Airport Magazine June July 2008 by Airport Magazine

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Engineering, architecture, construction, environmental and consulting solutions for the aviation industry. Atlanta • Chicago • Denver • Houston • Kansas City, Mo. • Miami • Phoenix • San Diego • St. Louis Chattanooga, Tenn. • Cincinnati • Dallas-Fort Worth • Minneapolis-St. Paul • New York • O’Fallon, Ill. • San Francisco • Wallingford, Conn. • Washington, D.C. • Wichita, Kan.

Volume 19/ Number 5 | June/July 2008

e d i t o r i a l a d v i s o r y B OARD A i r p o r t M e mb e r s William G. Barkhauer, Morristown, New Jersey Timothy L. Campbell, Baltimore, Maryland Charles Isdell, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Jim Johnson, Odessa, Florida James L. Morasch, Pasco, Washington Robert Olislagers, Englewood, Colorado Lisa Pyles, Addison, Texas Torrance Richardson, Fort Wayne, Indiana Elaine Roberts, Columbus, Ohio

C o r p o r a t e M e mb e r s Bill Hogan, Reynolds, Smith + Hills Brian Lacey, Delaware North Companies Steve Pelham, Reveal Imaging Technologies Randy Pope, Burns & McDonnell Laura Samuels, Hudson Group

AAAE B OARD O F DIRE C TORS Chair Jim P. Elwood, Aspen, Colorado First Vice Chair

John K. Duval, Beverly, Massachusetts Second Vice Chair James E. Bennett, Washington, D.C.

Secretary/Treasurer Kelly L. Johnson, Bentonville, Arkansas

features

F IRST P a s t C h a i r

departments

Krys T. Bart, Reno, Nevada second Past Chair

cover:

Upfront

Elaine Roberts, Columbus, Ohio

Editor’s Corner

Board of DirectorS

Executive View

DANETTE M. BEWLEY, Reno, Nevada

Corporate Outlook

THOMAS H. BINFORD, Billings, Montana

Airport Spotlight

LEW S. BLEIWEIS, Fletcher, North Carolina

GA Airport Issues

BENJAMIN R. DECOSTA, Atlanta, Georgia

Surviving the Entry and Exit of an Airline | 26

AirporTech

ROD A. DINGER, Redding, California

Billboard

MICHAEL A. GOBB, Lexington, Kentucky

The Columbus/Skybus Story

FoodBeverageRetail

GARY L. JOHNSON, Stillwater, Oklahoma

SecurityCheckpoint

MARK D. KRANENBURG, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Retail Briefs

News Briefs

ROBERT P. OLISLAGERS, Englewood, Colorado

MarketScan

THOMAS M. RAFTER, Hammonton, New Jersey

DAVID R. ULANE, Aspen, Colorado

Airside Development Trends Roundtable | 22 Airport officials and consultants exchange ideas

Transparent Runway Development | 30 Keeping all parties informed

Airport Driver Training | 35

Advertiser Index

Inside AAAE: The making of an IET

FAA’s Management Advisory Council | 28 Q&A with MAC Chair Jim Smith, A.A.E.

GARY A. CYR, SR., Springfield, Missouri

LINDA G. FRANKL, Columbus, Ohio

ALEX M. KASHANI, Washington, D.C. SCOTT C. MALTA, Atwater, California JEFFREY A. MULDER, Tulsa, Oklahoma

WAYNE E. SHANK, Norfolk, Virginia

Chapter Presidents

Research supports recurrent, uniform training

Airport Training for the 21st Century | 52

JEFF L. BILYEU, Angleton, Texas

JEFFREY W. KELLY, Houston, Texas LYNN F. KUSY, Mesa, Arizona

coming in airport magazine

LEW S. BLEIWEIS, Fletcher, North Carolina KIM W. HOPPER, Portsmouth, New Hampshire TORRANCE A. RICHARDSON, Fort Wayne, Indiana

August/September: Winter Operations Outlook Retail Trends and Update

ROGER SELLICK, Kelowna, Canada P o l i c y R e v i e w C o mm i t t e e BONNIE A. ALLIN, Tucson, Arizona WILLIAM G. BARKHAUER, Morristown, New Jersey

October/November: NextGen Air Traffic Control Self-serve Kiosks

THELLA F. BOWENS, San Diego, California MARK P. BREWER, Manchester, New Hampshire TIMOTHY L. CAMPBELL, Baltimore, Maryland CHERYL D. COHEN-VADER, Denver, Colorado LARRY D. COX, Memphis, Tennessee

No Room For Baggage Screening | 44

December/January: Landside Development Trends

Reno-Tahoe’s Innovative Solution

ALFONSO DENSON, Birmingham, Alabama KEVIN A. DILLON, Warwick, Rhode Island THOMAS E. GREER, Monterey, California SEAN C. HUNTER, New Orleans, Louisiana CHARLES J. ISDELL, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

From AAAE’s Annual Conference and Exposition | 56 Photos, photos and more photos

JAMES A. KOSLOSKY, Grand Rapids, Michigan

Cover Design: Joacir Soto Cover Photo: Bill Krumpelman

LYNN F. KUSY, Mesa, Arizona JAMES L. MORASCH, Pasco, Washington ERIN M. O’DONNELL, Chicago, Illinois BRADLEY D. PENROD, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania MARK M. REIS, Seattle, Washington MAUREEN S. RILEY, Salt Lake City, Utah LESTER W. ROBINSON, Detroit, Michigan RICKY D. SMITH, Cleveland, Ohio SUSAN M. STEVENS, Charleston, South Carolina MARK H. WEBB, San Antonio, Texas

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

President Charles M. Barclay, Alexandria, Virginia

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editor’scorner

Introducing Our New Editorial Advisory Board

T Barbara Cook

his month, I am pleased to introduce the new Airport Magazine Editorial Advisory Board. The magazine’s content and breadth of coverage will be enriched by the advice and contributions of these aviation industry veterans. It says a lot about AAAE and Airport Magazine that this experienced and well-regarded group of individuals — representing air carrier and GA airports and companies involved in the airport industry — is willing to spend the time needed to contribute to our success. While the advice of the Editorial Advisory Board is freely offered, Airport Magazine takes full responsibility for our editorial content.

Editorial Advisory Board members are: Airports:

Bill Barkhauer, A.A.E. Director Morristown (N.J.) Municipal Airport Tim Campbell, A.A.E. Executive Director Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport Charles Isdell, A.A.E. Director Philadelphia International Airport Jim Johnson, A.A.E. Executive Director-Airport Services AAAE Jim Morasch, A.A.E. Director Tri-Cities (Wash.) Regional Airport Robert Olislagers, A.A.E. Executive Director Centennial (Colo.) Airport Lisa Pyles, A.A.E. Director Addison (Texas) Airport Torrance Richardson, A.A.E. Executive Director of Airports Fort Wayne-Allen County (Ind.) Airport Authority Elaine Roberts, A.A.E. President and CEO Columbus Regional Airport Authority

Companies: Bill Hogan President-Aviation RS&H Brian Lacey Vice President, Business Development Delaware North Companies Steve Pelham U.S. Sales Director Reveal Imaging Technologies Inc. Randy Pope Associate Vice President, Aviation and Facilities Burns & McDonnell Laura Samuels Director of Communications Hudson Group

A number of airports are celebrating significant anniversaries this year. Among them are Southwest Florida International at 25 years and Northwest Arkansas Regional at 10 years. We congratulate them on their achievement, and we invite other airports to notify Airport Magazine when they will observe a significant anniversary. Here’s an important “Save the Date” notice. AAAE is offering the workshop, “A Toolbox for Communications: PR Basics and Advanced Tactics” on Oct. 5-7, 2008, in Charleston, S.C. It will be particularly useful for persons who infrequently handle PR assignments and want to feel more comfortable discussing airport issues with the media. Go to www.aaae.org for registration information. As always, we appreciate the support of our advertisers, who make it possible for us to expand our print coverage. Advertisers in this issue are: Airport Seating Alliance; Transportation Consulting + Management; Burns & McDonnell; Daktronics; Delta Airport Consultants, Inc.; Division Systems Weighing and Conveying; DME Corp.; FLIR Systems; HNTB Corp.; Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.; MEDECO High Security Locks; O.R. Colan Associates, LLC; OshKosh Corp.; PBS&J; RS&H; Siemens; Transsoft Solutions; and Walter P. Moore.

Barbara Cook

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

Editor

Barbara Cook barbara.cook@aaae.org Publisher

Joan Lowden Executive Editor

Ellen P. horton Editor-At-Large

SEAN BRODERICK NEWS E d i t o r

Holly Ackerman s t a ff w r i t e r

kevin eaton Art Director

daryl humphrey Graphic Designer

JOACIR SOTO

contributors

Broderick Grady Jeff Price clifton stroud STA F F PHOTOGRAPHER s

Bill Krumpelman JAMES MARTIN S t a ff V i c e P r e s i d e n t Sales and Marketing

Susan Lausch susan.lausch@aaae.org director Sales and Marketing

Mike candela mike.candela@aaae.org

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E d i t o r i a l Off i c e

601 Madison Street, Suite 400 Alexandria, VA 22314 (703) 824-0500, Ext. 133 Fax: (703) 820-1395 Internet Address: www.airportmagazine.net Send editorial materials/press releases to: magazine@aaae.org Reprint information

The Reprint Department (717) 481-8500 Airport Magazine is published bimonthly by the AAAE Service Corporation Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Association of Airport Executives, and the Airport Research and Development Foundation. Subscription price for AAAE members is included in the annual dues. U.S. subscription rate to non-members is $45 for one year. International rate for non-members is $75. Single copy price is $10. Copyright 2008 by AAAE. All rights reserved. Statements of fact and opinion are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of AAAE or any of its members or officers. POSTMASTER Send address changes to: Airport Magazine 601 Madison Street, Suite 400 Alexandria, VA 22314

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

upfront

AAAE Tackles Energy Crisis AAAE, responding to airport member concerns about the rapidly shifting air service landscape as airlines grapple with rising fuel costs, has launched a multi-pronged effort that will bring industry leaders together to explore ways to cope with the changes. AAAE’s two major initiatives were the creation of the AAAE Fuel/Air Service Task Force and announcement of a one-day summit in Washington, D.C., to shine a light on the mounting air service challenges. The task force’s first meeting, slated for July 9, served as a tablesetter for the July 10 summit, which featured representatives from airports, airlines, government, labor and the financial community. (Editor’s note: AM will have extensive coverage of the summit and the initial task force meeting in its August/September issue.) AAAE’s moves came following several weeks of major changes to the air service landscape in late spring. As oil prices pushed past $130 per barrel, many U.S. airlines announced plans to reduce service, cut existing capacity and defer aircraft orders. For instance, Delta will trim domestic capacity by about 13 percent this year. American will cut fourthquarter 2008 mainline domestic capacity by about 12 percent and regional affiliate capacity by some 11 percent versus fourth quarter 2007 levels, parking as many as 85 Boeing MD-80s, A300s, regional jets and turboprops in the process. Continental will cut its fourth-quarter capacity 11 percent and park nearly 70 737 Classics, though deliveries of on-order Next-Generation 737s will mean the carrier’s net fleet reduction will be less. Northwest, United and Virgin America also have announced rounds of capacity cuts. 8

For airports, the ramifications are clear. “We’re going to have an extreme crisis in air service in this country that is going to come as one of the first fallouts of very, very high energy prices,” said AAAE’s Charles Barclay at a June 9 press conference held during the association’s annual conference and exposition in New Orleans to announce the summit and the task force. Even with the cuts, U.S. airlines are on track to lose $10 billion this year, Air Transport Association (ATA) economists forecasted in midJune. The service cuts could leave as many as 200 communities without air service, ATA President Jim May testified during a June 17 joint hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and the Senate Committee on Agriculture Nutrition and Forestry on the record-high fuel prices. Short-term, airports are scrambling to make decisions about their strategic responses to the rapidly evolving situation. AAAE’s summit and task force sought to crystallize the challenges and come up with a consensus on possible strategies — such as aviation-specific elements in a national energy policy — that the entire industry can support. “The intent is to bring together industry experts to talk about what is turning into a significant crisis of fuel costs and operation of the air transportation system,” explained Jim Elwood, A.A.E., director of Colorado’s Aspen/Pitkin County Airport and AAAE Chair. At AM press time, the list of task force participants included more than 50 executives from air carrier and general aviation airports. Barclay noted that while rising energy costs are hurting all industries, aviation is different in a few key ways. One, as the central mode of inter-city transportation, air travel is a major cog in the country’s

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

economic machine. “We have to have adequate levels of air service for the rest of our economy to be able to operate,” Barclay said. Two, there are no near-term alternatives to using oil-based fuels to power aircraft, so airlines and the communities they serve must cope with rising oil prices, he said. “Airlines and airports are strategically linked,” Barclay said. “As fuel prices rise and airlines change flight schedules, and general aviation operators alter their plans, airports are dealing with a shifting business landscape. The goal of this summit is to bring aviation industry stakeholders and government policymakers together in an effort to frame the problem and work together to face these challenges.” A wide variety of aviation organizations accepted AAAE’s invitation to co-sponsor the summit, underscoring Barclay’s point on the importance of collaboration. The list of summit co-sponsors at AM press time included the South Central Chapter/AAAE, Airports Council International-NA, Air Transport Association, International Air Transport Association, National Air Carrier Association, Air Line Pilots Association, National Business Aviation Association, General Aviation Manufacturers Association, National Air Carrier Association and Cargo Airline Association.

