airport world, issue 6, 2013

8/13/2019 Airport World, Issue 6, 2013

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In the spotlight: People/Human resources

Airports: Bahrain, San Francisco & Sydney

Special report:Retail innovation

Plus:IT trends, security & the environmen

People power


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http://www.avialliance.com/


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OPIN

In todays highly competitive environmentwhere a good airport experience could

make the difference between a visitor

buying something from a shop/restaurant

or ultimately ever returning, the role played

by frontline staff cannot be underestimated.

A friendly smile and welcome at check-in

is always a good start, but how many times

have you disappointingly been met by a

seemingly overworked member of staff who

cannot get rid of you quick enough?

Next comes the part of the journey

that many find most stressful partly

down to the attitude of staff security.

And if this takes forever or is punctuated

by perceived rudely made demands to

do this or do that by employees who

appear to be relishing their position of

power, the airport experience is suddenly

not so enjoyable.

Other areas where airports often let

themselves down in terms of customer

service is immigration and customs

control, where long queues, lack ofinformation and then expressionless

officers behind desks make the entire

process extremely unfriendly. Although

airports have no direct say in these

processes as they are invariably carried

out by government agencies, surely it

doesnt have to be this way, and more can

be done to make things more welcoming?

I suppose the point I am trying to make

here is whether airports are truly aware of

the key role airport employees play in

peoples journeys, or that staff are arguably

their most important asset?

I honestly dont know the answer but I am

are beginning to recognise and reward staff

that go the extra mile for the customer.

They include Singapore Changi, Dubai

International Airport, Hong Kong and

Aroports de Montral (ADM), all of whichhave introduced awards that recognise staff

excellence. Indeed, Dubais include the Mega

Star Performer (annual), Star Performer

(quarterly) and Shooting Star (on the spot)

awards which recognise outstanding

employee achievements and dedication.

Another to recognise the huge impact

staff behaviour can have on the airport

experience is Copenhagen, which has

transformed its airport security experience

by insisting on a more friendly style of

screening that involves staff making eye

contact with passengers and actually

striking up a conversation!

While on a bigger scale, Gatwick has

totally transformed its corporate culture

since being bought by Global Infrastructure

Partners (GIP), and now claims to be more

passenger focused and aware of cultural

differences than ever before.

Individual efforts like these are, of course,

supported by ACI World in terms of its global

training programmes and initiatives such asthe Airport Service Quality (ASQ) customer

satisfaction programme and its newly

launched PassengersPlus initiative, which is

specifically designed to promote global

service excellence.

You can read about most of the above in

this people/human resources themed

issued ofAirport World, where we also learn

more about leadership challenges and

reflect on staff participation in a number of

charity events/fun days.

Finally, as it is our last issue of 2013,

I would like to take this opportunity to wish

you seasons greetings and all the best for a

Airport World

E tor Joe Bates +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

Deputy E tor

Caroline Cook +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

Des gn, Layout & Pro uct onMark Draper +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

Andrew Montgomery +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

Erica [email protected]

We s te Des gn & Pro uct onJos Cuenca +44 (0) 20 8831 7517

[email protected]

Sa es D rectorJonathan Lee +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

A vert s ng ManagerKalpesh Vadher +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

Andrew Hazell +44 (0) 20 8831 [email protected]

Su scr pt onsLauren Murtagh +44 (0) 20 8831 7512

[email protected]

Published by Aviation Business Media Ltd26-30 London RoadTwic en am, TW1 3RW, UKFax: +44 (0) 20 8891 0123

Managing DirectorJonat an Lee

Airport Worldis published six times a yearor t e mem ers o ACI. T e op n ons an

v ews expresse n rpor or are t oseof the authors and do not necessarilyreflect an ACI policy or position.

ISSN: 1360-4341The content of this publication i s copyright of

Aviation Business Media and should not be

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o t e pu is er.

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sing onl paper from FSC/PEFC s ppliers

Airport Worldeditor, Joe Bates,

reflects on the important role

frontline staff play in helping

determine an airports image

and reputation.

People

power


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Take your piece of Viennas cake:Millions of Hungarian, Czech,Slovak and Austrian passengers.
http://www.viennaairport.com/cakehttp://www.viennaairport.com/cakehttp://www.viennaairport.com/cakehttp://www.viennaairport.com/cake


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3 Opinion

8 News

10 ACI News

13 View from the topDirector general, Angela Gittens, reflects on the 100th anniversary of commercial

flight, training initiatives and the fact that aviation is a people business.

14 Fantastic journeySan Francisco International Airports long-serving boss, John Martin, talks to Joe Bates about

infrastructure development, traffic growth and his gateways impressive green credentials.

20 Busy BahrainCaroline Cook spoke to Mohamed Yousif Al-Binfalah, CEO of Bahrain Airport Company,

about the airports development plans.

