One City Three Airports - Assignment Example

The presence of more than one airport in a city is no more a stunning fact in the global economy. In the 21st century economy has been much liberal and rapid privatization has taken place which has accounted for providing of excellent facilities to the people all over. The multi airport theory provides better facility to the transporters and reduces the burden of single airports. In certain overcrowded cities it often becomes impossible for a single service provider to control both international and domestic terminals both at the same time. As a result of public demand, airport authorities of important destinations are trying to provide access to all parts of the globe, and multi airport helps to facilitate such actions. In the case study mentioned we will try to deal with the case of Sao Paulo and its three airports namely Congonhas, Guarulhos & Viracopos. The multiple airports of Sao Paulo are a major factor in the growth and development of the aviation in Brazil and hence require attention of the government and the respective authorities wherever there are loopholes in design, capacity and strategies. Physical design and capacity limitations: The Congonhas airport of Sao Paulo is well structured and designed to provide world class faculties. The Airport is three floored in architecture and designed according to the standards of the airport authority. It has been first designed in the year 1919. The main area outside the airport is kept in reserve for parking and is popularly known as Sao parking. The ground floor consist of passenger terminal, check in and South Ala. The South Ala extension is the passage which provides connection in between the check-in facility of the airport and the exit terminal. The South Ala has counters which provide food facilities like baked potato. Outside the food stalls the ramp leads to the exit and has parking facilities for taxis and other automobiles. The portion for the check-in facility comprise of the various airline offices and their individual check-in units. The respective check-in units leads to the runway in the airport. The check in part also has baggage centers. The passenger terminal in the ground floor is protected well by lot of security forces. Both federal and civil forces are in the charge of the airport. The terminal also has good facilities to food the passengers. The first floor of the airport consists of South Ala and the passenger terminal whereas there is the existence of the sole passenger terminal in the second floor (Congonhas Airport Map, n.d.) In 1930 the runaway to the airport was constructed whose length was 400m. The total area which the airport has covered is over 150 ha. Massive urbanization has taken place near the airport over the years and has effectively resulted in stoppage of extension plans for the airport. The rapid growth of urbanization has raised security concern for the people owing to the vicinity of the airport. Pollution related issues have also crept in which is raising concern for the airport authorities. Owing to the shortage in area for the expansion many aircrafts are suffering from penalization. The flights face limitations in reference to the absence of scale for the diverse part of the country. The aircrafts face penalty in terms of load, payment or fuel availability.(2003 international conference airports: planning, infrastructure &environment, 2003) The close proximity of the airport and the city centre which is less than 5 miles is a major safety issue for both pilots and air traffic control crew (Top strangest airports worldwide, 2010). The airplane crash in Congonhas has raised issues over the security standards followed in the airport. Many investigations suggest that the accident took place because of problem in the airport runway. The runway was believed to have insufficient grooving but the authorities allowed the airport to be in use. The presence of the airport in close range of civilization raises pollution threats to the inhabitants. The pollution caused by the terrestrial movements that result in enormous traffic congestion is also to be noted. The noise pollution has significantly risen due to the increase in air traffic, and the use of powerful jets. The effect of noise pollution has been seriously dealt by the government and had often resulted in the decrease in capacity of the airports. Sincere efforts should be taken to curtain the air traffic movement during the night. The restriction in the capacity limitation of the airport has increased the subsequent pressure on the other airports and the air traffic system has had an impact. T The service in Congonhas is restricted to 48 aircrafts per hour (IMPACT ON THE LEVEL OF SERVICE DUE TO FLIGHT TRANSFERS BETWEEN AIRPORTS: CASE STUDY OF SÃO PAULO AIRPORTS, n.d). The delay in the departure of flights from the Congonhas airport has been reduced to few numbers but the overall delays in the Brazilian airline industry have drastically increased. Most of the flights were transferred to the Guarulho airport. Strategies of Airport in Sao Paulo The management of the airports is a very challenging task for the airport port authorities round the