Panel Finds Flight Delays Cost $41 Billion In 2007 Flight delays last year cost the U.S. economy $41 billion, a total that promises to increase as the number of travelers grows to meet FAA’s forecast of more than 1.1 billion in 2025, a congressional committee reported in late May. The Joint Economic Committee

(JEC) said that it used more than 10 million individual flight records from DOT to show that delays are costly to passengers, airlines and the economy. Committee Chairman Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) commented, “Passengers were delayed by 320 million hours last year, and with the summer travel season being kicked off with Memorial Day, delays and the costs of those delays will only go up.” Other findings from the JEC report, “Your Flight Has Been Delayed Again: Flight Delays Cost Passengers, Airlines, and the U.S. Economy Billions in 2007,” include: • Delayed flights consumed about 740 million additional gallons of jet fuel totaling $1.6 billion extra in fuel bills. • Almost 20 percent of total domestic flight time in 2007 was wasted in delay. • Flight delays were longest during summer vacation months. • 78 percent of flight delays in 2007 occurred before takeoff, with 58 percent at the gate and 20 percent during the taxi to the runway. • 94 percent of all flight delays were caused by other flights arriving late, national system delays or air carrier delays (less than 6 percent of delays were due to security or extreme weather). The report found that flights to and from the 35 largest U.S. airports accounted for about half of the total passenger delays, even though flights in and out of these airports accounted for only 33 percent of the flights in the study. Those passengers departing from airports in the Northeast and Midwest experienced the most delays. The full report and the technical appendix can be found at www.jec.

for changes in takeoff and landing clearance procedures, FAA said.

senate.gov.

Controllers Assign Detailed Driving Routes Air traffic controllers, effective May 19, began giving more detailed directions to pilots and airport ground vehicle operators to improve runway safety by reducing mistakes. FAA said that controllers now must tell pilots and airport vehicle operators the specific route an aircraft or vehicle should follow across the airfield, instead of simply giving them an intended destination. The new mandatory detailed instructions require controllers to name the specific taxiways the aircraft or vehicle should use at each step along its route. FAA safety officials developed the new procedure to help eliminate pilot or driver confusion about which route to follow on the airport surface. The more detailed instructions are designed to reduce runway incursions caused by controller, pilot or vehicle driver mistakes. Safety risk management experts from FAA’s Flight Standards, Air Traffic, Airports and Human Factors offices evaluated the new procedure, along with pilot associations. The panel looked at taxi instructions already in use at several facilities. The group also analyzed several risk factors, such as longer periods of communication between controllers and pilots, and the increased chance of miscommunication. They concluded that the new procedure is safe. FAA’s Runway Safety Call to Action Committee identified the new taxi instructions as one of several procedural changes that significantly could improve runway safety. The Safety Risk Management Panel also is reviewing recommendations

DOT Issues Rules To Ease Delays At N.Y. Airports DOT has finalized three new measures designed to address delays at the three major New York area airports. The department capped flights at Newark Liberty at an average of 83 scheduled flights per hour from June 1, 2008, until October 2009. DOT said the rule will spread flight schedules more evenly throughout the day, while still allowing for 30 more operations per day than last summer. Further, DOT Secretary Mary Peters said the department will spend $2 million for a new study to consider ways to add transit connections from the three major New York airports to Stewart International, which is located 90 miles north of Manhattan. Peters said that Stewart has the runway capacity and facilities that could take pressure off the region’s busier airports, as long as travelers easily can get there. DOT’s third new measure is a proposal to make available a limited number of slots for auction at New York’s Kennedy International and Newark Liberty. Under the auction proposal, all airlines operating at Newark and JFK would be given up to 20 slots a day for the 10-year life of the rule. The proposal offers two options for JFK. Under the first, 10 percent of the airline’s slots above the 20-slot baseline would be made available via an auction. The revenue from those auctions would be invested in congestion and capacity improvements in the region. The second option for JFK would require the airlines to auction 20 percent of slots above the 20-slot baseline and allow them to keep

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

news briefs DOT announced that Marie KenningtonGardiner of Staten Island, N.Y., will serve as director of the New York Integration Office, created by the department last year as part of a coordinated effort to address chronic aviation delays in the New York region. As the newly appointed aviation czar, Kennington-Gardiner will coordinate regional airspace issues and all projects and initiatives addressing problems of congestion and delays in New York, DOT Secretary Mary Peters said… John Schalliol, A.A.E., executive director of South Bend (Ind.) Regional Airport, recently was honored by TSA for his assistance in the installation of new baggage screening equipment at the airport. Under the direction of Schalliol, the airport was successful in finding a creative, cost-effective and timely alternative to an expenditure of up to

all of the proceeds. Peters said that, depending on the option, between 91 and 179 slots would be affected out of 1,245 total slots at the airport. The proposal calls for auctioning 10 percent of slots at Newark Airport above the baseline annually for the first five years of the rule. As a result, only 96 slots out of a total of 1,219 slots at the airport would be auctioned over the 10-year span of the proposal. The secretary explained that DOT made the slot auction proposal “because economists estimate that caps at airports without competition can increase fares for passengers between 11 to 15 percent over similar flights at other airports.” Further, she said that economists estimate that fares drop by more than 30 percent when new airlines enter a market.

$500,000 and a major construction project in the terminal to meet congressionally mandated security requirements. The alternative allowed TSA to move the baggage screening equipment out of the airport lobby and into the airline operations areas, providing better service for passengers and better efficiency for TSA, with the additional benefit of reducing employee injury…. Michael O’Donnell, A.A.E., executive director of the South Carolina Division of Aeronautics, has been named to succeed Dave Bennett as director of FAA’s Office of Airport Safety and Standards. O’Donnell has degrees in aeronautics from EmbryRiddle University, with specialization in operations and safety and has managed both commercial service and general aviation airports. A

Boise Begins Work On New Tower Boise Airport will be getting the tallest building in Idaho, with the completion of its 268-foot-high air traffic control tower, scheduled to open in 2011. The $12.8 million tower is part of a $28 million improvement plan to enhance safety and efficiency. The airport already has installed a CAT III instrument landing system that allows for landings in low visibility and fog that would otherwise force flight cancellations and delays. “The economy of southwest Idaho relies on a viable airport,” said airport Director Richard McConnell, A.A.E. “Our current tower is only 65 feet tall and is 35 years old. This new tower will allow us to accommodate future growth and remain an economic engine for the region.” The tower will be constructed south of the airfield and, with the new height, air traffic controllers will be able to use the 5,000-foot-

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

long landing strip currently used for military training. As the tallest building in the state, the tower was designed to withstand wind loads of 90 mph. The base of the tower will be 11,800 square feet with a 550-square-foot cab at the top that can accommodate five air traffic controller positions. The tower’s base will be made of concrete masonry unit walls and, to conserve water, will feature xeriscape landscaping. During the groundbreaking ceremony, Boise Mayor David Bieter said the tower will give the airport an opportunity to expand into a regional and national air freight center. The airport’s cargo business has grown as the technology sector, including Hewlett-Packard and Micron Technology, has grown in the area.

ATC Tower Dedicated At Huntsville, Ala. FAA dedicated a new traffic control tower in Huntsville, Ala., on June 3, giving air traffic controllers a clear view of the entire airfield for the first time. The 228-foot tower is part of a new complex one mile south of the previous facility, between the airport’s parallel runways. “With its increased height and advanced technology, this new facility is poised to support the impressive growth of the Huntsville airport today and well into the future,” said Doug Murphy, FAA Southern Region administrator. The terminal control center is more than 800 square feet, which is more than double the control center’s size in the previous building. It includes three radar positions, two radar assistant positions and a supervisory console. Jeff Sikes, chairman of the

photo provided by toronto pearson international airport

upfront

Toronto Pearson International recently introduced the “Heart Cart” program that educates passengers and employees about the basics of CPR and the proper way to use the airport’s 190 automated external defibrillators.

Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority, said the new tower will be another selling point in trying to persuade Asian cargo carriers to use the airport. The new facility also has a rapid deployment voice switch, combining ground-to-air and ground-to-ground frequencies in a single piece of equipment.

TSA Certifies Reveal’s New CT-80DR Reveal Imaging Technologies said TSA has certified the company’s new CT-80DR

explosives detection system. The Reveal CT-80DR has the ability to scan checked baggage for a wide variety of explosives at a TSAcertified rate of up to 226 bags per hour. “We were able to increase the speed of the system by over 80 percent without changing its compact size or adding any components that would affect the system’s excellent reliability record and installed performance,” said Michael Ellenbogen, president and CEO of Reveal. Throughput of the CT-80DR at 226 bags per hour, with anticipated increases up to 350 bags per hour by

the end of the year, opens additional airport applications for the CT-80DR, Ellenbogen said. He added that existing CT-80s can be upgraded to the latest CT-80DR performance.

Toronto Pearson Educates Travelers On Defibrillators Toronto Pearson International has created a new program to educate travelers and employees on how to use the airport’s more than 190 automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in an emergency situation. Called the “Heart Cart” program, it consists of a mobile cart with

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

upfront

photo provided by denver international airport

Denver International has ordered 24 Oshkosh HT-Series snow tractor vehicles, an order valued at $7 million, with delivery scheduled in time for next winter’s snow season.

training dummies, a defibrillator and two emergency service personnel demonstrating how to use the AEDs. The cart is moved around Terminal 1 and, according to an airport spokesperson, it has been receiving a good response from travelers and those working in the airport. “More than 31 million passengers travel through Toronto Pearson each year, and we are pleased to be able to offer this educational opportunity that might allow them to one day save a life,” explained Lloyd McCoomb, president and CEO of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority. “These machines provide a valuable service to someone suffering from cardiac arrest, giving them a much greater chance of survival. The more people that know how to use them properly, the better,” McCoomb added. In addition to giving short demonstrations about the proper use of the defibrillators, the airport’s

emergency personnel also are teaching the basics of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR). The Heart Cart was set up by the Minneapolis-based Medtronic Foundation, which is responsible for similar programs at Dallas-Fort Worth International, London Heathrow and Minneapolis-St. Paul International.

Chesapeake Airport Appeals Noise Ruling The Chesapeake (Va.) Airport Authority is appealing a November 2007 Virginia circuit court ruling that sided with nearby residents who claimed that airport noise caused damage and lowered the value of neighborhood homes. The 2007 court decision allowed George and Margaret Osipovs to seek compensation for damages from Chesapeake Regional Airport. The next step for the airport,

according to Manager Joe Love, C.M, is to see if the Virginia Supreme Court will hear the case. The Osipovs claimed that airplanes come as close as 200 feet from their home, and military helicopters come as close as 500 feet, Love said. If the Osipovs are not compensated, according to the ruling they are entitled to a hearing by a jury of landowners to determine a fair compensation. The Virginia Constitution says that the general assembly cannot pass “any law whereby private property is taken or damaged for public uses, without just compensation.” Circuit Judge Randy Smith ruled that the Osipovs property was “damaged” by the airport but not taken or deprived of economic use. The subdivision was built in the mid 1990s within a mile and a half from the end of the airport’s runway. The airport was built in 1978. Several other organizations and

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

upfront state departments currently are filing friends of the court briefs on behalf of the airport, including the Virginia Department of Aviation, the Virginia State Attorney General’s office, the Virginia Airport Operators Council and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. The Osipovs’ case is one of 12 that the airport authority is facing from the West Landing Estates subdivision about airport noise. Love says that the eventual outcome of this initial lawsuit will determine what happens with the other 11 cases. Before the issue went to trial, Love said that he did everything he could to reduce airport noise over the residential area to avoid going to court over the situation. “We felt like we were working with the neighbors to keep from happening what happened,” said Love. When the complaints started,

Love said that the airport authority established a noise abatement plan that redirected flights over nearby light industrial business rather than homes. A log also was kept of complaints about noise, and Love said that he met with the complaining neighbors several times. Asked what advice he would give other airports facing similar challenges, Love said, “The main thing is to look at zoning laws…that would be your first step.”

DOT IG Issues Air Service Program Audit DOT’s Inspector General has issued an anticipated audit report on the Small Community Air Service Development Program (SCASDP). Findings of the audit include:

• 70 percent of SCASDP grants failed to achieve their full objectives, and certain grant types were more successful than others. • Substantive community participation, whether financial or non-financial, increases the likelihood of grant success. • The process that communities follow in implementing the grants can increase the likelihood that the grants ultimately will succeed. The IG recommended, and DOT agreed, that the department should: • Give priority to those grant applications that include in-depth market analysis. • Require communities requesting non-marketing grants to use a portion of their funding to implement a marketing program that complements

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upfront their overall grant strategy. • Evaluate the impact of the same project limitation and recommend legislative changes if necessary.

• Evaluation of biometric access control.

TSA Begins Program To Screen Employees TSA in early May launched 90-day employee screening tests at seven airports as a requirement of legislation passed by Congress in January. The legislation mandates examination of several types of employee screening in order to determine ways to enhance aviation security. The pilots include the following elements at each airport.

M_Q1AEProad_hp4c0207

2/7/07

1:41 PM

Boston Logan International:

• 100 percent physical employee and vehicle screening at key airport perimeter entrances and select employee entrances from the public area to the secured area.

Page 1

North Carolina’s Jacksonville International and Craven Regional airports: • 100 percent physical screening at all employee and vehicle access points from the public area to the secured/ SIDA area. This screening may occur at existing checkpoints or at ones set up specifically for the pilot. Denver International, Kansas City International, Eugene (Ore.) and Southwest Oregon Regional airports: • Increased random physical

screening using the Aviation Direct Access Screening Program (ADASP). • Behavior detection training provided to law enforcement officials and airport operations/security personnel. • Employee security awareness training. • Deployment of portable screening equipment. • Evaluation of biometric access control (Denver only). The congressional mandate provides up to $15 million for these employee screening programs. TSA is required to report to Congress before Sept. 1, 2008, on the cost and effectiveness of each of the pilot programs. A

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Airlines Begin Scheduling Capacity Cuts Top 10 U.S. Airlines Available Seats August 2006 - August 2007 - August 2008

Top 25 U.S. Airports With a 10% or more decrease in available seats 2008 vs 2007

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

How can airports operate efďŹ ciently and reduce environmental impact?

