Aviation Network, Efficiency, and Epidemics

Aviation infrastructure, with its complex web of connectivity and dynamics over it, presents an interesting case of complex system. Along with studying biological complex systems, I got interested in analysis and modeling of airport networks from statistical mechanics point of view, using graph-theoretical tools.

Specifically, I analyzed and enumerated the Airport Network of India (ANI). The study lead to some interesting results vis-a-vis world-wide-wide airport network and insights into the dynamic and fast-growing network that ANI is.

With the initial insights and further thoughts based on results from condensed matter physics, I could formulate ideas on performance and risks on airport networks.

It would be interesting to model airport networks aimed at engineering efficient infrastructure, resilience to targeted attacks, and robust against spread of contagious diseases. The last point has especially become important in the light of recent examples of emergence of epidemics such as SARS and swine flu, the global spread of which is largely supported by the aviation infrastructure.

See my blog for more discussion on: Airport Networks: Design, Efficiency and Emergence of Pandemic

• Ganesh Bagler, "Analysis of Airport Network Network of India as a Complex Weighted Network", Physica A, 387, 12, 2972--2980 (2008). Journal Link: Physica A | arXiv:cond-mat/0409773 .

  • Ganesh Bagler, "Complex network view of performance and risks on airport networks", Nova Science Publishers, USA, ISBN: 978-1-60692-393-1 (2009). arxiv.org/abs/0805.0924