This Paper contains a new integrated approach to the problem of selection of an aircraft, which is considered to be a part of the Coast Guard System (CGS). The method of comparison of various types of aircraft is enounced. The application of the compared aircraft in the two types of operations (rescue and patrol) is considered. A system of criteria for evaluation of operational effectiveness of the compared aircraft in both types of operations is suggested. The expenses on the creation of an air component of the Coast Guard System (aircraft that will be included in the system) are also taken into account.
A detailed classification of weather conditions in the regions of accomplishment of rescue operations is introduced for the integrated evaluation of the aircraft performance during the rescue operation. The divisions of this classification are connected with the following parameters: the possible time during which the rescued people can stay in the water (until they die of hypothermia), aircraft's capability to land on water, aircraft's capability to accomplish a rescue operation etc. Thus the statistical data on the frequency of emergence of the appropriate weather conditions in the particular region of the fulfillment of rescue operations and characteristics of the compared aircraft are also taken into account. An integral evaluation (for one year) of the possibility of successful rescue operations by each compared type of aircraft is carried out using these factors.
A special criterion is used for the evaluation of the results of the fulfillment of patrol operation by the particular type of aircraft. The usage of this criterion allows us to take into account the probability of the arrest of the violator, which is connected with the characteristics of the particular aircraft type through the probability of detection of the violator and the probability of the effective influence on the violator. The activity of the whole CGS during the fulfillment of a patrol operation is considered as activity of a «Queuing System».
First it is offered to carry out the evaluation of the operational effectiveness of the compared aircraft separately during the rescue operation and the patrol operation. Then it is necessary to form a Pareto set, with which it is possible to find the unequivocally bad variants of the compared aircraft. Then it is offered to determine the cost of the creation of the alternative variants of the CGS air components (in view of the purchase costs of the aircraft and expenses on the creation of the ground infrastructure). Using the economic criterion, we can finally substantiate the choice of the aircraft type in the situation when it is considered to be an element of the CGS in a given region.
The developed method was tested during the consideration of Russia's three marine frontier regions: the region of Kuril Islands, the Barents Sea and the Black sea. The following types of vehicles were considered as competing: seaplanes, helicopters, VTOL, ekranoplans and patrol vessels.
The results of the carried out comparisons have shown the capacity of work of the method and its sensitivity to all of the important mentioned above factors. The developed method is universal and can be applied in various countries and regions.