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NOVEMBER 2007
CELEBRATING 15 YEARS
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Airbus A380 Begins Commercial Service
ACI-NA ‘Person of the Year’
irports Council InternationalNorth America (ACI-NA), which represents local, regional and state governing bodies that own and operate commercial airports in the United States and Canada, has recognized Susan Stiene, director, retail and passenger services for Vancouver Airport Authority, as the first winner of its “Person of the Year” award in the ACI-NA 2007 Concessions Contest. The award recognizes an individual who has enhanced the North American airport concession industry through his or her time, involvement, and expertise. Judges recognized Stiene for her many significant achievements at YVR’s 160-unit concession program. She was credited with the innovative, customer-focused and financially aware program that has transformed YVR concessions. Since joining YVR, sales of food, beverage, retail and services have increased 21 per cent, thanks to her key initiatives of growing non-aeronautical revenues, improving the customer experience and reengineering airport processes. Now in her eighth year at YVR, Stiene furthered partnerships with tenants through “field trips” to learn best practices at other airports, developed a no-cost training program for tenants, and proactively addressed labour shortages through a retail career-preparation course for local high-school students. She also demonstrated her leadership through process-reengineering programs for passengers and through her efforts to restore the sales of liquids, gels and aerosols at Canadian airports following August 2006 regulation changes. The award was announced during the ACI-NA Airport Concessions Conference in Chicago, held earlier this month. The annual conference brings together airport management and concessions professionals to examine the trends and best practices in airport retail planning, goal setting, and key operational and management issues.
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ast month, an Airbus A380, powered by the new Engine Alliance GP7000 engines, touched down at YVR as part of the aircraft’s certification process. Arriving from Bogota, Colombia, the aircraft was carrying 43 Airbus employees and testing equipment. This was the second time the A380 has visited YVR; the first visit took place in November 2006 amidst unusually wintry conditions. During its visit, the A380 was parked at Gate 64 in the new International Terminal wing, where
the Airport Operations team had the opportunity to test the automated gate guidance and doubleheaded bridge systems on the aircraft for the first time. The tests worked well, proving that YVR’s new facilities can easily handle these newer, larger aircraft of the future. After the Vancouver stop, the aircraft departed as scheduled for Osaka, Japan, continuing its technical route-proving exercise to replicate a continuous, typical airline schedule. Two weeks later on October 25, the A380 made
its debut as a commercial carrier with a sevenand-a-half hour Singapore Airlines flight between Singapore and Sydney, Australia. The majority of the seats on the two legs of this flight were sold on eBay, with all the proceeds of S$1.9-million donated to Singapore and Sydney charities and a global humanitarian organization, Médecins Sans Frontières. Singapore Airline’s three-class A380 features a brand new cabin class—the Singapore Airlines See AIRBUS,
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Dutch Visitors Win Aldeasa Launch Promotion
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arlier this year, Aldeasa opened 12 duty free stores at YVR. Headquartered in Madrid, Spain, Aldeasa is one of the top-five largest, international duty free retail operators. Operating in 16 countries on four continents, Aldeasa chose Vancouver as its first location on the North American continent. Additionally, Aldeasa opened a downtown location that allows customers to preorder their products and pick them up at YVR, right before their flight. To celebrate its North American debut, during the months of July to September, Aldeasa, in partnership with the Lower Mainland Lexus dealers, launched a raffle for a 2007 Lexus IS 250 AWD valued at approximately $55,000 including taxes. The winner
The Vancouver welcoming committee for the inaugural Vancouver-Auckland Air New Zealand service was comprised of Canadian government, tourism officials, Maori leaders and Musqueam band members.
Air New Zealand Celebrates Inaugural Vancouver-Auckland Service Photos: By Jim Jorgenson
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arlier this month, Air New Zealand’s inaugural non-stop flight from Auckland, New Zealand landed at YVR. The new service reduces travel time by six hours to a little over 14 hours in total. Along with New Zealand Minister of Trade, Honourable Phil Goff, a delegation of more than 30 New Zealand business and political leaders arrived on the flight. The New Zealand delegation was hosted by John Palmer, Air New Zealand chairman, and welcomed by the Honourable David Emerson, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Pacific Gateway and the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics, and Rod Harris, Tourism British Columbia president and CEO. The official welcome ceremony at YVR included a gifting of a specially woven cloak from Air New Zealand to Minister Emerson, and a First
Nations welcome. New Zealand Maori leaders also took part in the ceremony by providing a Karakia (blessing). With the launch of the year-round, non-stop service, Air New Zealand will provide three flights each week between Vancouver and Auckland during the months of November through March and July through August. The service will be available twice weekly in other months, offering Canadians access to a variety of experiences throughout the seasons. “The timing is perfect for a new direct service between our two countries,” said Roger Poulton, Air New Zealand vice president – the Americas. “All indications are that this route will be among our most popular international ones. “We anticipate our Canadian customers will appreciate that the service is a fast and convenient route to many Australian destinations, too,” said Poulton. Currently, more than 46,000 Canadians visit See AIR NEW ZEALAND CELEBRATES,
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See ALDEASA LAUNCH,
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The premium brand Lexus IS 250 AWD, on display at YVR from June 28 to September 26, was the grand prize in the Aldeasa YVR launch promotion.
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