Increasing airport capacity through integrated operations

Total Airport Management gives airport leaders a coordinated operating model for increasing throughput, improving financial performance and making better informed capital decisions

By Phil Washington, President of Strategy and Client Service, Senior Vice President and Mike LaFontaine, Virtual Design, Construction and Operations Manager | HNTB

Airport CEOs face increasingly complex operational challenges, including aging infrastructure, workforce shortages, power disruptions, rising digital demands and growing passenger volumes. At the same time, limited gate, terminal, roadway and support space can create bottlenecks in baggage screening, passenger processing, parking and cargo operations.

In this environment, airport capacity is no longer exclusively a construction challenge. It is also a coordination and decision-making challenge. Airport leaders are increasingly evaluating how existing facilities, operating partners and information can work together more effectively before turning to infrastructure expansion. Improvements in security processing, aircraft turnaround times and airport access can unlock additional capacity while creating new revenue opportunities and controlling operating costs.

Total Airport Management (TAM) connects operational data, anticipated passenger demand and flight schedules to create a shared understanding of airport conditions. By connecting information across departments, airlines, ground handlers and other operating partners, TAM enables stakeholders to anticipate disruptions, understand the downstream impacts and coordinate decisions before localized constraints become systemwide delays.

For airport leaders, the challenge is often not a lack of information. It is converting information held across departments and operating partners into coordinated action. TAM provides a framework for aligning those decisions around shared outcomes, clear accountability and measurable airport performance. Connecting information across operations helps identify where changes in staffing, scheduling or materials allocation can improve use of existing facilities and where additional capital investment is needed. In some cases, an airport’s next increment of capacity may not come from a new building, gate or roadway expansion, but from improving how existing operations work together. Coordinating checkpoint staffing with passenger demand, reducing variation in aircraft turnaround times or aligning construction activities with anticipated roadway conditions can help airports unlock capacity already embedded within the system.

Unlock additional capacity from existing assets

As passenger volumes grow and operating environments become more complex, airport leaders are often challenged to increase performance while balancing capital investment priorities. Before investing in additional infrastructure, many airports have an opportunity to unlock greater value from the assets, facilities and operational resources already in place. TAM provides a framework to identify and realize those opportunities.

Improve passenger flow and revenue opportunities.

Combining flight schedules, expected passenger volumes and queue information helps teams align screening resources with demand. Shorter waits can increase the number of passengers processed within existing checkpoint space and give travelers additional time to visit concessions before boarding.

Wait times and passengers processed per hour provide measures of operational improvement. Concession spending per passenger can help owners assess whether those changes also support commercial performance. Evaluating both helps connect passenger experience investments with airport business outcomes.

Make better use of gate capacity.

Gate availability depends on aircraft turnaround and the readiness of the teams supporting it. Connecting gate and aircraft information with terminal conditions helps partners anticipate factors that could affect boarding, departures and subsequent arrivals.

A shared operating picture can support adjustments that reduce avoidable delays and improve use of existing gates. Turnaround times, gate conflicts and aircraft movements per gate can help owners evaluate the contribution to capacity. These measures also help distinguish constraints that operating changes can address from those requiring physical expansion.

Keep airport access moving during change.

Connecting anticipated passenger demand with roadway conditions helps airport teams evaluate the effects of construction and lane closures. Analysis at the lane level can reveal how a proposed closure would affect access during a concentrated period of arrivals or departures.

That information can inform work schedules, curbside management and traveler guidance. Roadway travel times and curbside queues help measure whether those decisions preserve access as airport improvements advance.

Control the cost of operating assets.

The same approach can connect asset performance with maintenance and energy decisions. Information about equipment condition helps maintenance teams prioritize assets showing signs of deterioration. Visibility into energy consumption can inform adjustments to lighting, heating and cooling based on operating needs.

Maintenance spending, equipment downtime and energy use provide a basis for assessing results. These applications extend the owner’s business case beyond passenger movement to the cost and reliability of supporting airport operations.

Build the approach around business outcomes

Successful TAM adoption begins with leadership alignment, not technology selection. Airport leaders should establish the business outcome, define how performance will be measured and align the departments and operating partners that influence the result. The following steps provide a practical path for beginning that work and expanding it over time.

• • Define the outcome and establish a baseline.
    A capacity objective might focus on passenger throughput or gate utilization. A financial objective might address maintenance costs or concession revenue. Establishing current performance and a measurable target gives partners a common purpose and a basis for evaluating results.
  • Build on existing information.
    An inventory of systems and data helps determine which capabilities are already available. Evaluating information for accuracy, timeliness and accessibility reveals where integration may be sufficient and where additional sensing or analytical tools are needed. The business objective provides a basis for judging those investments.
  • Connect the partners who influence performance.
    Airport departments and operating partners can identify how their decisions affect the selected outcome, what information they need and how they will coordinate action. This establishes working arrangements that can support daily operations and expand across the airport over time.
  • Demonstrate value before expanding.
    A focused initial application allows partners to test their approach against the agreed measures. Results can show whether changes are improving performance and what staffing or ongoing support is required. That evidence helps leaders determine where broader adoption would deliver value.

  Supporting efficiency systemwide

  The first step toward TAM is not selecting a new technology. It is identifying the airport outcome that matters most, establishing how performance will be measured and bringing together the partners who influence it. TAM gives airport CEOs and their leadership teams a practical framework for making informed, well-considered decisions amid complex operational, financial and customer-service demands. By connecting daily operating decisions with financial and capital planning, airport leaders can better understand where operational improvements can create value, where new infrastructure is truly needed and how future investments can deliver the greatest return.