The Siemens answer: Innovative airport solutions that save energy. Passenger and cargo traffic are on the rise, but thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s no reason the climate needs to bear the cost. Siemens offers a wide range of products and services for airports interested in conserving energy while boosting efficiency. From efficient energy management and airfield lighting solutions to integrated power, accurate and reliable baggage handling and automated parking systems, Siemens can help airports operate more efficiently and reduce environmental impact. siemens.com/answersforamerica For answers, visit Siemens booth #113. Each visit to the Siemens booth helps donate $25* to the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity. *Total contribution by Siemens to Habitat for Humanity in New Orleans not to exceed $10,000 in the aggregate. Each visitor denotes one attendee badge swipe. Duplicate badge swipes are not eligible.

Answers for America.

corporateoutlook

LED Displays Used To Increase Concession Revenues

by Todd Lambert, aviation niche manager, Daktronics

hen you’re sitting at your desk during a long day at work, sometimes a quick snack break is the perfect way to get yourself back into the flow. The same goes for customers who are experiencing longer delay times in airports, and that means airports are seeing higher concession revenues. The trend we’ve seen is that airports are investing in lightemitting diode (LED) displays to increase customer satisfaction and to allow travelers more time to shop and spend in concession areas. The idea that increased wait times lead to more purchases is glaringly obvious. According to Airport Interviewing & Research, Inc., 4 percent of travelers make a purchase before going through security, while 79 percent make a purchase afterwards. Joshua Zumbrun wrote recently in Forbes Magazine that, in 1990, only 30 percent of airport revenue came from concessions. Now, that number can be as high as 50 percent or even 60 percent, he said. At Daktronics we’re observing the effects of that change. More and more airports are installing large Flight Information Display Systems (FIDS) LED signs to keep waiting consumers informed. Why do LED displays boost concession revenue? Placing displays near airport retail and concession areas is effective for three reasons. First, customers feel more at ease because the displays provide up-to-the-minute flight information, allowing them to relax as they shop and eat. The airport experience is simplified because travelers know

their planes aren’t leaving without them. Next, entertainment and advertising on the screens keep customers near businesses and not in remote gate areas. Finally, customers can be educated by additional information the airport might want to convey, such as special alerts and important announcements regarding security levels. We’re also seeing airports purchasing high bright liquid crystal displays (LCD) for curbside check in and other brightly lit locations. Pushing these LCD displays farther outside the concourse areas allows passengers to know the status of their flight and effectively pace their navigation through the terminal. Airport Interviewing & Research, Inc. writes that, “To continue to be successful, airports must adopt and maintain a flexible relevant approach; they must integrate customer service marketing concepts into their decisionmaking, security and planning process.” The customer’s overall happiness is important. If travelers experience long delays, they’ll be more relaxed if they can view current flight information, resulting in increased dwell time in stores and restaurants. With all this forward-thinking writing out there, it’s no wonder airports are seeing a trend toward investing in full color LED FIDS. In times when air traffic volume is becoming increasingly uncertain, airports are doing all they can to increase revenue. Even if travelers aren’t as abundant, they’re looking for quality, not quantity. Chalk up one more excellent use for LED displays. A

The customer’s overall happiness is important. If travelers experience long delays, they’ll be more relaxed if they can view current flight information... resulting in increased dwell time in stores and restaurants.

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

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EXECUTIVEview

2008: Off To A Busy Start

Roberts, A.A.E. Krys and Elaine both have been outstanding advocates for AAAE and our airports. I will strive to continue their work toward a multiyear FAA reauthorization bill that provides our airports with the necessary consistent funding for our crucial projects. During my tenure, I also will strive to continue the efforts of previous chairs in improving the value and importance of the Accredited Airport Executive (A.A.E.) program. Thanks to their efforts, and those of the Board of Examiners, our association currently has more than 520 active A.A.E.s, more than at any time in the association’s 80-year history. This group of dedicated and motivated leaders will play a key future role in AAAE and our industry, and I will be striving during my term to explore ways to get more A.A.E.s involved in our association at all levels. As Chair Bart noted last year, succession planning in our association and our industry will be key to our future success. I also will be exploring ways to increase the involvement and importance of the AAAE chapters. Since the founding of the Northeast Chapter in 1957, all six chapters have been major contributors to the success of AAAE. The chapters cultivate leaders for the national association, offer regional input on key industry issues, and provide AAAE members across the nation with specialty conferences and professional development opportunities. I am committed to reaching out to all chapters during my term in an effort to continue to improve each chapter’s role in our association. We have a number of significant challenges over the next year, but I’m looking forward to working with the talented leadership and staff of AAAE to make our association, our industry and our peers more successful than ever.

Succession planning in our association and our industry will be key to our future success.

by AAAE Chair Jim Elwood, A.A.E.

s I begin my term as AAAE chair, I would like to express my sincere appreciation for the opportunity and privilege to serve our association and industry. The upcoming year will continue to provide numerous challenges and opportunities for airports and the aviation industry. Skyrocketing energy costs, reduced consumer spending and a general feeling of economic uneasiness will have a direct effect on airports and our communities. As this is written, Congress still has been unable to enact a multi-year FAA reauthorization bill, resulting in a piecemeal Airport Improvement Program (AIP) that has impacted our ability to deliver major airport safety and capacity improvement projects. A proposed PFC increase that would benefit airports and our users has been stalled and has an uncertain future. Concurrently, airports are facing the possibility of burdensome and costly proposed changes to aircraft rescue and firefighting requirements. These proposed new requirements are being promoted outside of the typical rulemaking process and have the potential to dramatically increase airport operating costs, with a likely result of reduced or eliminated air service and its associated revenue at many smaller airports. Thankfully, your association’s Airport Legislative Alliance (ALA) is diligently keeping track of these issues and working to inform and influence key decisionmakers. The team, led by Todd Hauptli, has been recognized consistently as one of the most effective lobbying forces on Capitol Hill, and we are truly fortunate to have the ALA’s talent and resources working on our behalf. I look forward to working with Todd and the ALA to move our agenda forward. As your new chair, my number one priority will be to continue the excellent work of the past two AAAE chairs, Krys Bart, A.A.E., and Elaine

Elwood is director of Aspen/Pitkin County (Colo.) Airport. A

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

left to right order: Lamb, Moulton, Kinton, Airport Magazine Editor Barbara Cook, Davenger, Mollman and Mishler

AIRSIDE DEVELOPMENT TRENDS ROUNDTABLE

The following is part one of an edited version of a panel discussion held April 7 at AAAE’s Alexandria, Va., headquarters office. Part two will be published in the August/September issue. For the video version of the entire roundtable, go to www.antndigicast.com.

PANEL: (left to right) CHARLES LAMB, C.M., P.E., president, Delta Airport Consultants STEVE MOULTON, P.E., national airfield service group leader and vice president, RS&H TOM KINTON, executive director and CEO, Massachusetts Port Authority BARBARA COOK Airport Magazine Editor CALVIN DAVENGER, JR., deputy director of aviation, planning and environmental stewardship, Philadelphia International Airport RENITA MOLLMAN, principal in charge, Aviation Civil Engineering Group, Burns & McDonnell JEFFREY MISHLER, P.E., associate vice president, HNTB Corp. 22

MOULTON: I want to discuss the new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations regarding deicing and the effluent limitation guidelines, the ELGs. As you know, the EPA is out with a questionnaire to airports. They are analyzing that data, but right now the EPA is focusing on what looks like a three-pronged approach to the deicing issue. EPA is looking at establishing a percent capture for airports, be it 20, 40, 50 percent capture; applying numeric limits to the runoff when an airport discharges directly to a receiving body of water; and the phasing out of urea. One thing that we are seeing is that a lot of airports are going to be surprised in the coming years. They are going to

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have to make some improvements in order to meet these guidelines. KINTON: Well, fortunately right now, Boston Logan International Airport is not capturing any of our runoff because we don’t have to. The existing regulations allow us to discharge both the aircraft deicing fluid into our stormwater drainage system, as well as the runway deicer fluid that we apply to our runways and taxiways during winter operations, again, directly into our stormwater discharge system. However, we are about to embark on a study in accordance with the new EPA regulations to demonstrate, hopefully, that Boston’s discharge is not impacting any of the watershed or the waters of Boston Harbor. However, should that study go

the other way, obviously we will have to be prepared to meet whatever requirements are forthcoming.

aircraft leaves the pad and taxis to the far end of the runway, it may need to come back and get deiced again.

DAVENGER: Our airport participated in the effluent limitation guidelines study in 2006, and I think the EPA visited our facility. Some years ago, we decided to make an investment of over $50 million in a deicing pad to recapture deicing fluid runoff. Right now the pad is about 35 acres. We have the capability to simultaneously deice seven planes by dispensing Type 1 and Type 4 deicing fluids. Product runoff enters into a closed system, which allows us to determine whether or not the BOD/ COD (biochemical oxygen demand/ chemical oxygen demand) content is high enough that we need to either truck it offsite or send it to our local POTW (publicly owned treatment works) for disposal and treatment. If the runoff is dilute enough or not of a high concentration, we can release it to U.S. surface waters. So we have an operation that is pretty flexible.

MOLLMAN: At Kansas City, they are investing right now in a very large collection system that will be pumped into a tank and then slowly released into their sanitary sewer treatment system. That is an ongoing process they have been doing for five years, trying to get their deicing collected, both from their cargo operations and the airside and their commercial aprons.

MOULTON: EPA is going to be coming out with the analysis of all the data they have gathered. Airports are going to be making a sizeable investment in this. I know Salt Lake City is getting ready to go through a $180 millionpad project out there. Akron-Canton (Ohio) just spent $10 million-$11 million. I guess the concern is that the airports need to be aware of this issue and working with legislative people. If this is an initiative, airports need to be aware that that is coming around the corner. DAVENGER: We are of a size now where we can function with one deicing pad, but we are planning an expansion project that will require an additional deicing area. Airport deicing in the future will be supported by having multiple deicing pads. Otherwise, by the time the

MISHLER: I think one of the things that absolutely has to happen is coordination with the airlines. I see a trend toward more centralized pads and, operationally, you can’t have a number of airlines all performing deicing operations on the same pad. So, does a consortium of one or two carriers, or one carrier, provide deicing services for all carriers? KINTON: When you look at an airport like Logan, we are not a hub. So no one carrier dominates the market. To try to get six, seven, eight, nine, 10 different carriers with their deicing equipment in a very small airfield that we have, that becomes an issue. I am not sure Delta wants U.S. Airways and U.S. Airways doesn’t want British Airways deicing their airplanes because of liability issues. So how do you sort all that out, keeping in mind that safety is the number one priority here? MOLLMAN: I want to talk a little bit about perimeter security fencing and some of the additional measures that are being talked about in fueling perimeter security. Right now the standard from FAA is just to have an 8-foot-high fence with some barbed wire at the top or outriggers. There is a lot of discussion on whether there needs to be more. Does there need to be an intrusion

detection system or CCTV around the perimeter fence or a higher fence? Then that also leads into wildlife management. A higher fence will help with wildlife management control. And I’d also like to talk a little about fueling facilities, airside versus landside fueling facilities. Should the trucks be inspected every time, if they are going from landside to airside, even if they are tankers bringing in fuel, for airports that don’t have a pipeline? There is a lot of discussion about having fuel facilities on a split operation, right on the fence line, so that you have loading on the landside and the refuelers on the airside. KINTON: We had a number of initiatives after 9/11 as a result of two consultant studies on security. We prioritized a number of things that we needed to do, one of which was perimeter security. While today the regulation still is an 8-foot-high chain link fence with three strands of barbed wire, we thought that was extremely weak, given that a vehicle could easily penetrate and crash through it and be in the middle of your airfield before anybody could respond to it. So we have replaced all of the chain link fence with 10-foot-high concrete walls, with three strands of barbed wire on top, so the crash containment capability of a concrete wall is much better. In addition to that, we put the bollards in front of our terminal facilities to prevent a drive-through from a vehicle on the landside. Airside, it gets a little trickier because you can’t put obstructions on your airside close to the runway ends, and again, being bordered on three sides by water, what we are in the process of installing is an intrusion detection system. That involves a signal sent to a central security control room, and the cameras would zero in on the intrusion alarm, and the operator would dispatch police,

