Planning for the future

Time, 29 April 2020

Evidence-based approach to safely opening the gateways

Applying our approach to infrastructure epidemiology – utilising epidemiological evidence married with process mapping, passenger flow models, and other modelling tools – enables us to understand the issues much better. While the nature of each airport means there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution, the goals and objectives remain the same.

The industry should aim to get things right before restarting commercial flights and introducing continuous improvement as traffic returns to prior levels:

• Align goals and objectives across all primary stakeholders

• Review the NPIs (non-pharmaceutical interventions) available before and during the journey, as well as risk reduction efficacy

• Continuously review the evidence to inform options and, where appropriate, conduct operational research

• Carry out a thorough ‘touchpoint check-up’ analysis looking at all touch (or proximity points), transmission risk, hygiene factors and whether they are essential or can be removed or modified

• Fully understand the demand on facilities and processes for airport staffing and other stakeholders

• Analyse operations and capacity optimisation in the light of all interventions

• Analyse impact on profits, revenue and operational costs with a range of traffic – not against business as usual, but in the context of current circumstances

• Revise operational and customer services plans

Going forward

Reverting to ‘business as usual’ enhances risk to travellers, may prolong the pandemic and will ultimately lead to greater social and economic costs. New NPIs will change the risk profile of flying, allowing for a step-by-step pathway to a ‘new normal’. This has to follow a risk-based approach rather than blind faith in others.

The aviation industry was a key vector in turning a local disease into a global pandemic, so industry leaders have to go the extra mile to reduce the spread of infection.

Existing plans to embed smarter, more efficient journeys (such as the NEXTT initiative or single token journeys) should be implemented sooner. Extensive use of technology with personal devices used for most transactions will become standard quickly. However, that alone will not get us flying safely more quickly. It has to be matched by what we call the ‘brilliant basics’ of enabling passengers to journey efficiently through the airport onto their flights, minimising mixing between those from different flights, cutting unnecessary processes and touchpoints, and a strong focus on hygiene.

Key points:

• Understand and quantify the risks across the journey

• Minimise access to the system except for those who are fit to fly

• Minimise time spent in the terminal, especially in common use areas

• Minimise contact with other passengers, in particular those from other flights

• Optimise hygiene and give it the same importance as security

Do• Encourage check-in before travel and health declarations

• Travellers to bring their own PDA and be tracked

• Travellers to bring their own water bottles

• Encourage ‘drive and park’ or ‘drive and drop-off’ until other modes of transport have reduced their risk

• Implement health check controls before entry to the terminal or airport transit system

• Dedicated serviced bag drop for each flight

• Allow only checked bags and carry-on bags small enough to fit under seats

• Maximise ‘click and collect’ facilities at commercial outlets

• Use stagger gates to promote social distancing

• Board from the back row of the aircraft

• Disembark by row number

• Provide PPE, physical barriers, sanitisers and enhanced staff support

• Appoint an infection control officer linked to national and international institutions

• Focus efforts on customer service through consistent communications before and during the journey

• Increase frequency of cleaning regimen

Don’t

• Allow non-travellers into the terminal

• Provide common use facilities

• Provide self-service touchpoints

• Encourage high density queuing

• Increase dwell time – take travellers straight to the gate

• Provide unnecessary touchpoints, such as ‘happy or not’ customer service indicators

• Hold travellers for long periods of time in the departure lounge before the call to the gate

• Provide commercial activities (until safe to do so)

• Concentrate flights together

• Allow unnecessary belongings into the aircraft cabin

• Pack people together to increase capacity

• Treat hygiene as a cost

• Rely on others (including travellers, contracted staff or your supply chain) to understand and manage risk

• Rely on passengers to understand all safety measures when they get to the terminal without additional support

• Operate facilities that add unnecessary workload