world. The critical issues deal with the passenger security and providing of world class services. Airport authorities have gone for expansion regarding their service and have tried to connect the passengers to different parts of the world and in their own country. The several challenges faced by the airport authorities are relating to meeting up with the capacity demand and in maintaining the rate smoothly. Passenger processing has been one of the prime areas where the airport authorities try to focus and increase their service and look to attain customer satisfaction. The limitation of the airspace in Brazil needs proper optimization by the air regulatory department and adapt to safety modes. The regulation and the planning of the construction, expansion and operation of the airport need careful surveillance (Airport evolution: Latin America, n.d). The three main airports in Sao Paulo are studied to have a close look on them. Congonhas Airport: It is one of the busiest airports in Brazil and is located at a distance of 30 km from the main city. The main airlines which fly from the airport are listed below. Airlines Country of origin Bra Brazil Gol Brazil Ocean Air Brazil Pantanal Brazil Rio Sul e Nordeste Brazil Tam Brazil Varig Brazil Vasp Brazil Avianca-One Brazil NHT Brazil (IMPACT ON THE LEVEL OF SERVICE DUE TO FLIGHT TRANSFERS BETWEEN AIRPORTS: CASE STUDY OF SÃO Paulo AIRPORTS, n.d) The airport is largely concentrated to operate on a domestic basis as majority of the international flights have been shifted to the other airports. The international destinations which are served from the airport are Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Overall it has 56 destinations under its belt. GOL transporters cover up to 58% of the destinations. (Sao Paulo congonhas information, n.d) Number of terminals: There are two terminals in the airport of Congonhas. The distance between the terminals is in close distance and enables the passengers to work on foot. Various services are there in the offering for the passengers. The list of various facilities available to the passengers is listed below. 24 hour post office Internet connectivity Restaurants Duty free shopping First aid facility and pharmacies. The access to the airport can be done in relatively easy manners as it is located almost in the heart of the city. Various modes of transport are available to the passengers. The passengers can choose any modes according to their suitability. The airport bus service is provided to the passengers 24*7. The metro service is available in the city, and there is a presence of quite a number of taxi companies for the service of passengers to escort them to the airport. The list of various services provided by the airport are lost and found section, luggage store section , Banking facilities, Restaurants and beer bars and car rental services. Guarulhos Airport: The Guarulhos airport came into operation much after the Congonhas airport was in full flow. The demand for the national growth and better facilities for the people promoted the development of the airport. The airport has become the largest in the Brazil and is a place for million travelers. There are two terminals in the airport of Guarulhos (Sao Paulo Guarulhos International Airport (GRU), n.d). The distance between the terminals is in close distance and enables the passengers to work on foot. Various services are there in the offering for the passengers the terminals are connected to the surrounding road network by the existing runaway system. It also has connectivity with the cargo terminals. The terminals also lead the way to subway and elevated railways. There is a presence of cargo terminal which single handedly looks after the distribution of the cargo (Airport guide, n.d). There is a presence of more than 25 airlines operating in from the Guarulhos airport. It is the main airport for the international destinations. The main airlines which operate from the airport are listed below. Varig, German wings, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, TAP - Air Portugal, United Airlines, Lufthansa, British Airways, Continental Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Swiss, Air Canada, LAN Airlines, Aeromexico, Iberia, Lan Peru, South African Airways, Japan Airlines, Alitalia,Emirates, Air France, Avianca, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Ocean Air The airlines departing from the airport covers more than 92 destinations all round and it has the access to 24 countries (Sao Paulo GRU information, n.d) The airport is located at a distance of 25km from the main town of Sao Paulo. The airport can be reached through a number of modes which includes car, bus, and taxi. The popular destinations like Jardins and Avenida Pulista are reachable within 2 hours from the airport. Apart from the taxis there is a presence of the Guarucoop cooperative which operates only for the airport passengers. The other services offered by the airport are currency exchange units, hotels, restaurants, VIP lounges, banks. Viracopos Airport: The airport is located near about 100 km from the capital of Brazil, Sao Paulo. The airport is popular destinations for the cargo planes. The