The Definition of an Airport - Literature review Example

The Airport Defined In considering the definition of an airport, and as provided by d with regards to this definition we could basically define the airport as being an essential part of and point in the transport system (Telford: 1988 & Graham: 2003) providing the interchange within an individuals journey and that of the delivery of freight, this definition serves as a perspective of functionality. From an operational perspective we find that many challenges exist from the management perspective with their, the managers, role being to ensure that a symphony of complex parts are channeled correctly, timely and efficiently to create a positive experience for the user of the airport. The user would primarily be that of the traveler in terms of the passenger aspect, and that of the freight would be represented by the forwarding companies, who in their own right are customers of the airport based upon their reliance upon the transportation of their or their clients goods in the form of such freight. Doganis (1992) provides confirmation of this complex arrangement of organizations and people that are required to facilitate these activities in "elements and activities are brought to facilitate, for passengers and freight, the interchange between air and surface transport." This very sentiment is echoed by Ashford et al (1991) in confirming the "modal transfer from air to land modes." The Airports Evolution and its Benefits The airport has further evolved from a government extension to that of a "commercially orientated and dynamic business." (Doganis) In turn the benefits of the airport affect many people from both an internal and external perspective. These benefits extend beyond that of the functionality of the airport and its required functions, to that of economic benefits that directly, and indirectly affect countries, regions, the traveling passengers as well as the local people. Graham (2003) aptly states that "airports can bring greater wealth, provide substantial employment opportunities and encourage economic development and can be a lifeline to isolated communities." One therefore sees that the airport provides economic as well as functional benefits to local communities and regions as well as to the user of air transport, albeit passengers or freight. Approaches on New Terminals Heathrow Airport has consistently been under the spotlight from various industry stakeholders. Media report of Mayor Boris Johnson recommending the planned phased closing of the airport, with a replacement airport to be located within the Thames estuary area. (Financial Times 2008.) Further reports also provide the negative impressions of Heathrow, provided by a former airline executive as a "third world airport….a national disgrace." (BBC.co.uk) This serves to confirm that besides the congestion experienced at Heathrow, there is a lot left to be desired regarding the true benefits and functionality of this airport in question. Analyzing Terminal 3 at Heathrow, history reveals that the original plan for this terminal was solely for that of departures on long haul flights, originally constructed in 1961. The site was later renamed Terminal 3 and extended to incorporate departures and arrivals, and remains to this day as one of the main terminals, primarily for intercontinental long haul flights the terminal handles over 17 million passengers per year (Milesfaster.co.uk.) The need for extension of the airport as a whole has long been advocated as a necessary requirement, by key players within this industry, as reflected by House of Commons Transport Committee (2008), claiming that the addition of a third runway and an accompanying sixth terminal will alleviate much of the congestion as well as increase the airports passenger handling capacity to that of 115 million per annum. The addition of Terminal 5 was seen as a permanent and exclusive home to British Airways, who has evidently outgrown Terminal 3, and with the addition of this new terminal the seamless integration for the majority of BA flights is expected for their customers. BA will remain in Terminal 3 with a reduced number of flights, predominantly to Bangkok, Singapore, Sydney, Madrid, Barcelona, Helsinki, Lisbon and Nice, together with codeshare. With BA vacating large portions of Terminal 3 allows for the refurbishment of this terminal which will include: • A newly refurbished check-in zone that puts you in control • A fast track security channel and brand new, larger departure lounge for premium customers, known as Galleries • A new arrivals lounge with 29 showers and a hot breakfast for premium customers arriving from Australia, Singapore and Bangkok • A frequent coach service between terminals 3 and 5 for flight connections • A modern baggage system, linked directly to the new system at terminal 5. Beyond the fact that the airport has become more privatized over the years as stated by Doganis, the author further provides that the airport itself still ultimately owned by the regional, local or national government of the area that is serviced by the airport. This implies that the government pursues, in the interest of economic benefit, the involvement with airport and related charges, with "governments insist[ing] that airport landing fees and passenger charges should be identical at all airports or at particular groups of airports." (Doganis) This in turn has a direct affect on the economy of the airport itself, in terms of its competitiveness with other airports. In terms of our approach to new terminals Ballard provides that the airport [and its terminals] provide "magical gateways to infinite possibilities" and the design of these airports are primarily aimed at providing an effective and efficient means of collaborating the vast complexities and services that are integrated to make up an airport in terms of its functionality from a design perspective. Operational Management The questions of operational management of an airport and related activities is addressed by Doganis in 4 main areas, which provide a framework in determining the objective of the operational management, these questions provided include: 1. Should airports be run as commercially oriented profitable concerns? 2. How should one improve airport economic efficiency? 3. Should profits from larger airports be used to cross-subsidise loss-making smaller airports? 