Application of an Optimisation Technique to an Air Force Problem

This paper deals with an optimisation technique for determining the relative effectiveness of different types of bombs being dropped over a certain target area. The measure of effectiveness is the total effort required for each type of bomb to lethalise a given fraction of the total target area and the one with the least total effort is taken to be the most cost-effective solution. The total effort takes into account the number of bombs dropped, their costs and also the costs of the sorties performed to carry out the mission. A mathematical model has been formulated and discussed in detail