Aircraft cargo loading planning: A systematic literature review

Abstract

Air cargo has become one of the most important means of transportation. This importance is currently being reinforced by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has dried passenger traffic to historic low levels. As a result, airline companies have turned on air cargo as the lifeblood to keep their operations running. However, the process of loading cargo on cargo aircraft is a complex task carried out by experts called loadmasters. It requires hands-on experience because the correct loading affects the balance and fuel performance of the aircraft. The problem in the literature is referred to as the air cargo load planning (ACLP) problem. In this research, we employed a systematic literature review framework that clusters the existing relevant literature into their respective solution approaches and presents a more transparent idea about the state of the current literature, the gaps, and the shortfalls of various solution methodologies.