4. Should airports be privatised? One will notice that these areas of concern raised by these questions are primarily targeted at the economic strategies of the airport, as well as the ultimate ownership of these airports. The fact that industry bodies, including IATA, argue that airports are public utilities in order to validate their concern of increased airport charges. Based upon the fact that the airline industry was initially based upon a commercial enterprise in the 1930s, many authors and key industry players continue to argue for both privatization or government controlled airports and airlines. Page (1999) provides that airline management is "the process whereby individual (and groups of) airline companies seek to organize, direct and harness their resources, personnel and their business activities to meet the needs of their organisation and customers in an effective and efficient manner." And specifically pertaining to the airports Graham (2003) provides that a significant amount of privatization has occurred, but not as much as in the airline companies, furthermore stating that investment attraction in terms of the airports is dwindling based on a variety of impacts such as regulation constraints and environmental restrictions. Undoubtedly a central theme emerges from the authors Page, Graham and Doganis in stating that the airports must be customer focused and should ensure an effective process of handling the various aspects of both airport and airline management. Both operational and strategic issues have to be taken into account in determining not only the daily function and processes of the airport and airlines but also the future direction, capacity and functionality of these airports. Graham further confirms that the "measuring of the quality of service" has also become as important in the overall management of the locations in determining the level of customer satisfaction, this in turn offers the management the forum to take corrective measures where required. This cost of quality does not have to be overwhelming if the right quality management is employed by the companies involved with the overall consumer experience (Lockwood & Wright, 1999), which goes beyond safety and security issues described by Doganis, and Pages confirmation that the services and options of the customer are ever changing, meaning that the management must be ever aware and adaptable to be able to address the concerns and quality of the customers experience. External factors that affect the airport management aspect have been highlighted as environmental issues, as presented by local role players. The industry has had to take a stance in support of their views by attempting promote the concept of air travel as opposed to the alternatives; such an example is that some airports have banned airplanes that do not meet satisfactory noise emission levels. By taking into consideration the various internal and external factors, the airport managers task is not a simple or even easy task, with Page confirming that planning is one of the main attributes of the position which occurs under a fairly long lag time, as was evident with the terminal 5 planning and construction. Variables that must be incorporated into this planning include the forecasted growth on realistic levels, based upon the capacity handling for at least a decade after the terminal has opened; this is primarily motivated by what Page mentioned in terms of the 5 to 10 years lag time in the planning and building of airports and terminals. In addition to this complexity the strategic focus of the airport must also include the revenue generation possibilities, such as the costs, economic features and revenue sources. These issues are in fact vital to understanding the development and management of the airport as a whole, whether as a commercial or parastatal entity. Heathrow and Terminal 5 Page and Doganis both report on the 1985 British Governments release of the white paper pertaining to airports, where Doganis specifically interprets that the airport should be operated as a commercial undertaking, and should also actively pursue the incorporation of private capital by encouraging both efficiency and enterprise. The following year the Airports Act was enacted creating a single company, name BAA Plc, which in turn manages seven airports, including Heathrow, which is incidentally one of the busiest airport in the world. Heathrow serves as the primary hub for British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and BMI, but serves a total of 90 airlines flying to 170 destinations worldwide – these figures translate to an amount of 67 million passengers per annum. The main reasoning behind the planning, design and construction of terminal 5 at Heathrow is said to be based on the fact that it offered a natural extension of the airport without having to construct a new runway. The media reported BAA argued that the effort was to ensure the British Airline Industrys competitiveness against the major European airports (The Times, March 2008.) as well as providing significant economic advantages to the region, specifically stating that the terminal will house over 8000 staff. Terminal 5 has achieved many of the industry milestones it had set out to achieve, the building was completed on time, within project management specifications and within the budget of GBP4,3 billion. According to the Heathrow Airport Guide (2008) the terminal is the largest known free standing building in the United Kingdom, whilst BAAs forecast states that with the addition of terminal 5, Heathrow will be able to cater for 80 million passengers annually by 2011, 87 million by 2016 and 90 million by 2030. Summary of Literature Review According to the survey of literature, Terminal 5 is a newly opened terminal at London Heathrow Airport; therefore there is not much research that is highlighted about terminal 5. Although authors like Doganis (1992) and Page (1999) have already pointed the impacts of managing airports. Only limited empirical research underpinning their assumptions up to date has been carried out. Even though a substantial amount of research has been done about airports, Terminal 3 and Airline and Operational Management, none provides information about the impacts the opening of terminal 5 has had on the staff managerial structure. Therefore further reading and primary research aims to determine the impacts terminal 5 has on terminal 3 and the staff managerial structure in order to complete the literature needed. Read More