22 Ready and willing

While the politicians are talking about a new airport for Sydney, Kerrie Mather, CEO ofthe existing one, is getting down to the business of running Australias busiest gateway.

Lucy Siebert reports.

24 Culture ClubTina Oakley, HR director of London Gatwick, talks to Sarah McCay about the airports

new corporate culture and its positive impact on the passenger experience.

26 Learning curveACI Worlds training programmes are designed to develop airport employees from top

management to frontline staff, writes Kevin Caron.

28 Spotlight on leadershipDr Richard Plenty and Terri Morrissey reflect on the highlights and lessons learned from

the third annual Airport Leadership and Change Management Forum in Bologna

Issue 6Volume 18

In this issue

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http://www.trinity2014.com/


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30 Putting the passenger firstCaroline Cook finds out more about the launch of a new global initiative designed to

showcase the efforts airports are making to improve the passenger experience.

33 Being charitableMore airports are raising funds for good causes with fun runs and plane pulls.Caroline Cook rounds up this years best charitable events.

34 Popping up everywhereMalgorzata Lach takes a closer look at the evolution of pop-up retail and F&B

outlets at airports.

36 Airport Marketing ExchangeSimpliFlyings David McMullen and Shubhodeep Pal discuss the rise of airport

investment in social media.

39 Investing in ITAirport Worldreviews the highlights of the 2013 Airport IT Trends Survey.

40 Cash convertersHow do airports around the globe increase retail revenues without incurring extr

capital expenditure? Steve Messenger offers some guidance.

42 Smart thinkingJoe Bates and Justin Burns round up the highlights of the recent SMART Airports

Conference at inter airport Europe in Munich.

45 Sniffing out dangerDavid Stockton explains why, in todays high-tech world, airports across theglobe still rely on dogs to help perform key security tasks.

47 Project watchNacala Airport.

48 Environment news

51 ACIs World Business Partners

53 ACI traffic trends

54 The last wordHeathrow Expresss managing director Keith Greenfield talks to Justin Burns

D rector GeneraAnge a Gittens

Chair

Yiannis Paraschis (Athens, Greece)

Vice ChairFredrick J Piccolo (Sarasota, USA)

Imme ate Past C a r Max Moore-Wilton (Sydney, Australia)

TreasurerLouis E Miller (Atlanta, USA)

ACI WORLD GOVERNING BOARD

DIRECTORS

Africa (3)

Dalil Guendouz (Casablanca, Morocco)Pascal Komla (Lom, Togo)Robinson Misitala (Livingstone, Zambia)

Asia-Pacific (8)Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)VP Agrawal (Delhi, India)Ghanem Al-Hajri (Sharjah, UAE)Dennis Chant (Gold Coast, Australia)Zhiyi Dong (Beijing, China)Seow Hiang Lee (Singapore)Kerrie Mather (Sydney, Australia)Kosaburo Morinaka (Tokyo, Japan)

Europe (7)Declan Collier (London, UK)

Michael Kerkloh (Munich, Germany)Yiannis Paraschis (Athens, Greece)Tonci Peovic (Zagreb, Croatia)Ad Rutten (Amsterdam, Holland)Stefan Schulte (Frankfurt, Germany)Jos-Manuel Vargas (Madrid, Spain)

Latin America & Caribbean (3)Philippe Baril (Quito, Ecuador)Fernando Bosque (Guadalajara, Mexico)Hctor Navarrete Muoz (Merida, Mexico)

North America (7)Thella Bowens (San Diego, USA)David Edwards (Greenville, USA)Frank Miller (San Antonio, USA)

Reg K Milley (Edmonton, Canada)Fredrick J Piccolo (Sarasota, USA)Mark Reis (Seattle, USA)Maureen Riley (Salt Lake City, USA)

Regional Advisers to theWorld Governing Board 7Larry Cox (Memphis, USA)Stephen Gichuki (Nairobi, Kenya)Seow Hiang Lee (Singapore)Bongani Maseko (Johannesburg, South Africa)Barry Rempel (Winnipeg, Canada)Earl Richards (Jamaica)Miguel Southwell (Miami, USA)

O server

Wor Business Partner Boar C airpersonRandy Pope (Burns & McDonnell)

Correct as of December 11, 2013

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EWS

News in briefFears that some of Finlands smaller gateways mayhave to close in the future were raised by FinaviasCEO, Kari Savolainen, during a think tanksession at the recent Global Airport Developmentconference in Nice. When asked what keeps himawake at night, Savolainen admitted that it wouldbe difficult for Finnish airport operator, Finavia, tocontinue to operate all 25 of the nations gatewaysin the long-term almost entirely from the profits ofHelsinki Airport.

