PhD, but I’m certain that I’ll continue working in the aviation field. You need to align your career with what you are passionate about.’