airport carries its journey in well over 50 destinations. The airport is facilitated by a huge parking lot which is spacious enough to accommodate 1200 vehicles at a time. The airport is administered by the Infraero group. The airport is situated at a long distance from the main city often creates panic among the commuters. There are various bus companies like Transurc, EMTU which provides transportation facilities to the airport. The airport authority has also provided taxi facilities to the passengers. A total of 65 air conditioned taxis are there which carries 4 passengers at a time. The payment of fare can be made through Visa and master cards. One of the striking features of the airport can be contributed to the roof top shops and restaurants which is very popular among the passengers. Banks, public agencies and ATMS are also present in considerable numbers. (Viracopos International Airport Guide, n.d)The airports provide information which creates awareness among them relating to their air travel. The information shared by the airport authority is regarding declaration of goods, flight information, and passenger duties under age travel. The lists of airlines which are present in the airport are Azul, Gol, Pluna, Tam, Tap, and Trip. Economic importance of the Airline Industry: The improved economy of Brazil had huge implications on the airline industry as a whole. Brazil has experienced strong growth as an economy in the last few years. The economic condition of the people in Brazil has improved drastically and 30 million people are supposed to have risen out of their poverty. The middle class section of Brazil constitutes a large part and they have sufficient money to take care of their leisure and the entertainment. The effect of rise in economy of Brazil has accounted for an overall increase which is more than the GDP rise in the country. The significant achievement has been made by TAM airlines which experienced an overall rise of 30% than the previous year and expects a growth of 12%-16% in the coming years (Daltorio, 2010). The airlines industry has significantly contributed to the economy of Brazil in a regular pattern. In the year 1995 it accounted for .45% of the total GDP in Brazil. The airline industry has also offered considerable employment to the natives and had provided 0.05 percent of the total employment generated (McKinsey, n.d.). The regulation of the industry lies in the strict control of the government. The considerable increase in the nmber of players in the airline industry has raised competition among the industry operators. GOL transporters contribution to the economy has been significant. It is the major airlines for the domestic travel and contributes to more than 50% of the domestic travels. The growth in the airline sector in Brazil has a good prospect owing to the FIFA world cup, which is scheduled to be held in the year 2014. Multiple Airports in a city: The concept of Multi Airport in a city is widely popular in the metropolitan.The multi airports are often organized and maintained by a single organization, while in some cases are privately owned and managed. The multiple airport system in London is maintained by the BAA which controls three airports under its wing namely Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted. Often it is found that the airports of different cities also form a chain under the multiple airport system. In this case the airport authorities do tend to serve beyond their geographical boundaries, and they try to aim at functional development (Development of multi airport system, n.d) The overall growth rate in population in different parts of the world has led to expansion of cities to metropolitan cities to enable the proper use of facilities. The classification of the multiple airports depends on the proximity of the airports in operation and their presence in the metropolitan region of a society. The basic categorizations of multi Airport are as follows mega polis, archipelago, and regional territories (Bonnefoy, n.d, p.74). However in case of Sao Paulo airport we find that the Viracopos airport is situated at a distance of nearly 100km from the main part of the city and neither it is in close adherence to the other airports, still it comes under the belt of multiple airport of Sao Paulo. The reason behind the inclusion of Viracopos airport under the belt of the multiple airport system can be attributed to the fact that the local governing body has officially designated the airport. (Neufvill, n.d)The concept of multi airport is in much need in the present generation. The rapid growth of population and the increase in demand of the people to travel by air has increased the workload on most of the major airlines. Many airports have tried to extend their base but due to rapid urbanization expansion possibilities are not possible for most of the airports. The airport expansion has to abide by certain security guidelines which is automatically discarded if the area nearby is highly populated. The airport authorities also do face capacity constraints and here lies the problem of meeting with the demands of the people. The demand for the airport as mode of communication