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LAMB: Well, also, going back to the smaller airports, another thing we have seen is that some states have undertaken funding of security plans even for the smaller air carrier and general aviation airports, in which they get an expert to come out and DAVENGER: In Philadelphia, help show them where the lighting primarily we are doing a lot of would do the best, where the fencing training. We have a number of remote would do the best, where basically to AM: What do you hear from smaller areas at our airport that are fenced, spend a limited amount of dollars to and we asked that our operations folks airports, ones that don’t have the get the biggest benefit for protection. and all of our people that work on the money to back up and put in systems Also, I want to discuss how in airfield and do perimeter checks, that like this? What are they doing? the next few years we are going to they really understand the importance improve our capability to reduce the LAMB: They are going to concentrate of security and what to look for as risk of collisions. on the terminal area. They are going far as breaks in the fence, as far as I have five predictions for the to use the best defense, which is suspicious activities. future, and three of them will help distance, for the more remote areas. And then in addition to that, we with reducing collision risk. If you go to the general aviation have CCTVs all over the place. Most Number one: I think airports will of our main access gates are controlled facilities, a lot of them have gone be more green. to some type of security system as by card readers as part of our access Number two: I think the allfar as fence, automatic fence, but control systems. However, we do weather capability of airports will have some fence gate locations, which most of their dollars are going to be improve dramatically in the next spent within 500 feet of the terminal we are working to get fiber cable to. building area, where most, 99 percent, five years, and if airports put into There is a big problem in getting the place what they need today, for not of the public comes. fiber to some of these locations to many dollars, they can get excellent install access to control systems at the instrument approach procedures to MOULTON: I think it is situational remote gates. each end. awareness as well, training people And as far as the fueling goes, our My third prediction — the future fueling loading trucks are pretty much to be more alert to what is going configuration of airfields — will have on around you: this looks unusual, on the airfield, and our tank farms an impact on collision avoidance. are inside the perimeter fence and are go over and challenge somebody, I think FAA and the airports need accessible also from outside perimeter because you have got a lot of people, aircraft operators, FBOs, maintenance to spend considerably more time roadways. So we are looking at how and effort on standardizing their personnel around the airport we can beef up some of that security configurations, taxiways, runways, as far as a tanker truck coming in with throughout the day. open V configurations, cross-wind maybe some explosive device on it AM: Is there any new technology that runways, et cetera, in making those penetrating the airport and getting to we haven’t talked about that is coming standardized, especially from the that facility. That is a hazard. So we flight deck on what a pilot is seeing as along that will help either large or are looking at that. (Philadelphia has a maneuver around the facility. small airports? transmission lines that bring in the My fourth prediction for the future majority of the airport’s fuel.) is lighting. We are going to have KINTON: One of the things we are Our fuel consortium is going to very significant changes in airfield doing that is just about completed is expand their capacity. So, with their lighting in the next five years. One is a new card access system, and this is expansion, we will be looking at LEDs. Right now, we are using kind not new technology, but we adopted adding state-of-the-art safety and of a conversion factor for LED type biometrics. So we are not only doing security features to at least the tank lighting. We are not really getting the the swipe and PIN, but we are now farm facility. energy efficiency out of them. We are doing swipe, PIN and fingerprint, along with CCTV. So all of our airside getting the reliability and service life MOULTON: We are working with a out of them, but we are not getting doors are monitored, and it takes, number of our airports right now, the energy efficiency out of them. again, verifying through fingerprints basically looping the entire airport Hopefully, within the next five years in order to access airside. with fiber optic or even power security personnel, to check it out. At the same time, they are seeing on the camera whether it is persons, a boat, a vehicle, or simply wildlife that may not require a response.

and communications cable, just a complete loop running around there. FAA can tap into this. Perimeter security can tap into this. The airport can tap into this. It is quite an expensive proposition, but more and more airports are seeing the need for that.

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

or toward the end of that, we will come up with a taxiway light at least that does operate with the efficiency of an LED. I think we will see more inpavement lights for taxiway hold positions, for hot spots on airports where we do have runway incursions, for centerline lights and touchdown zone lights to reduce our landing minimums. I think there are going to be a lot of changes in the airfield lighting in the next five years. My fifth prediction deals with ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast). I don’t think there is any one thing other than that data communication link that goes straight to the flight deck that can have a more positive impact on eliminating runway collisions or airfield collisions. My prediction, unfortunately, is it will still be in the box five years from now, and that it will not be widely implemented. KINTON: We had the distinction of having the most runway incursions in the country several years ago. I think we had 16 of them. We led the nation. One of them is too many, quite frankly. In working with the FAA, we had a Tiger Team come into Logan and look from top to bottom, working with us, the airport operators, as well as the FAA air traffic control tower and the pilot community, in what can we do to drive that number to zero. It ranged from identifying hot

spots and publications to the flight crews to better runway delineation of interaction markings with reflective paint, the lighting that you referenced at those hot spots, as well as the physical realignment of some of the taxiway runway interactions to get them to be more standard to what is seen around the country and, quite frankly, around the world to where the pilots fly, up to and including a new center field taxiway which we are about to embark on this summer. We are going to build it in two years. We are going to build half of it this year, which will go right down the center of our two parallel runways, which is going to be a huge safety plus for Logan in minimizing runway incursions. But also, we are going to be chosen as the fourth airport for the runway status light system, the red/green light system that has been deployed at Dallas Forth Worth, San Diego, and I guess Los Angeles International. Then, last is the radar system. The ASDE-X is coming to Logan. That will allow us again to have better airfield coverage in the control tower on identifying aircraft and ultimately vehicles that are on the airside. LAMB: The main thing I have come across with the ground radar system is the delays. The National Transportation Safety Board has indicated that they have real concerns with the system. It does work, but it works too late, just because of the delays.

KINTON: Absolutely, I agree. By the way, I don’t want to leave anybody with the thought that we are still leading the country in incursions. We are not. As a result of that Tiger Team initiative, we have driven our incursions from 16 down to five. As you know, it is always a rear view mirror of the past 12 months that the FAA looks at, and we have got that thing down to five, and it is heading for zero, and that is the objective here. DAVENGER: As far as Philadelphia goes, again, safety is paramount in what we do there, and certainly, the FAA takes safety very seriously. We have the occasional incursion. Whenever we have one, there is certainly an investigation on what happened, when it happened, how it happened, how to prevent a reoccurrence in the future. Also, we have good lighting in our airfield. We do a very good job of keeping our lines painted and repainted. We do have our hot spots marked and published, so that operators know where they are. Last, we do have airport surface detection surveillance equipment installed. We have ASDE-3 and we will be moving towards the ASDE-X at some time in the future. This equipment helps even our ground vehicles stay out of harm’s way and eliminates to the extent that we can, the chances of incursion. A

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Surviving The Entry

and Exit of An Airline: The Columbus Skybus Story

by David Whitaker, vice president of business development and communications, Columbus Regional Airport Authority

s we all know, the airline business is cyclical, with periods of strong growth often followed by steep retractions. A perfect example is the recent experience at Port Columbus International Airport (CMH). Within days of the 2003 decision by America West Airlines (now US Airways) to “de-hub” Columbus (reducing to four daily flights from 49, representing a 25 percent loss of total flights), we were introduced to Skybus. Founder John Weikle thought Columbus, in the absence of an America West hub, would be a better market for Skybus than his original idea of Dayton for the start-up venture. We learned that the model for Skybus would be “ultra low-cost,” similar to that of Europe’s wildly successful Ryanair. On the heels of the very disappointing news by America West, we were indeed intrigued by Skybus and wanted to learn more. We agreed to fund an independent analysis of the Skybus business plan. We retained a consultant to study the plan and reach a conclusion about its viability. The consultant concluded that low-cost airlines in general would continue to “steal” market share from traditional airlines, and that the Columbus market would respond well to the Skybus ultra low-cost model. With this important validation, we proceeded to introduce the founder to the community….and the community responded with very strong interest. Civic, business and community leaders, including airport staff, proceeded on a four-year journey that eventually led to the first Skybus flight on May 22, 2007. It turned out that our consultant was right back in 2003, that low-cost carriers were growing and Central Ohio travelers did respond to the low-fare service. Over Skybus’ short life, nearly 1 million total passengers flew on the carrier. Airport staff came together with airline staff to assist with facility and service requirements for the rapidly growing carrier. Skybus grew to 24 daily departures from Columbus and served 17 markets with 150-seat, A319 aircraft. Port Columbus benefitted significantly, with $10 million in direct and ancillary revenues generated by the airline as a result of the 15 percent annual increase in passengers in 2007. Skybus announced that it would cease all operations effective Saturday, April 5, 2008, not quite a year after it began service. The carrier said it “struggled to overcome the combination of rising jet fuel costs and a slowing economic environment.” The airport, as well as our food and retail partners, certainly will miss the burst in passenger activity. We are very fortunate in that we continue to enjoy excellent passenger service at CMH with 10 airlines continuing to serve 35 airports with 167 daily departures.

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Despite the loss, we still will serve approximately 7 million passengers this year. Southwest Airlines now offers 30 percent of our daily seats with service to nine markets. The variety of carriers and balanced market share we enjoy allows for consumer choice and competitive fares. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re also fortunate in that we have very low debt and excellent liquidity to weather this downward cycle. Still, we are taking prudent financial measures to keep our airline costs low. We are deferring some capital projects, particularly those

generated by the spike in passenger activity. We are reducing our operating budget and deferring some hiring. This downturn will allow us to regroup from the recent frenetic pace while we seek to grow again.

Still Optimistic Despite the significant loss, we remain optimistic. We have a longstanding excellent relationship with our airline colleagues, and many are studying the opportunity

created by recent events. All carriers are certainly cautious, given the precarious economic conditions, but we have absolute confidence in the strong Central Ohio market as a good match for our airline friends. We regret the sad conclusion for Skybus, particularly for the employees, investors and customers. Our disposition remains one of facilitation and support for our airline partners, as we strive to meet the traveling needs of our community. A

David Whitaker

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Q&A

Jim Smith, A.A.E. Air Line Pilots Association, a former astronaut, a representative of the Defense Department, a consultant and former airport director, a deputy secretary of transportation and others.

inspectors did not require adherence to FAA safety procedures? Smith: The aviation industry is currently experiencing “the best of times” and “the worst of times.” The past five years, statistically, have been the safest in commercial aviation history in the United States. That can be attributed to Acting Administrator Robert Sturgell, former Administrator Marion Blakey and FAA employees, as well as the industry as a whole. During that time, the airlines transported more than 3.5 billion passengers on more than 125 million flights. Safety, of course, is not solely FAA’s role. It’s our role, that is, everyone involved in the business. Where airline safety is concerned, no one has a greater interest in safety than the airlines themselves. There is no question that passengers book away from an airline if there are any headlines on safety issues. FAA has a regulatory role and an oversight role. FAA cannot inspect every aircraft for every flight any more than they can inspect every runway before every flight.

Federal Aviation Administration

AM: What are some of the achievements of MAC?

MAC A conversation with Jim Smith, A.A.E., chair of FAA’s Management Advisory Council (MAC). Smith is the former executive director of Newport News/ Williamsburg (Va.) International Airport.

AM: Why was FAA’s Management Advisory Council (MAC) formed, and what is its mission? Smith: MAC was formed in 1996 as a congressional mandate from the FAA reauthorization bill of that year. MAC’s mandates are to advise the FAA administrator on “policy, spending, funding, regulatory matters” and “the operations of the administrator.” MAC meets on a quarterly basis with the administrator and his senior staff. AM: What is the industry makeup of MAC? Smith: We are a diverse group from the aviation industry. Other members of MAC include a former chairman of American Airlines, a former chairman of Cessna, the current chairman of jetBlue, the current president of Pinnacle Airlines, a former president of the 28

Smith: Our role as advisors to the administrator historically has been somewhat low-key. We have been more vocal lately with meetings with members of Congress or letters, primarily about reauthorization. We have made a number of recommendations to the administrator with regard to FAA becoming more business-like. We recommended a strong look at outsourcing as was done with flight service stations. We recommended scrutiny of employee contracts for better productivity. We have recommended consolidation of facilities in a BRAC-like (Base Closure and Realignment Commission) fashion as technology allows. We also think FAA should have a reliable and adequate source of off-budget revenues from user fees not subject to the slings and arrows of annual appropriations. We also believe FAA should have borrowing authority to fund capital acquisitions, as do airport operators. We continually review FAA’s metrics, again to enhance productivity. Airlines are focused on revenue per aircraft seat mile (RASM) and cost per aircraft seat mile (CASM) and a host of other metrics, as are airports. Many of our suggestions are not unique and have been suggested by other congressionally appointed groups. Some have suggested “privatizing” or “corporatizing” FAA. AM: What is your reaction to the recent news that certain FAA

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AM: What new forums do you envision that FAA could develop in concert with AAAE, the Air Transport Association and others? Smith: MAC is comprised of representatives from all facets of aviation. I have been a believer in public-private partnerships and industry advisory groups for government for some time. When I was at FAA in the 80s and early 90s, my office had an industry task force on airport capacity and delay reduction. While the name was somewhat unwieldy, the group was very helpful. I’m convinced that a number of new airspace procedures and some new technology can be attributed to that industry group. They also helped persuade

Congress to fund some capacity initiatives that are paying off today. My office also conducted around two dozen local airport capacity task forces at airports around the country. Those provided the impetus for not only local airport improvements but also for some national initiatives, again, new airspace procedures and new technology. We should never underestimate the power of grassroots support. AAAE has been a master at this between the conferences it holds and the other information channels it offers with ANTN Digicast, Airport Magazine and other forums. This is the information age, and I’ve encouraged FAA to utilize AAAE’s very effective forums to spread the word on new safety, productivity and capacity initiatives, as well as getting feedback and new ideas. This is the “worst of times” for aviation in some respects, including fuel prices and congestion in the system. I don’t know if there is an airline out there that has an effective business plan for one hundred-dollarplus barrels of oil. We are either going to see some consolidation or some failures in the industry, if fuel prices do not improve. We also know from much experience that the operations-delay curve in transportation, including aviation, is exponential, not straight-line. This is why highways, airports or other avenues seem to become congested overnight. Those places simply hit the knee of the curve where every additional movement results in an incrementally larger delay. We have computer models to tell us that, and there should not be any great surprises. We also have learned that deregulation and competition work well in open markets and less well in closed markets. Some airports are almost at capacity, and, therefore, relatively closed. The result is slots or some other capacity constraints.

This brings up the issue of allocating capacity. A little regulation is a dangerous thing in that it invites more regulation. We have some hints and precedents in national transportation policy from other modes of transportation in the form of HOV lanes, tolls and other capacity allocation mechanisms. There is, unfortunately, not a silver bullet solution to the capacity issue. MAC has addressed the issue with the administrator and will continue to do so. AM: What are your goals for the MAC during your tenure as chair?

