Artificial Intelligence potential within airlines: a review on how AI can enhance strategic decision-making in times of COVID-19

Purpose: Airline strategy relies on the competitive environment analysis and the management of resources. Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms are being increasingly deployed throughout several industries. COVID-19 has further stressed a sector where firms have historically struggled to sustain profitability.The purpose is to explore the potential of AI applications regarding strategic decision-making in airlines in times of crisis and to depict a roadmap to encourage scholars and practitioners to jointly implement these tools within corporations.Design/methodology/approach: This study firstly reviews the state-of-the-art regarding transport organization trends with focus on airline strategy and finance as well as AI tools, supported by the collaboration of a former airline digitalization strategist. Secondly, the potential of the latter to be applied in those functions is analyzed, considering different Machine Learning (ML) methods and algorithms.Findings: Some applications or pathways are identified as of particular interest for the airlines’ strategic decision-making process. Most of them are based on ML algorithms and training methods that are currently underused or disregarded in certain business areas, such as Neural Network models for unsupervised market analysis or supervised cost estimation.Research limitations/implications: Focus is on airline strategy and finance, keeping engineering or operational applications out of the scope.Practical implications: Proposed guidance may promote the deployment of AI tools which currently lack practical implementation in certain business areas.Social implications: Showcased guidance may revert into a closer collaboration between business and academia.Originality/value: Comprehensive review of current airlines’ strategic levers and identification of promising AI pathways to be further explored.

Sustainable development of the transport industry based on artificial intelligence systems

Objective: Modification of trends in the development of railway transport with the introduction of artificial intelligence technologies that are optimal for predictive assessment of the activities of a transport organization. Methods: The key logical methods of cognition – analysis and synthesis – are used. Results: The scientific background related to the digitalization of the transport industry has been studied with the help of fundamental research, data from the Federal State Statistics Service, and the SPARK information resource. The necessity of introducing intelligent technologies to optimize transportation time and reduce costs has been determined. The main directions of application of intelligent technologies in railway transport are systematized, taking into account the strategic target direction of the industry. Practical importance: The main findings can be used in forecasting business processes using various digital technologies and tools

Characteristics associated with delays in decision to transfer injured patients

Introduction The regionalized nature of trauma care necessitates interfacility transfer which is vulnerable to delays given its complexity. Little is known about the interval of time a patient spends at the sending hospital prior to when the transfer is initiated—the “decision to transfer” time. This primary objective of the study was to explore the impact of patient, environmental, and institutional characteristics on decision to transfer time. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study of injured adult patients who underwent emergent interfacility transfer by a provincial critical care transport organization over a 31-month period. Quantile regression was used to evaluate the impact of patient, environmental, and institutional characteristics on the time to decision to transfer. Results A total of 1128 patients were included. The median decision to transfer time was 2.42 h and the median total transport time was 3.12 h. The following variables were associated with an increase in time to decision to transfer at the 90th percentile of time: age >75 (+2.47 h), age 66–75 (+3.70 h), age 56–65 (+1.20 h), transfer between 00:00 and 07:59 (+2.08 h), and transfer in the summer (+2.25 h). The following variables were associated with a decrease in time to decision to transfer at the 90th percentile of time: Glasgow Coma Scale 3–8 (−2.21 h), respiratory rate >30 (−2.01 h), sending site being a community hospital with <100 beds (−4.11 h), or the sending site being a nursing station (−5.66 h). Conclusion Time to decision to transfer was a sizable proportion of the patients interfacility transfer. Older patients were associated with a delay in decision to transfer as were patients transferred overnight and in the summer. These findings may be used to support the implementation of geriatric trauma triage guidelines and promote ongoing education and quality improvement initiatives to decrease delay.

Comprehensive Approach to Achieving Business Continuity and Sustainable Success of the Transport Organization

Achieving business continuity and sustainable success of the transport organization requires a comprehensive approach that involves the consideration and resolution of a large number of factors that affect its business and arise from the specifics of its activities. Based on the author’s experiences, in this paper discusses issues of importance for achieving sustainable success and business continuity of the transport organization in a modern, very complex and dynamic business environment. Coordinated consideration and resolution of all these issues is the essence of an approach that enables the achievement of expected results. As a the most important factors for achieving the organization’s ability to achieve sustainable success and business continuity the following factors are highlighted: understanding the context of the organization, the organization’s resilience to environmental influences, application of approaches “Risk-based thinking” and “Risk-based management”, integration of management systems, continuous improvement and application of international standards for management systems. The application of the described approach is possible, except in transport, in other organizations, taking into account its specifics.

MODELS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT IN LITHUANIA AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES

Public transport is recognized as a more environmentally friendly mode of transport than cars for the same number of passengers. Many countries are investing heavily in public transport to make it not only greener, but also more convenient, more attractive, faster, more competitive and more accessible. In order to promote a sustainable environment, private, public and non-motorized transport must functionally complement each other to form balanced integrated systems. There are currently two main forms of organizing public transport: a government-oriented service and a market-oriented service. Positive changes in the field of public transport are possible if in the process involves not only state and municipal institutions, but also infrastructure planners, passenger carriers and inhabitants. Public transport must be seen as a means of developing cities and regions. The aim of the article is to analyze the existing models of public transport organization and management, to compare them and submit a proposal, on the basis of which management model it would be possible to submit proposals for the improvement of the organization of Lithuanian public transport. Good foreign countries practice in the management and organization of public transport shows that in some countries public transport is already organized not by individual municipalities but by regions. Based on the achievements of foreign countries, municipalities are recommended to cooperate and share experience in creating a common public transport network. It is necessary to create a management scheme in Lithuania for the development of public transport services, which at the same time would reduce public costs.

CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSION FROM DIESEL ENGINE VEHICLES IN INTERMODAL TRANSPORT

Currently, many logistics operators operate in both domestic and foreign markets using various forms of transport organization. Choosing a corresponding technology and appropriate form of transport has an influence not only delivery time and costs, but also has an impact on the environment as a whole. There is a plethora of public research available in global literature discussing various ways of exploiting transport. On the other hand, there is a lack of complex studies detailing carbon emissions coming from transport activity. Specifically, where a theory of organic fuel combustion in the form of a chemical reaction with oxygen is considered. To fill this gap, we offer an innovative Emission Model of Industrial Sources (EMIS) method. This method makes it possible to determine the amount of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere during various transport methods. It also enables us to estimate, in terms of CO2 output, a threshold where transport of containers via combined mode becomes more favourable for the environment, than road transport. We ran a simulation of our algorithm to create boundary conditions. This let us prepare a regression function of CO2 emission, for intermodal and road transport as a function of various transport distances. The simulation results suggest that our approach may be used by supervisory institutions, which are responsible further developing and utilizing combined transport.

KVALITA MHD AKO MOTIVAČNÝ FAKTOR PRE JEJ VYUŽÍVANIE

The quality of public transport is becoming increasingly important for the good functioning of the city system. The article deals with the possibilities of motivating car users to use public transport in small and medium-sized cities. It seeks a balance between the comfort that public transport must meet and the efficiency of operation that public transport must maintain. It shows that good public transport organization, especially line optimization, can reveal large reserves. It explains the benefits of a suitably laid out network of lines and corresponding timetables for passenger comfort, as well as the benefits for the efficiency of public transport operations. It thus provides guidance for the management of cities in the field of public transport. The optimization of line management and timetables is documented on the practical example of the city of Trnava.