has been considerably high mainly in the metropolitans because the major population of employed people belongs to the region. Other than the employment factor being high in the metropolitans another factor which can be attributed to the fact of increase in demand is that most of the business units are located in the metropolis and a considerable portion of the air passengers comprises of people who are business travelers. The development of the multiple airports involves many stake holders like passengers, airlines, airport developers and operators, local and national regulatory authorities. The multiple airport system gives rise to the concept of primary and secondary airport. Secondary airports tend to provide support to the primary airport and are often underutilized. However in countries like Netherland the usage of the secondary airports has been at par with the primary one owing to the introduction of the low cost airlines (Goedegebuur, 2010, p.9) In regulation of the multiple airports operating from a metropolitan city proper usage of the secondary airports needs to be considered so that it may not start to run in loss. The maintenance and the upliftment strategy of the multiple airports should take into consideration from both the customer’s perspective and the view point of the airline authorities. However when the multi airport system comes into operation the choice obviously lies in the hand of the passengers to choose which airport to avail. The factors which the passenger stresses while making the choice of airport are listed below. Transportation Authority in Charge: The transport authority in the charge of the airport plans, controls and motivates the public and increases the attractiveness of the airport by mass promotion. The authorities do also emphasize on the activity of the civil aviation and monitors them. The demand of the people in terms of flight duration and destination is taken into account by the authority. The airlines in operation: The choice of airport depends on the airlines functioning from a particular airport. Based on the airlines, price comparison is done by the passengers. The airports in the multi airport arena should provide more airline facility for better choice making by the passengers. The overall management of Airport: The overall management of the airport is held in high regard by the passengers. Passengers take minute details into consideration and their dissatisfaction will not account to any benefits for the airports. Passengers prefer less security hassles and complete management at the airport and do not prefer any sort of confusion regarding their travel. Availability of services at the airport: Domestic and international passengers do prefer to have a lot of service provided to them at the airport. The services which are highly in demand are availability of proper parking facility, proper food and restaurants. Presence of branded shops, presence of high quality lounges, presence of banking facilities to meet with their financial needs. Number of destinations served: The number of destinations which can be reached from a particular airport often determines its popularity and the revenue earning. The airport authorities should offer more destinations for travel to the passengers. Accessibility of the airport: Another important criteria which the passengers consider regarding their choice of airports is how much accessible the airport is to them. Mostly airports try to provide transport facility in the form of airport authorized taxis, buses, but often their distance from the major parts of the city do play a critical role in the selection (The influence of ground accessibility on airport choice in Sao Paulo metropolitan area, n.d) Based on the above criteria for determining the choice of airports it is necessary to find out the measures or the strategies adopted by the three airports based in Sao Paulo. The Congonhas airport is well managed and proper regulation from the airport authority is maintained. The airport is under the jurisdiction of the ministry of defense as well. The service provided by the airport authority is in proper shape, however the passengers has to go through three level security check , which often harasses them. The regular delaying of the flights in the airport is a matter of serious concern and is quite troublesome for the passengers. The destination served by the airport is curbed by the limitation imposed. More international flight service should be provided. The access to the airport is not a matter of concern as it is located within the metropolitan. In the case with the Guarulhos airport the airport is maintained by the federal government of Brazil. The airport provides the best of service to the people of Sao Paulo in every respect. The three terminals at the airport enable a huge number of people for the entrance and exit from the airport. The airport is well designed and offers a variety of service to the passengers’ disposal. The most number of destinations are covered by this airport among the three considered and future plans relating to the further development to convert it into one of the best in the world should be considered. The Viracopos Airport