We should never underestimate the power of grassroots support. AAAE has been a master at this. Smith: From a personal standpoint, I believe MAC can be helpful in diminishing the polarization in our industry. The recent fits and starts of FAA reauthorization have been a result of polarization. I believe it is important for us to continue the dialogue on current issues and try to find some consensus. If you consider that aviation has a trillion dollar a year economic impact on our economy, that constitutes about 8 percent or so of

Gross Domestic Product. The federal budget for aviation is nowhere near 8 percent of the total. We compete for resources with health care, defense, social security and other issues closer to the public’s hearts than transportation. However, as a nation, we need to focus on aviation infrastructure, if we are to maintain a leadership role in the global economy. Trains aren’t going to get us there. MAC met with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to raise public awareness of aviation’s impact on our economy. I think we should probably do more of that, time permitting. I was appointed by DOT Secretary Norman Mineta to MAC more than three years ago. I thought at the time my appointment was because I had experience with FAA, the Civil Aeronautics Board and airport management dating back to the 1960’s. After thinking about it, I’m now convinced that the appointment was because I’m old. I’ve made about all the mistakes one can make in this business, some of them more than once. I do have a lot of regard for Administrator Sturgell and his staff. This is not our father’s FAA. They are much smarter, more motivated and more productive. Government is probably less fun to work for than it has been for most of the past, if you consider election-year politics and very creative news reporting. My term as MAC chairman is half over since I’ve already presided over two meetings. While healthy introspection is a good thing, I believe there is too much viewing of the glass as half empty. We continue to have the best air transportation system in the world, and the issue is how to make something good, better. That can only happen with a united industry front. A

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

runway developments

Transparent Runway by Jeff Price

Development T

here is a Spanish proverb that goes, “Experience is not always the kindest of teachers, but it is surely the best.” Building a runway can provide some of the best lessons in airport management, but fail to pay attention in class, and you may end up with a two-decades-long runway project on your hands. Today, the Internet has made communities more informed and better organized. More stringent environmental laws and sensitivities have compelled airport operators to put more focus on land management and mitigation issues. Heavier aircraft, prematurely decaying runways due to alkali-silica reaction (ASR) and changing pavement design guidance from FAA also are game changers in runway development. Seattle-Tacoma International is one airport that has experienced these industry changes. Sea-Tac’s third runway was started about the time the first President Bush was in office. Twenty years later, the runway is finally set

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

to open in November 2008. “I don’t think that anybody who was directly involved in the initiation of the planning and permitting process would have ever predicted that it would take 20 years to get the runway completed,” said Mark Reis, managing director of Sea-Tac. Having experienced nearly every challenge that could come their way, from highly organized community resistance to undiscovered wetlands, Reis and the Sea-Tac staff could offer a clinic on runway development. Sea-Tac experiences low visibility about 44 percent of its operational time. A new runway was needed to expand capacity during low-visibility operations. Paving already is completed on the 8,500-foot-long runway, and FAA flight testing on the Instrument Landing System is underway. But what kinds of lessons can you learn in 20 years of development? “Start early,” Reis advised. “I think there have been examples where there was an

Politicians with districts bordering the airport were not likely to be elected by taking a prorunway platform.

did could stand up to challenge, and that takes time. However, doing the process so that you avoid litigation takes less time than litigation.” Most of the obstacles to getting the new runway completed started long before construction began, with community relations being one of the biggest challenges. “The whole battle to get the third runway was very much like a political campaign, and we had to manage it that way,” said Diane Summerhays, Sea-Tac’s manager of community development programs. There was a split in support for the new runway between those who lived around the airport and anticipated the runway would bring more traffic and more noise, and those who lived in the region and wanted the increased capacity. Politicians with districts bordering the airport were not likely to be elected by taking a pro-runway platform, she said.

The airport’s strategy was to mitigate instead of litigate whenever possible. Every major part of the process included substantial public involvement, and the airport eventually took testimony from more than 6,000 people. Noise abatement is another challenge in runway development. Fortunately, Sea-Tac had a proactive noise abatement program already in place. “Four hundred homes had to be moved,” said Summerhays. The airport had to acquire the entire area covered by the runway, which had a tremendous impact on the community. One of the measures of success is that only a few of those homes went through condemnation, she noted. “That was the benefit of such a robust and long-term noise program,” said Mike Feldman, SeaTac’s deputy director of facilities and environmental. “We were

assumption by the staff or governing board, or whoever, that they did not have to be very transparent in the process or in their planning and decision-making. They didn’t adequately anticipate the likelihood of litigation, so the process they used was one that could be attacked as inadequate. The process is one that can always be litigated, so anticipate the possibility of litigation and make sure that you are undertaking your process in a way that can withstand challenge.” In fact, of all the lawsuits that were brought against the airport, Sea-Tac prevailed in every one. Another important lesson is to work hand in hand with FAA. “They live and breathe aviation capacity every day, and they are going to want to do the right thing for capacity, but they are very attentive to the process,” said Reis. “They are also very concerned about litigation and making sure that everything they AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

runway developments

already actively involved in the community doing sound insulation and acquisition of the most heavily impacted noise areas. We had ‘pre-mitigated’ and were already a nationally recognized leader in noise mitigation.” The airport invested more than $450 million in noise abatement over the course of 12 years. Keeping the project “green” also became a priority. The runway constructed using a fly ash mix, which reduces greenhouse gases during cement production. Fly ash can be substituted for up to 30 percent of the cement in making concrete. Construction trucks also used low-emission engines fueled by an ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel. Be prepared for all of the federal, state and local environmental laws and restrictions that come with building a new runway, but also be prepared for a few surprises, Sea-Tac officials advised. For Sea-Tac, the surprise came after the residential properties were acquired to make way for the runway. Seems the former neighborhood was sitting on buried wetlands. “The wetlands were not visible,” said Feldman. “We found all these little pockets, up to 20 acres of 32

wetlands, that we had not planned for because people were not allowing us access to their property until we actually acquired it.” Once the airport determined the amount of wetlands that were involved, officials had to convince all the scientists and government agencies that they needed to split the function of the wetlands. “We didn’t want to do wetlands that were going to be a huge new bird attractant right by a runway, so we worked with everybody to split the benefit of the wetlands and work in two different places,” said Feldman. Ultimately, water quality wetlands were established on-site, while wildlife wetlands were established away from the flight patterns. The airport planted more than 180,000 trees and plants and is required to monitor the site for the next 15 years. The wetlands mitigation also created the largest retaining wall in North America. A regular slope from the runway would have destroyed the wetlands. Regional “nimbyism” (Not In My Back Yard) seemed to pop up throughout the process, officials said. At one point, a local pollution control board required such strict fill criteria that the airport had to seek

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

legislative relief before it could move forward. Despite the local opposition, the airport continued its community outreach programs, pointing out the economic benefit of the new runway and the airport. Overall, the actual construction of the runway itself took far less time than the dozens of processes the airport had to complete beforehand. There are some issues that SeaTac won’t have to worry about as much now that the runway is nearly done, but anyone else undertaking runway development will. These issues include a soon-to-be-revised FAA pavement design and evaluation advisory circular. According to David Peshkin, P.E., vice president of Applied Pavement Technology in Urbana, Ill., the revision will really change the way pavements are designed. “The new approach is based on the cumulative effect of damage of the pavement structure based on each individual aircraft,” said Peshkin. “It’s quite different from the way pavement has been designed for the past 50 years. There is more opportunity to look at different

materials and to accommodate the new large aircraft.” Many previous pavement designs resulted in aircraft using the runway when they exceeded the pavement rating. “The previous design tests were mostly based on observation,” noted Peshkin. “The new process is based on the physical properties of materials and physical strains and stresses. It’s a mechanistic approach that allows us to use a broader range of materials. We’ll also be able to model it and come up with better designs.” Those designs likely will include fewer oil-based materials such as asphalt. Asphalt is extracted from crude oil left over at the bottom of the refinery, but the petroleum industry is looking for new ways to extract even more fuel from the oil base, leaving even less asphalt, which means higher prices. “The biggest thing that people need to realize right now is the fuel cost,” said Jim Trott, principal at J3 Aviation Consultants. “If airport operators did their [capital improvement program] two years ago,

they are way out of date on the costs to do their work.” Trott also pointed out that another issue is ASR, which causes accelerated concrete deterioration. ASR has occurred in several parts of the country, most notably at runways at Colorado Springs and Denver International airports. Both facilities have had to do costly runway replacement and repair projects as a result. Peshkin echoed these comments. “There’s also a threat that airports may consider cutting corners in the short term with the anticipation they can add things back later on, like maybe do an overlay, and I think that’s a risk,” he said. “As designers, we’re going to be seeing more challenges from owners, saying, ‘do less — here’s the budget, and we need to make it work, find a design that will fit this budget.’” Doing more with less is a lesson we’ve all heard in our lives, and when it comes to runway development, there are lots more lessons to be learned. I’d say class is over, but I think we’ve only just begun. A Jeff Price is a professor at the Metropolitan State College of Denver and the owner of Leading Edge Strategies, an aviation management training and consulting business.

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

WA LT E R P MOO R E E N G I N E E R I N G POS S I B I L I T I E S

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Study Findings Underscore Need

to Refine Airport Driver TRAINING by William B. Rankin, A.A.E.

This is the second in a series of articles by William B. Rankin II, Ph.D., A.A.E., that outline his findings from research on runway incursions at OEP-35 U.S. towered airports (Airport Magazine, 2007 Annual Conference issue). The first article suggested that a relationship exists between the methods used for airport driver training and the number of runway incursions at the largest U.S. towered airports. Rankin now describes the demographic data collected but not analyzed in the first study to determine what demographic data were significant in airport driver training programs outcomes, if any.

ince the mid-1920s, commercial aviation in the United States has achieved a remarkable safety record. Within the National Airspace System, thousands of passenger trips and aircraft operations are completed safely every year. The growing pressure for increased operational rates to reduce system delays, combined with the complexity of airport operations and the requirement for precise timing, combine to make the airport movement area surfaces unforgiving of errors by pilots, air traffic controllers and vehicle drivers. In my 1994 graduate research project at Embryâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

RunwayResearch Riddle Aeronautical University, training of ground vehicle operators was determined to be the most effective FAA initiative to reduce runway incursions. However, ground vehicle operator training conspicuously had been absent in most literature, even though vehicle operators traverse airport movement areas on a daily basis. Then, on June 21, 2002, FAA issued Advisory Circular (AC) 150/5210-20 to provide guidance to airport operators in developing training programs for vehicle ground operations. Further, this was the first advisory circular providing airport operators with a list of training topics to include in a ground vehicle operator training curriculum. This was also the first attempt by FAA to address airport driver training program curriculums at the U.S. air carrier airports. With vehicular operations on the airport movement areas, the risk of misunderstanding air traffic control (ATC) instructions communicated via the radio is high and can have deadly consequences. Correctly understanding ATC information provided by the controller is essential for safe airport surface operations and only can be learned through a comprehensive driver training program. For example, a paper by P. H. Ragan (1997) concluded with an anecdote about a student pilot with limited English proficiency who was asking the tower for permission to enter the traffic pattern to make a landing. The tower could not understand fully what he wanted, so the air traffic controller asked the student to state his intentions. The student responded by saying, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I intend to become a private pilot.â&#x20AC;? FAA has determined that the 35 busiest U.S. airports have twice the average number of reported runway incursions, and the problem continues to persist despite the best efforts of the industry.

Population Sample The population sampled for the study was comprised of employees who had completed airport movement area driver training from 18 of the OEP-35 U.S. airports and who responded to a scaled survey tool. Targeted participants included 390 randomly selected employees who successfully had completed airport movement area driver training and who were authorized to drive vehicles onto and within the airport movement areas. An analysis of the statistical data supported the hypothesis that demographic characteristics are significant factors in the airport movement area driver training outcomes at the OEP-35 U.S. towered airports. FAA efforts to date have not focused on the study of the demographic characteristics associated with airport movement area driver training. There are two fundamental precepts that are essential for a successful approach to airport movement area driver training: (a) training is not a one-time event, and (b) the most effective way to teach vehicle drivers safety on movement areas is to simulate the actual work environment and to train on a recurring basis. Interactive computer based training at some of the OEP-35 U.S. towered airports satisfies these two fundamental precepts. In addition, all of the airports responding to the survey offered primary and recurrent training on a yearly basis.

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Findings There was no surprise that education, age and incomes were found to be statistically significant demographic characteristics at all OEP-35 U.S towered airports. Although many non-movement area employees change jobs frequently due to low wage rates, this is not typical for employees licensed to drive on the movement areas. Airport employees

who operate ground vehicles in and onto the movement areas of airports typically have a professional certification or a college degree (ie. electricians, firefighters, airport operations personnel, etc.). One explanation for these demographic characteristics being significant for movement area drivers is that the longer employees work in a given job the more annual recurrent driver training they receive.

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RunwayResearch

As the years pass, the employeeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s age and earnings increase. As a result, the three demographics of education, age and income appear to be interrelated and may support the conclusion that many of those employees authorized to drive onto movement areas of airports have stable employment records and receive annual recurrent training on a regular basis. It is also no surprise that highly educated employees with movement area driving privileges are likely to hold higher positions within their respective company, are older and earn more income. In South Florida, however, race was identified as the only significant variable at the OEP-35 U.S. towered airports in that geographic region, and lack of understanding of ATC communications may prove to be the primary issue related to driver training deficiencies at these airports. This is highlighted by data from the U.S. Census Bureau (2007) that 74.6 percent of the languages spoken at homes in South Florida is other than English, while the U.S. norm is 17.9 percent. From the airport movement area driver training perspective, communication, or the use of consistent terminology, is a primary concern. This finding was supported by the qualitative responses from the surveys returned that indicated that English is a second language for many South Florida employees with airport movement area driving privileges. Since English is the industry-adopted language for aviation operations worldwide, this finding was problematic.

