Airspace closure challenges: Exploring the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on flight operations and pathways to solutions

• The effects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on flight operations are visualized. • Available flight routes during the Russia-Ukraine conflict are clustered using the density-based clustering algorithm. • A multi-objective optimization model is proposed to reduce flight time and fuel consumption. • Policy implications are provided to alleviate the effects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has resulted in significant flight cancellations and flight rerouting, disrupting routine flight operations and increasing economic costs. This study tries to relieve these problems by optimizing flight trajectories from the perspective of air traffic management. First, the density-based cluster method is used to obtain representative flight trajectories for the selection of flight routes. Then, a multi-objective optimization model is proposed to minimize the weighted sum of flight time and fuel consumption by assigning flight routes, flight altitudes, and flight speeds, considering the wind effect. Results show that the proposed method can generate optimal assignments while satisfying the thresholds of flight time and fuel consumption. Besides, some policies and suggestions are advocated to alleviate the current issues caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The findings of this study can also be applied to other airspace closure scenarios, offering strategic insights and practical guidance for air traffic management.