is administered by the Infraero group. The main disadvantage highlighted in the operation of the airport is due to its remote location. It is situated over a 100miles from the main city of city of Sao Paulo which de-motivates the passengers to avail it as an option. The airport deals with the delivery of cargo in a huge way. The airport does not have many airlines at its service and only a few destinations are served. The airport authority should focus to increase both the number of airlines and the destinations served. The service provided by the airport authority is satisfactory. The roof top restaurant and shops are places of attraction inside the airport. Advantages of a multiple airport system: Various advantages can be derived from the operation of the multi airport system. The considerable importance lies in the reduction of the congestion and decreasing of the flight delays to a major extent. The economy of a country is also benefitted as the presence of multiple airports generate many employment opportunity to the local people and helps to reduce the unemployment of society, The foreign airlines are interested to invest in the country which results in increase of the overall economy of the people. The passengers are benefitted as they have far more choice in decision making for their travel. The monopolistic competition which exists due to presence of a single airport is reduced considerably. A critical analysis also highlights some of the disadvantages regarding the multi-airport operation. The airlines companies cannot attain economies of scale due to the dilution of the business. The overall improvement in the function of airport is achieved by spatial dilution of the operation and by reducing the effects of disruptions. (Evolution and Development of Multi-Airport Systems, 2008) A Worldwide Perspective  Sao Paulo as an airport system in the air transport industry: Considering the economic growth of Brazil, the air industry has also progressed in leaps and bounds. The growth is predicted to be as high as over 70% in the next two decades. (Brazil’s Aviation Industry Set for Take Off, 2011).the domestic airline has covered a distance of 5.25 billion kilometers in the year 2010. (MESO STUDY SUMMARY: AIR TRANSPORT INDUSTRY, n.d)The contribution of the Sao Paulo airport has been significant. The average number of passengers who travel by air in Brazil is as high as 83 million and 34% of the passengers are dealt by the Sao Paulo airport. Sao Paulo has an overall 12 airport which carries out the job in an effective manner. The most significant job is done by the Congonhas airport which tops the chart in respect to passenger handling. The following table shows the figures of passenger and cargo handling by the Sao Paulo airports in 2004 Airport network maintained by Infraero airports Management (Domestic) Unit (Domestic)Values Boarded/ Deplaned passenger Pax 20,091,229 7,358,581 Landings and take offs Units 411,894 70,523 Loaded / Offloaded Cargo kg 30,515,780 476,206,165 Airport network maintained by DAESP airports: Management Unit Values Boarded/ Deplaned passenger Pax 768,179 Landings and take offs Unit 262,402 Loaded / Offloaded Cargo kg 3,212,223 (Mobility for development, n.d) The figure in the above table depicts the importance of both the governing body of the airports in the way they effectively carried out the business (Mobility for development, n.d). The importance of the working of the Sao Paulo airports has been quite significant and to provide more effectiveness in the service 3 million $ investment has been decided to be provided by the INFAREO. The increase in funding aims to provide more capacity to the airports and achieve the target of 158 million passengers per year and to carry 291 thousand tons of cargo per year (BRAZIL AERO SPACE INDUSTRY, 2007). Special investment for the market of Sao Paulo has also been planned. The major airline which had a huge impact is VARIG. Owing to the 2014 FIFA world cup the importance of the airports in Sao Paulo will increase. Planning in view of the operational measures is needed to be taken to absorb the extra traffic pressure. The effectiveness of the airports will not only be critical in respect of Brazil but also throughout the world. Scheduling of route management should be done in a proper way so that the passengers don face any difficulties in reaching the venue. Conclusion The importance of the airports lies in the fact that the three major airports in Sao Paulo directly affect the total aviation of Brazil. The delays and the cancellation in any one of the networks will considerably cause a major hindrance in the total air traffic system of Brazil. Proper emergency measures needs to be planned well in advance as one of the major priorities in the working of the airports. The facility sectors in the airports should be taken care of to accommodate the major footfalls in the airport. The government should arrange to provide more number of flights to connect to different parts of the world (Study of the Air Transport Sector in Brazil, n.d). The development of the airports will do a lot good to the people of the Brazil. 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