Recommendations

Since the data from the study suggested that there is the potential to increase knowledge through annual recurrent training, FAA should require that all U. S. air carrier

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

airports be required to provide recurrent airfield movement driver training on an annual basis. This finding supports two recent actions taken by FAA as follows: 1. The Office of Airport Safety and Standards issued a draft change to AC 150/5210-20, Ground Vehicle Operations on Airports, in late December 2007. The comment period closed on Feb. 26, 2008. Based on a review of the comments, the AC change strongly recommends regular recurrent driver training for all persons with access to the movement area. FAA signed the AC on March 25, 2008, and it was effective March 31, 2008. 2. In addition, FAA is undertaking a rulemaking process that will make this training mandatory. Finally, certain regions (like South Florida) have racial and ethnic differences that may lead to communication barriers that are not experienced in other regions of the United States. This may mean that educational materials may need to be translated into other languages in order for the materials to be delivered effectively, or that an English competency test should be required by FAA regulation before any employee may seek airport movement area driving privileges. These findings underscore a case for additional studies on airport movement area driver training and further refinement of airport movement area driver training delivery methods to improve training outcomes at U.S. air carrier airports. A

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GA Airport Issues

by Clifton Stroud

Taking A Novel Approach To GA Airport Management | Professional contract management and lower taxes — a unique situation — combine to make Rhode Island a general aviation friendly state.

he history of airport authorityFBO relations has not been always the most congenial. Disputes over minimum standards, lease terms and other issues can dominate discussions. So it’s more than a little unusual when an FBO chain is actually running an airport, or in this case, five general aviation airports in Rhode Island. The Rhode Island Airport Corp. (RIAC) oversees the state’s system of 32 airports. Five are state-owned GA airports: Block Island, 14 miles off the mainland; North Central, near Lincoln/Smithfield; Quonset, in North Kingstown; Robert Wood Airpark, near Middletown; Colonel Robert F. Wood Airpark (Newport Airport), located in Middletown on Aquidneck; and Westerly, in the southwestern part of the state. Both Westerly and Block Island also have limited commercial airline service.

The arrangement is unusual, to say the least; the only other remotely similar deal is in California where American Airports Corp. — which is technically not an FBO — manages five small general aviation airports for Los Angeles County. An appropriate analogy here might be the lodging industry. Many hotels are privately owned by a limited partnership but professionally managed by a firm such as Marriott.

GA Potential RIAC President and CEO Kevin Dillon, A.A.E, sees real potential in

According to an economic impact study conducted by Rhode Island in 2005, the five GA airports contributed $57 million to the state’s coffers and generated $140 million in economic activity...

Landmark Aviation “In 1996 we realized that we needed some operational assistance, so we hired Landmark Aviation (then Piedmont-Hawthorne) based on their response to an RFP we sent out,” said David Cloutier, assistant vice president of commercial properties for RIAC. Landmark, a nationwide chain of 33 FBOs based in Houston, has a contract with RIAC to manage all five airports through 2011 with an option to extend to 2016. Landmark does not profit directly from fuel sales at the five airports. RIAC reimburses the company for all expenses incurred in running the airports plus a flat monthly management fee and 10 percent of the gross profits of Quonset Airport. 40

in the state, several of the airports are in various stages of expanding their facilities. Landmark presents its recommendations for capital improvements annually to RIAC together with a budget. North Central, the closest field to downtown Providence, bought a 30,000-squarefoot hangar last year. Block Island will be getting a new terminal in May 2009. Quonset, with a 7,500-footlong runway — the longest runway of the five airports — will have a new control tower by 2010. A new 30,000-square-foot hangar will come online at Quonset in early 2009, which Dillon said eventually will erase the current $1 million budget

the state’s GA airports. “In addition to the improvements we are already undertaking, we want to enhance corporate activity and for that we need to put together a marketing plan for all the airports,” he said. “We have a lot of natural assets to work with.” To accommodate current and expected future growth in GA traffic

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

deficit. “Quonset represents the best opportunity for us because of its proximity to freight rail service,” said Dillon. “When RIAC took over there was a lot of deferred maintenance,” added Cloutier. “We worked on the runways first, and now we’re tackling the facilities. With the marketing plan, this will be the first time that

we have targeted specific uses for some of the airports.” Steve Tibbetts, who as Landmark Aviation general manager oversees all five airports, noted the significant investment RIAC is making in the various ongoing expansion projects and said that, “We’re pleased with the relationship [with RIAC].” “Although it’s not necessarily a trend, there is good potential for FBOs to do this — operate and manage the airport on behalf of the sponsor,” said Paul Meyers, principal-in-charge with Aviation Management Consulting Group. “The airport wants more but is not sure how to get there. If the FBO has the management experience, it’s something to look at. However, every airport is different. At the end of the day you do what is best for the airport, the community and the stakeholders. You work together and that way the consumer and the airport are best served, and you benefit the community.”

retains ownership, we are now selfsustaining and no longer receive tax subsidies.” What’s clear is that the state of Rhode Island takes general aviation airports — and their associated economic impact — very seriously. According to Cloutier, there have been no GA airport closings in Rhode

Clifton Stroud is an aviation writer and a frequent contributor to Airport Magazine. He may be reached at clif.stroud@earthlink.net.

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Economic Impact According to an economic impact study conducted by Rhode Island in 2005, the five GA airports contributed $57 million to the state’s coffers and generated $140 million in economic activity, with Quonset Airport providing the biggest share of those revenues. According to Dillon, in the past five years the number of gallons of Jet A fuel sold at the five general aviation airports has increased from 250,000 to 600,000 gallons a year. “There has been a growth in corporate aviation in the last several years due in part to the state legislature’s repeal in 2005 of a sales tax on new and used aircraft and aircraft parts,” said Cloutier. “And before RIAC, the state had no incentive to run the airports profitably. Although the state still

Island in the past five years — a significant achievement when general aviation airports in many other states throughout the country are fighting for their very survival. A

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AirportSpotlight

San Antonio International Airport

Photos courtesy of San Antonio International Airport

he news that AirTran on June 11 would institute daily flights from San Antonio to Atlanta marked another advance in San Antonio International’s growth strategy. AirTran’s announcement closely followed a decision by Spirit Airlines, another low-cost carrier, to begin operating from San Antonio to Fort Lauderdale. That service began April 14. San Antonio has coupled its aggressive air service development plan with a capital improvement program (CIP) designed to position the airport to offer more service, while providing passengers with a more modern and convenient facility. Aviation Director Mark Webb commented that, “Air service development is a process, not an event,” adding that he has a “wonderful team” of airport employees who support the airport’s expansion program. Webb explained that San Antonio for a number of years has offered marketing reimbursement for airlines that launch new service. This program was restructured within the past year based on the recommendations of a blue ribbon committee that included key staff members

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

from several Fortune 500 companies. One result of the effort was the decision to double the allowable reimbursement for airline marketing and waive landing fees for targeted markets that currently don’t have nonstop service. In the case of the new AirTran service, a major corporation in San Antonio also pledged that it would drive a percentage of its bookings to Atlanta to the low-cost carrier. The airport now is pursuing direct service to Boston Logan International and New York’s Kennedy International, increased frequencies to Newark and Chicago and more north-south service and flights to the West Coast. Further, San Antonio’s extensive economic connections with Mexico are driving the airport’s search for additional service on business routes to that country. As another benefit for flights from Mexico, San Antonio International in April was added to the list of designated airports at which certain private

Quick Facts: aircraft arriving in the continental U.S. may land for processing by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Expanded Facilities San Antonio’s CIP is valued at $636 million over the next six to seven years. That package includes two new terminals, roadways, a new garage, a runway extension, airfield improvements and acoustical treatment for homes under the airport’s noise abatement program. Aware of the growth potential of the city and its need for expanded and more modern airport facilities, officials began CIP planning in 2000. As a result of 9/11, however, plans were put on hold until officials could determine how the aviation market would react and change. By 2003-2004, the decision was made to go forward, and earlier plans were refined to meet market conditions. Groundbreaking on the new Terminal B was scheduled to begin in June, with completion by the end of 2010. The facility will have eight gates and will replace the old Terminal 2, which will be demolished. A second new facility, Terminal C, is set for a 2010 groundbreaking, a date that could be moved up to the end of this year. “We are trying to make sure that we are able to accommodate additional airlines and flights,” Webb said. “We want B completed in two years and C not long after.” Terminal C will be outfitted with five common-use gates to allow the airport “to be as efficient with assets as we can,” he added. Build-out for Terminal C is 11 gates. The existing Terminal 1 will become Terminal A once B is completed and operational. Plans call for installation of inline baggage screening systems in both new terminals. The location of the new terminals leaves room for an eventual fourth terminal when the capacity of the new Terminals B and C is reached. Webb said that the airport is in the process of obtaining consulting services this year to develop a new master plan. “This will help us plan for the next 20 years,” he said, adding, “I expect the community will continue to grow.” A

History: San Antonio International was “born” in 1941 when the city purchased 1,200 acres of undeveloped land on the northern side of the city limits. Prior to this, passengers flew from Stinson Municipal Airport, now the city’s GA reliever facility. Total passengers in 2007: 8,033,314 Terminals: Currently, the airport has two terminals. A redevelopment program will increase that number to three, with room for a fourth. Runways: Runway 12R/30L is 8,502 feet long and 150 feet wide. Runway 3/21 is 7,505 feet long and 150 feet wide; this runway will be extended by 1,000 feet. The airport also has one GA runway: Runway 12L/30R is 5,519 feet long and 100 feet wide. General aviation operations: About 40 percent of the airport’s operations are GA, and most of these are corporate aircraft. Plans are for Stinson to take over some of these operations, leaving room at the international airport for more commercial flights. Concessions: The two terminals offer a total of 31 shops, ranging from banking services to restaurants to a duty-free store. Air service: 23 airlines serve San Antonio International, offering nonstop flights to 43 destinations, including three cities in Mexico. Control Tower: The airport’s 221-foot-tall tower is staffed by FAA controllers. Parking: Total inventory is 9,000 spaces, including a new, long-term facility that recently opened. The first 30 minutes of parking are free. Federal Inspection Station: A Federal Inspection Station is located in Terminal 1, which processes nonstop arrivals from international destinations. The station supports operations of the U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as well as the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. A

Aviation Director Mark Webb

baggage/passenger screening

Reno-Tahoe International Airport Adopts The ABC Plan By Sean Bogart, NCARB, AIA

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

eno-Tahoe International Airport ran out of room at its ticketing and check-in counters due to increased security demands that were established following Sept. 11, 2001. Thirty-five percent of the airport’s ticket lobby space was taken over by TSA baggage screening machines and the staff who operate them. The lobby-based explosives detection system (EDS) machines complied with TSA checked baggage screening mandates; however, they congested the lobby and created a two-step check-in process for passengers.

Reno-Tahoe’s solution: ABC. Airport Baggage Check-in, or ABC, is the name given to the $60 million, 22-month improvement project developed to enhance the airport by ending the two-step check-in process, restoring a higher level of customer service, providing faster and more efficient baggage screening and relieving overcrowding. The official groundbreaking for ABC was held in March 2008 with an estimated completion date of January 2010. Increased security measures were taken before the project even began. In September 2006, Gresham, Smith and Partners (GS&P) began creating design and construction documents under strict Sensitive Security Information (SSI) rules and regulations. Nevada-based Q&D Construction was selected to provide the building construction services. At all times, plans had to be kept under lock and key to ensure security. Under this process, the city code reviewers came to the airport to review the plans in designated secure areas as opposed to the more traditional method of sending plans to the city for review. Only personnel who successfully completed Reno-Tahoe International background checks may view the plans, including contractors and their sub contractors and staff.

Unconventional Lobby In order to save 16-18 months of construction time and approximately $7 million in construction costs, a pop-up structure was envisioned jointly by Reno-Tahoe International, GS&P and Q&D. This temporary structure was designed by Q&D to serve as a temporary lobby and manual baggage screening and baggage make-up facility, so that the entire existing baggage and ticketing area could be turned over to the contractor at one time for construction. “The concept of a temporary structure was a decision that we made as a team,” said Krys Bart, A.A.E., president and CEO of the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority,

congestion in the temporary ticketing lobby, Web-based check-in kiosks were installed in the main terminal for passengers to check in and print boarding passes. Skycaps were relocated to the center median of the entry road in temporary shelters to create new curbside check-in locations. Additional crosswalks and openings in median walls are being added to allow easy access to the lobby and pop-up structure. Temporary signage and wayfinding mechanisms were installed and regular updates are distributed to airport staff, as well as the public, via local radio and television commercials, newsletters and a dedicated Web site.

At all times, plans had to be kept under lock and key to ensure security.

owner and operator of Reno-Tahoe International. “It required creativity and a cross section of stakeholders to develop the plan that had the least impact on customers while saving valuable time.” The temporary pop-up structure was constructed in front of the existing ticketing lobby and takes up two vehicular traffic lanes. The EDS equipment was moved to the temporary facility and a manual inline baggage system, operated by TSA, was created in order to increase the level of customer service, eliminate the twostep baggage process and remove the large screening machines from the lobby. A temporary baggage make-up (BMU) area was created whereby all carriers will share make-up devices during construction. In order to reduce

Improved Baggage System GS&P’s design calls for an increase in the BMU from 28,526 square feet to 52,599. The new BMU will remove the large EDS machines from the lobby and place them behind the ticket counters. New reduced-size EDS equipment capable of scanning oversized items such as skis and golf clubs is being installed. Following the release of the recent Baggage Screening

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

baggage/passenger screening

Investment Study (BSIS), which detailed the number of on-the-job injuries reported by TSA agents, lift assist devices are being added to the inline system to aid TSA employees in lifting baggage from the belt. “The new system utilizes stateof-the-art scanning technology, is quicker and more efficient than the

facility’s previous baggage screening system and greatly reduces the opportunity for human error,” stated Roddy Boggus, AIA, GS&P’s principalin-charge of the project. “The ultimate goal was to help Reno-Tahoe enhance the level of the passenger experience at their facility, and I believe we’ve accomplished that through these

C R E A T I V E

L A Y O U T S

A I R P O R T S E A T I N G

increased safety measures, as well as through the aesthetic improvements to the lobby.”

Lobby or Hi-Tech Lodge? The updated lobby was designed to reflect the region’s Tahoe feel by utilizing stone and wood materials. The existing 22,892-square-foot lobby and 16,243-square-foot airline ticket office (ATO) accommodated 10 airlines and TSA, while the enhanced facility will maintain a 22,892-squarefoot lobby, increase the ATO to 20,114 square feet and accommodate 12 airlines and TSA. The traditional ticket counter back wall consisting of airline-specific branding has been replaced by airport-controlled LCD screens that allow for dynamic updates and branding changes without the need for expensive change-outs. The traditional ticket counter has given way to smaller ticket kiosks that require only one agent per two passengers, allowing smaller footprints, greater density and a more technology-driven environment.

Passenger Satisfaction

I N S T A L L A T I O N 1-901-685-8263 FAX: 1-901-683-6745 Email: info@airportseatingalliance.com www.airportseatingalliance.com

Overall, the ABC project will create a more efficient passenger experience for those who live in or are visiting Reno. The updated baggage screening system will allow the facility to process checked baggage more quickly and efficiently with less chance for on-the-job injuries. The improved ticket lobby will reinforce the airport’s commitment to offering a positive last impression on travelers leaving the community. “When ABC is complete, we will have a ticket lobby that offers a combination of state-of-the-art technology, security and service.” Bart stated. “By taking a creative approach to construction, we are truly building a better way to travel.” A Sean Bogart, NCARB, AIA, is an architect in the aviation division at Gresham, Smith and Partners. He can be reached at sean_bogart@gspnet.com.

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

AAAE

would like to thank the following sponsors for their generous contributions to the 80th Annual AAAE Conference & Exposition:

Diamond Wings Sponsors Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport

Hudson Group

Era Corporation

Signature Flight Support

Bronze Wings Sponsors

Heery International, Inc. Boyden Global Executive Search Glidepath Hatch Mott MacDonald HDS Retail North America HDR, Inc. SSP America SuperShuttle International, Inc. Avis Budget Group, Inc. BridgeNet International Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. Mead & Hunt, Inc. PBS&J Q&D Construction, Inc. Woodward & Associates DM Airports, LTD

Airport Angels

Platinum Wings Sponsors RS+H URS Corporation Siemens Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services Midwest Air Traffic Control Services Inc. RVA, Inc. Serco, Inc.

Gold Wings Sponsors

Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. HMSHost Corporation Berkley Aviation, LLC Analogic Corporation HNTB Corporation Jacobs Engineering Group Parsons Brinckerhoff Aviation Ricondo & Associates, Inc. Skanska USA Building Inc.

Silver Wings Sponsors

Airport Magazine Airport Minority Advisory Council AvPORTS Hunt Construction Group, Inc. The LPA Group Incorporated The Paradies Shops, Inc. Aspen/Pitkin County Airport CH2M HILL Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc. Five Star Parking & Wally Park Gresham, Smith & Partners Jacobs Consultancy LEO A DALY Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority TBI Airport Management, Inc.

CAGE Inc. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Southwest Chapter AAAE TransCore International RAM Associates Burns & McDonnell Godfrey Firm Henry Consulting, LLC Landrum & Brown, Inc. Lexington Blue Grass Airport News & Gift Shops International Aerofinity, Inc. Airport Business Solutions Aviation Facilities Company, Inc. Aviation Management Consulting Group Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport Bombardier Transportation Clear Channel Airports Group Coffman Associates, Inc. Delta Airport Consultants, Inc. DMJM Aviation/AECOM Engineered Arresting Systems Corp. (ESCO) Erect-A-Tube, Inc. Faith Group, LLC FirstLine Transportation Security Great Lakes Chapter AAAE Hoyle, Tanner & Associates, Inc. HSS Kutchins & Groh, LLC Linc Facility Services Louisiana Airport Managers & Associates Newton & Associates, Inc. Northeast Chapter AAAE Northwest Chapter AAAE The MITRE Corporation O.R. Colan Associates, LLC Quad City International Airport RW Armstrong South Central Chapter AAAE Southeast Chapter AAAE Stantec Consulting TAC Air TransSolutions

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securitycheckpoint

What’s New in GA Security?

Jeff Price

lot is happening in the world of GA security these days. Let’s take a look at some of the issues and programs coming your way. Drug Smuggling: Airplanes have been used to smuggle drugs for about as long as there have been drugs and planes. Anyone in the industry for any length of time knows that it has gone on for decades. This year alone, several arrests have been made of airline employees due to their accused involvement in smuggling drugs. GA is not immune from this trend. “They are still using commercial jetliners, and the smuggling varies from air crews smuggling stuff in their luggage to aviation maintenance personnel who are hiding stuff in the voids on the airplanes,” said Special Agent Steve Robertson of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). In one recent case, a maintenance technician even pried open the window in the passenger door of an airliner, placed narcotics inside the door itself, then taped it back into place, likely threatening the structural integrity of the plane. “A key part of interdiction is out

By Jeff Price

there in the airports,” said Robertson. “[Airports should] maintain a good line of communication with the local police department and DEA office. Unexplained wealth is always a tipoff. There was a baggage handler in Miami that owned a $250,000 condo and a $250,000 boat.” Drug trafficking has not gone away in the post 9/11 world and continues to be used to finance terrorism. Of the 42 different terrorist organizations classified by the State Department, DEA has identified 19 as being tied to drug trafficking. As for GA aircraft being used to smuggle drugs, various federal and state law enforcement agencies admit it still goes on. However, much of the smuggling after 9/11 shifted to commercial airlines, maritime and land border crossings. Foreign Aircraft Operations: The primary concerns of DHS are the potential use of GA aircraft to deliver illicit materials to the U.S. or the use of the aircraft itself as a weapon. Recent actions by DHS address aircraft coming into the U.S. from foreign departure points. New programs coming online to address the security of international GA flights include passenger vetting, screening aircraft for radiation/ nuclear materials and the Large Aircraft Security Program. The Electronic Advance Passenger Information System (eAPIS) and the Secure FBO program are similar in that they require aircraft operators entering the U.S. to submit an electronic manifest through eAPIS to Customs and Border Protection at least one hour prior to departure. According to Michal Morgan, TSA’s general manager for general aviation, the manifest will be used to verify the identity of the passengers. Another initiative is the Large Aircraft Security Program (LASP), but not a lot of information on this

program is available yet beyond the description of the program in a DHS fact sheet. LASP is intended to establish a security program for GA aircraft operators to make their procedures consistent with existing security programs for commercial aircraft. “We’re exploring the establishment of a security program for large GA aircraft,” said Morgan. “We’re working with industry, incorporating the best practices with what’s operationally feasible.” Tied into these new initiatives may be a study conducted by TSA last year on the potential of GA aircraft being used as a weapon. The “throw weight” study looked at a range of GA aircraft, with various materials such as explosives being carried on board, to determine what damage could be caused if the aircraft were flown into a ground target. While the results of the study are confidential, Morgan noted that TSA always is looking at the risks involved to determine if current protections are adequate. GA Airport Security: One program that likely will affect GA airport operators is the computerized vulnerability self-assessment tool that TSA is required to develop under the 9/11 bill. “There is a requirement that it be in place by Aug. 3,” Morgan said. “We believe that it will be executed using the self-assessment tool already developed with the GA industry and will look at airports that support large numbers of GA operations and large GA aircraft, or sensitive areas such as near Camp David [Md.]. It will allow GA operators to conduct their own assessment and provide them a score showing them their overarching concerns,” she said. GA airports near sensitive sites must be particularly vigilant, such as the Titusville-Cocoa (Fla.) Airport Authority, which is responsible for

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

photo courtesy of centennial airport

securitycheckpoint

three general aviation airports near the Kennedy Space Center. “With three airports and about 400 people, one of the best ways we can get the word out is through education, notification and communication,” said Michael Powell, C.M., executive director of the authority. “We have one of the biggest Airport Watch programs that you could imagine. Mostly, it’s just getting out with the tenants and speaking with them. They are very active in contacting us and pretty much everyone knows everyone.” The Florida DOT provides grants for access control, fencing and other security programs, but another challenge for the authority is the numerous Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR). For relief, Powell negotiated with TSA. “For the folks who make their living flying, that puts them out of business if the shuttle launch slides a day or two,” said Powell. “We were successful in reducing the TFR times, even after the TFR was implemented, to permit flight operations for another four hours. We have to provide certain information to TSA in order to fly, but that’s part of being in close proximity to the Kennedy Space Center.” A AAAE’s Transportation Security Policy staff continues to focus on GA security issues and recently attended TSA’s GA Coalition meeting in Washington, D.C. Jeff Price is a professor at the Metropolitan State College of Denver and the owner of Leading Edge Strategies, an aviation management training and consulting business.

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

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AAAE’s

Interactive Employee Training System Airport Training for the 21st Century

newly hired employee in the airport operations division needs to complete nonmovement area driver training before being badged. A baggage handler must take recurrent Security Identification Display Area (SIDA) training before her badge can be renewed. In the past, these airport employees would have been required to sign up for a class, listen to a training presentation by one of several instructors, then take a traditional paper exam. Yet, the class might be scheduled during the busiest time of an employee’s shift, or on his or her scheduled day off. The process needlessly tied up the personnel conducting the training who were not able to perform their “regular” job duties, did not always deliver a consistent training message, created a paperwork record-keeping nightmare and, in general, did not contribute to the smooth running of an airport. That was before AAAE’s Interactive Employee Training (IET) system appeared on the scene. This computer-based system revolutionized airport employee training by eliminating the need for an instructor, a classroom setting, an appointed time for the class and manual record-keeping of test results. The student, at a convenient time for him/her, logs into the airport’s IET computer workstation using a touch screen monitor, completes the course at his or her own speed and takes the interactive online test. The results can be accessed instantly by airport badging office personnel, who then

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

can issue the employee a badge. The testing data is stored in a secure database at AAAE headquarters and is accessible to all of the airport’s authorized supervisory personnel via a secure, customized log on. AAAE to date has delivered some 450 IET workstations to 82 airports. Customized courses developed so far include SIDA, driver training for both the non-movement and movement areas, Part 139 regulations, aircraft fueling safety and procedures, environmental safety, electric cart driving, customer service, gate guard training and more. Generic courses that are included with the courseware of every IET system cover airfield safety and incursion prevention, basic security awareness and physical vehicle inspection.

Behind The Scenes In May of 2008, the number of training sessions taken on IET systems by airport workers across the U.S. passed the 1 million mark, making AAAE one of the largest commercial training organizations in the world. The polished package that is an IET training course, however, conceals a painstaking development process that is months in the making. It involves many hours of AAAE staff planning time and travel, telephone and e-mail consultations with the client airport, days of shooting the video portion of the program on site at the airport, weeks of editing the video in AAAE’s stateof-the-art Avid suites, and the creation, approval and integration of the interactive questions. The seamless

Inside AAAE

result reflects the professionalism of the product, but also disguises the amount of work involved in the production process.

Creating The System The creation of an IET system for an airport begins with discussions between the interested airport and IET team members Jim Johnson, A.A.E., or Will James. Once a contract is signed between the airport and AAAE, specifying which courses are to be developed — a “standard” course consists of a 30-minute video with 25-30 interactive test questions — the number of computer workstations, a production timeline, cost and other information, AAAE’s IET production team, headed by Executive Producer-Special Projects Ellen Horton, begins the planning process in cooperation with airport personnel. With the timeline determined, a AAAE script writer travels to the airport to meet with the appropriate staff members, tour the airport to determine the best flow of the script, and answer any questions about the process. Once back at AAAE headquarters in Alexandria, Va., the writer crafts the script to include the airport’s current training materials in an easy-to-follow format.

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Airport personnel review and comment on the draft script, revisions are made, and many, many discussions are held to ensure that the wording in the script is precise and easily understood. The scriptwriter then writes the test questions that will be integrated in the final course. An IET videotaping team — usually two people — uses the final script to develop a “shot list” that they follow during on-site filming at the airport. The number of days allotted for the shoot is determined by the number of courses ordered. Two 30-minute videos, for example, usually take a two-person crew five days to shoot, including some nighttime work. With all the footage “in the can” back at AAAE headquarters, the video editors take over and, in two

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

to three weeks, will have created the first draft of one course’s video, which is then sent to the airport client for review and comment. Once the client has signed off on the video, it is turned over to the Authorware integrators, a team of specialists who make the questions interactive using a special computer programming language. Once their work is done, the course is sent to the airport for a 30-day review period, intended primarily to check test questions and functionality of the system. When everything is working as intended, the system is converted into “production” mode, and realtime training can begin.

Inside AAAE Training results are tracked automatically and sent to AAAE’s secure database, where airport administrators use a customized user ID and password to access the IET Web site. The testing data available on this Web site can be used by IET training supervisors to analyze patterns, such as which test questions are missed the most often, or what types of questions are most problematical for a particular employee. With the federal government focusing more and more on ensuring safe operations at U.S. airports, an increasing number of U.S. airports are finding the IET system to be a major facilitator in achieving that goal. A

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EXT. 126 – Sean Broderick sean.broderick@aaae.org

2008 AAAE Annual Conference

1) Armstrong New Orleans International Airport Director Sean Hunter and Susan Lausch, AAAE staff vice president-sales and marketing, open the Exposition. 2) Banquet centerpieces are schoolbags to be donated to Katrina Relief. 3) Tom Greer wins the Chairâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Award. 4) Outgoing AAAE Chair Krys Bart passes the gavel to incoming Chair Jim Elwood. 5) Virgin America CEO David Cush addresses delegates. 6) Southwest Chapter President Lynn Kusy stops to read Airport Magazine. 7) AAAE Chair Krys Bart (right) presents the Corporate Cup to Mary Miller and Steve Lee of Signature Flight Support. 8) Many conference delegates participate in a Habitat for Humanity project in New Orleans. 9) Airport directors enjoy the Airports Only Lounge at the Exposition. 10) The business sessions include lively question and answer times. 11) The Exposition allows delegates to talk business with representatives from more than 170 companies. 12) Outgoing Chair Krys Bart and her husband Mike Licciardello enjoy the final banquet. More photos from the conference will be posted at www.airportmagazine.net.

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

B P

assengers by airport Traffic for month of march 2008

Airport

2008

Albuquerque International

2007

1,507,710

Bishop (Mich.) International

112,744

Bradley (Conn.) International

108,853

167,340

Denver International

General Mitchell (Wis.) International

Kansas City (Mo.) International

110,971

110,108

Manchester (N.H.)-Boston Regional

Quad City (Ill.) International

312,832

435,495

Rogue Valley (Ore.) International-Medford 50,420 San Antonio International San Diego International

723,753 1,597,266

San Luis Obispo County (Calif.) Regional

77,142

Domestic and International Fares Airlines Reporting Corporation

+0.8 +1.7 -1.7

+15.9

302,881

+3.3

85,345

+4.8

481,370

-9.5

48,522

+3.9

701,675

+3.1

1,485,346

+7.5

77,032

+0.1

07 Domestic Fares 07 International Fares 08 Domestic Fares 08 International Fares

40 35 left

25 20 15 10 5

uildout Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport awarded a $1 million contract to ARINC to provide common-use check-in facilities for the airport’s North Terminal redevelopment project. ARINC will install its iMUSE check-in and boarding system, which will be used by all participating airlines not using their own check-in and boarding technology. The system includes workstations at more than 35 check-in counters and nine boarding gates. Detroit Metro also awarded a management services agreement to the General Sports Companies, in partnership with McConnell Communications, to develop a marketing program for the airport to sell naming rights for the new North Terminal that will open later this year. Lochard Corp. has secured a $5.4 million contract to upgrade and operate airport noise programs for Chicago. The five-year contract includes upgrades to the systems already in place at O’Hare International and Midway airports. Lochard will utilize Internet-based Emu monitors, which are independently certified to meet all international airport noise monitoring standards. The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners awarded a three-year, $41.5-million contract to Fentress Architects of Denver, in association with HNTB Architecture of Kansas City, Mo., for overall architectural design services, including interior specialty systems that provide core functions. A second three-year contract for $39.4 million was awarded to Hatch Mott MacDonald LLC of Millburn, N.J., to provide civil engineering and related services to develop aircraft gates on the west side of Tom Bradley International Terminal. A

Grey- Domestic Black-International

+8.2 +1.8

665,540

+5.3 +3.9

4,189,828

89,427

Reno-Tahoe International

940,539

771,647

-2.2 +8.6

3,743,010

4,120,581

Armstrong New Orleans International

689,228

956,182

Las Vegas International

+3.6

154,052

3,810,063

Harrisburg (Pa.) International

3,238,918

745,893

+6.0

4,364,239

3,364,688

Bush Houston Intercontinental

550,473

4,597,347

Detroit Metro

% Change

1,421,941

538,115

Colorado Springs (Colo.)

Dollars in Billions

airportbillboard

Jan.

Feb.

Mar.

Apr.

May

June July

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

Aug

Sept

Oct.

Nov.

Dec.

foodbeverageretail

Retail Briefs Kent Vanden Oever has joined AirProjects’ commercial consulting practice. Vanden Oever previously served as the manager of airport business services for HNTB, where he directed the firm’s financial, concessions and economics practices. Vanden Oever will play a key role in the firm’s airport retail and food service planning practice. “We are excited to have Kent join our team,” said AirProjects’ founder, Ann Ferraguto. “Kent has extensive experience in airport commercial consulting and project management and has worked with airports around the globe, which will benefit the clients we serve. He will be a true asset to our firm.”…BAA Boston, operator of the Airmall at Boston Logan International Airport, recently added two new highend fashion retailers, Sunglass Hut and Johnston & Murphy. Both are located in Terminal B…. HMSHost announced a food, beverage and retail contract extension with Little Rock National Airport through 2018. The Host-Adevco Joint Venture was awarded a seven-year extension to bring new brands to the line-up, including Ouachita Landing, a locally themed, sit-down restaurant and bar; Quiznos, and Ouachita Outpost, a locally themed specialty retail kiosk — all located post-security. In addition, the existing post-security food court seating area will be expanded. Further offerings to be made available in the baggage claim public waiting area will be a new Starbucks Coffee with new adjacent bistro seating to accommodate meeters and greeters, the company said. A

enver International Airport and the Denver Office of Economic Development (OED) have teamed up to give Colorado entrepreneurs and small business owners a leg up in starting a business at the airport. The airport and OED earlier this year opened the Terminal Marketplace and officials hope the three initial spaces will act as incubators to allow these businesses to expand into larger concession spaces in the future. “This is a unique opportunity for small businesses to get on their feet and experience what it’s like to operate in the airport,” said Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. “Terminal Marketplace is a commitment to our entrepreneurs.” Denver International invested $1.5 million for the initial buildout of the spaces. The support helps alleviate the costly startup barriers that typically make it difficult for small businesses across the country to open at airports. The buildout of the space provided three turn-key operations, including a small seating area in front of the location. Based upon surveys conducted among those waiting to greet arriving passengers, a request for proposals was issued in August 2007 calling for a quick-serve and pre-packaged snack concept, a specialty coffee, tea and baked goods business, and a retail business selling fresh flowers and gifts. One of the requirements was that proposing companies be certified by the city as small business enterprise concessions. The initial term for each of the three selected businesses is two years, with additional three one-year options, if the concessionaire meets certain benchmarks each year, such as operating consistently within the requirements of the concession agreement. Located on level five of Jeppesen Terminal, the Terminal Marketplace features Amore Fiori Flowers & Gifts Shop, CofTea Shop and Vertical Mile Market. The new Terminal Marketplace offers people waiting to greet passengers a convenient place to obtain a snack or gift without venturing too far away and perhaps missing their arriving friends or family members. The marketplace concept has been successful to date, and officials say they intend to continue this trend by offering similar competitive opportunities in the future. “Denver International Airport’s concessions program was founded on the principle of creating a level playing field where small and local businesses have the opportunity to compete and become successful,” said Kim Day, manager of aviation. “We are excited that, with the opening of the Marketplace, we are continuing our strategy of offering business opportunities that have appeal to local companies, so that they may effectively compete for locations and become a larger part of the DIA family.” The airport leases directly with each of its concessionaires, except in the Concourse B Mezzanine, which has a third party developer/operator — Skyport Development. In addition to the Terminal Marketplace, new traditional concessions concepts opening soon at DIA include Bella — which offers beauty, body and bath products, Johnston & Murphy and Brookstone, as well as Denver ChopHouse & Brewery, Boulder Beer Tap House and Tamales by La Casita. A AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

Airportech

Airports To Create Biometric Solution AAAE’s Board of Directors has approved the Biometric Airport Security Identification Consortium (BASIC), which was formed to work cooperatively with TSA to define and implement a workable and sustainable development of biometricbased credentials at commercial service airports. Dozens of airports are sending letters to TSA in support of BASIC. AAAE said in a statement that the approach to biometrics taken by TSA will have a significant impact on airport budgets and operations at a time “when incremental yet substantial efforts to enhance credentialing and access control operations at airports are already well underway as the result of local initiatives and recent TSA security directives.” A TSA rulemaking that mandates a single nationwide solution is not in the best interest of airports or TSA, AAAE said, since it would represent a step back from local implementation and approval of security measures and, by its very nature, force a “one-size-fits all” approach to very technical and facility-specific issues. “The efforts that have begun in sharing standards and essential TSA data requirements, combined with BASIC pilot programs already underway, serve as a quick start and sound foundation for moving biometric-based credential and access control systems in airports forward,” AAAE explained. The association urged TSA to engage in “a substantive dialogue with BASIC airports and embrace the BASIC Concept of Operations, which focuses on achievable and standardsbased local processes rather than large-scale and expensive technology integration.” TSA endorsement and support of the BASIC pilot 60

programs that are underway and in development are critical to building a biometric-based airport credential system from what already has been accomplished at the many commercial service airports that have implemented biometric systems, according to AAAE. Participating airports have identified several key principles that must be part of future biometric-based credentialing and access control systems, including: • Safeguards on local control and issuance of credentials, • Leveraging of existing capital investments and resources, • Open architecture and local determination of qualified vendors, and • Phased implementation that migrates over time. “Airports have a robust history of credentialing and access control experience,” explained AAAE President Charles Barclay. “In addition, according to a recent survey of AAAE airport members, a significant number of airports have already implemented biometric-based systems at their facilities. The goal of the BASIC working group is to take the pieces of the puzzle that already exist and build on the necessary components for the next generation of credentialing and access control in such a way that make sense for airports.” Airport operators participating in BASIC include: Port of Portland/ Portland International, MinneapolisSt. Paul International, Denver International, San Francisco International, Washington Dulles International, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Jacksonville International, Miami International, San Diego International, Phoenix Sky Harbor International, Boston Logan International and Hartsfield-Jackson

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Atlanta International. Airport participation in BASIC is open to all commercial-service airport representatives, as well as aviation industry association representatives.

TSA Launches Checkpoint Evolution TSA recently unveiled plans for its security checkpoint of the future, dubbed Checkpoint Evolution. To view the plan, visit http://www.tsa. gov/evolution/innovation.shtm. The prototype for the program began April 28 at BaltimoreWashington International (BWI). TSA said it will introduce individual components of the system at other airports. In describing the system, TSA said that three elements will comprise the checkpoint evolution — people, process and technology. The agency said that the future will require more officers specially trained in behavior detection and document checking to identify people who intend to do harm.

Transportation security officers and managers at BWI were the first in the country to complete a 16-hour training module designed to incorporate the latest intelligence analysis, more advanced explosives detection skills, and ways to engage with passengers to promote a calmer environment for better security, TSA explained. In addition, the checkpoint process will be improved, “including better signs to tell you what’s going on at the checkpoint and why, and what you need to do at various stages,” TSA said. On the technology front, the prototype checkpoint employs millimeter wave screening technology in random continuous use, as well as multi-view X-ray and liquid bottle scanners. These technologies, in conjunction with changes to the checkpoint environment and processes, will be evaluated for operational efficiency over the coming months, TSA said. In related news, TSA has launched pilot tests of millimeter wave screening technology at Los Angeles International and New York’s Kennedy International. The technology, which detects weapons, explosives and other threat items concealed under layers of clothing without any physical contact, already is in use at Phoenix Sky Harbor International, as well as at BWI. TSA said it will purchase and deploy 30 more of the machines this year.

FAA Adds New Telecom Network FAA has transitioned to a new telecommunications network that the agency said would increase reliability and save hundreds of millions of dollars over the next decade. The FAA Telecommunications

Infrastructure (FTI) network replaces the legacy telecommunications network known as the Leased Interfacility National Airspace System Communications (LINCS). More than 3,800 facilities were upgraded, the agency said. The transition to the FTI network brings FAA closer to a single, more reliable network for transmitting voice, data and radar information to the nation’s air traffic controllers, the agency said. It also offers a range of enhanced security services, including firewalls, intrusion detection and encryption, and reduces the agency’s operating costs for telecommunications services. FTI is one of the agency’s largest acquisitions, totaling $2.4 billion. The Harris Corp. of Melbourne, Fla., was awarded the FTI contract in July 2002.

airport. Current U.S. weather radar information also is displayed on the monitors, adjacent to the flight data.

ASDE-X In Use At Washington Dulles Controllers at Washington Dulles International on April 1 began using Airport Surface Detection Equipment, Model X (ASDE-X). Dulles is the 12th U.S. airport with the system, FAA said. The new system is designed to work with future components of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), a long-term process to improve safety, efficiency and capacity in U.S. aviation, FAA said. Originally intended to be installed at 25 airports when FAA awarded the

BWI Adds Flight Tracking, Weather Info Monitors Baltimore-Washington International has installed several flight tracker and weather display monitors throughout the passenger terminal. The monitors, located beside traditional airport flight information display systems, provide a real-time, visual image of air traffic and weather conditions. Customers can use the new technology to see up-the-minute flight and weather information. “These new flight and weather trackers offer an important customer service benefit,” said Tim Campbell, A.A.E., executive director of the Maryland Aviation Administration. “The displays provide another source of valuable information for airport users.” The new monitors present maps and up-to-the-minute graphical information, including the airline and the flight number for commercial flights arriving and departing the

ASDE-X contract to Sensis Corp. in October 2000, ASDE-X deployment will be expanded to include 35 airports. FAA estimated that it will cost more than $806 million to procure, deploy and operate ASDE-X over a 30-year life cycle. Other ASDE-X-equipped airports are Chicago O’Hare, HartsfieldJackson Atlanta International and Orlando International. Detroit Metro was scheduled to begin operating its ASDE-X in June, followed by New York’s Kennedy International in August. A

AirportMagazine.net | june/july 2008

Photo by Daryl Humphrey

planesight

Call For Submissions: Plane Sight Photo Contest The staff of Airport Magazine invites you to submit entries in our Plane Sight photography contest. As our readers know, Plane Sight appears regularly on our back page and consists of an aviationrelated full-page photo. In order to be considered for the contest, entrants must own the copyright of the image they submit. Images should be submitted to airportmagazine@gmail.com as a JPEG. Images should be 8.5â&#x20AC;? by 11,â&#x20AC;? as well as 300 dpi or greater. Images not meeting these requirements may be disqualified. Up to five entries per person are permitted. The Airport Magazine Editorial Advisory Board will judge the entries, and the winner and runners-up will be announced in the December-January 2009 issue.

AirportMagazine.net | JUNE/JULY 2008

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