The long-awaited opening of Dohas new

Qatar is set to undergo a soft opening at thestart of 2014. In its first phase, the airportwill be served by 10 passenger airlines thatwill utilise one of the longest commercialrunways in the world at 4,850 metres.

Perth Airport has opened the first phase of itsnew international arrivals area and claims thatfeedback on the facility part of its A$750 millionredevelopment has been overwhelminglypositive. CEO, Brad Geatches, said: Wevecompletely changed how people arrive into Perth

Kannuris set to become the fourth internationalairport in the southern Indian state of Kerala,after Kannur International Airport Limited(KIAL) awarded the contract for its engineering,procurement and construction to Larson & TubroLimited (L&T).

The Hillsborough County Aviation AuthorityBoard has awarded Austin Commercial thedesign-build contract for a new consolidatedrental car facility and automated peoplemover at Tampa International Airport.

Curaao spaceportCuraao International Airport has revealed it will open its

own Spaceport in 2014, in a move designed to help boost its

non-aeronautical revenues.

XCor Aerospace is expected to launch commercial space flights

within the next 12 months and more than 250 people have already

signed up for sub-orbital flights from the Caribbean airport.

The creation of the spaceport is part of operator Curaao Airport

Partner/Curaao Airport Holding NVs bid to transform the airport

into the worlds first regional, self-sufficient green airport city,

powered by solar energy and cooled by a seawater air

conditioning system.

It will include 200 hectares of land set aside for commercial, retail,

residential and research development, offering over one million square

metres of rentable space for manufacturing and retail shops, logistics,

offices, hotels, restaurants, R&D laboratories and warehouses.

Curaaos ambitious development plan is believed to come with

a $1.8 billion price tag, based on annual investments of $30 million

over the next few decades.

It will create around 1,400 jobs, which is not bad for a small island

with a population of under 150,000 people, says Simon Kloppenburg,

commercial developer for airport development.

DAAs global ambitionsThe newly created international business arm of Irish airport operator DAA is actively

looking for investment partners to form joint ventures to help it achieve its goal of

operating airports in emerging markets such as Brazil, Japan and the Middle East.

Subsidiary, daa international, ideally wants to operate an airport as part

of a consortium comprising itself and one or more partners who are prepared

to make the equity investment necessary to buy the gateway or secure a

management contract.

It wants to work with institutional funds and infrastructure developers

willing to invest in airport assets in emerging markets, and use its experience

of operating Irelands Dublin, Cork and until recently Shannon airports to

develop and grow the gateways.

Chief executive of daa international, Colm Moran, says: We formed daa

international because we see an opportunity to leverage the expertise and skill

base of our people at what we do best running airports. We are primarily

looking at the emerging markets and are not looking to make an equity

investment at this stage.

New concessionairesought for SantiagoWith the clock running down to September 2015, and the end of the current

concession, Chile has issued a prequalification call to international investors

interested in operating and developing Santiagos Arturo Merino Bentez

International Airport (SCL).

The successful consortium will be expected to construct and manage the new

international terminal (Terminal 2), and upgrade, expand and operate the domestic

terminal in return for a 20-year concession with an option for a five year extension.

Chiles Ministry of Public Works claims that the upgrade will cost $720 million,

triple the airports capacity to 30mppa by 2030, and ensure that Santiago

remains one of Latin Americas most modern and passenger friendly airports.

The Chilean government is insisting that the new airport operator must hold

at least a 25% stake in the winning consortium and be able to demonstrate that

it has operated/managed an airport handling in excess of 20mppa for a

minimum of five years.

Designed by Stantec, Terminal 2 will initially be around 200,000sqm in size

and equipped to accommodate 14mppa.Concessions coordinator, Carlos Plass Wahling, told Airport Worldthat current

concessionaire, SCL Terminal Areo Santiago SA Sociedad Concesionaria which

boasts Canadas Vantage Airport Group as a stakeholder would be invited to

tender for the concession.

Bella, bella!The shape of things to come? An artists impression of the new West Hub

at RomeFiumicino Airport. According to The Design Solution, the

11,000sqm Avancorpo extension will transform the passenger

experience for more than 15mppa. It is scheduled to open in 2016.


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Terminal velocityThe final months of 2013 saw the opening ofnew state-of-the-art terminals in Prishtina

(Kosovo), Shenzhen Baoan (China),

St Petersburg (Russia) and Burgas (Bulgaria).

The new140 million terminal at Prishtina

(above, left) has more than doubled the airports

annual capacity from 2mppa to 5mppa.

Turkeys Limak Group, which operates

Prishtina International Airport with consortium

partner Aroports de Lyon, claims that the

facility is the most intelligent, technologicallyadvanced, passenger- and eco-friendly terminal

in the Balkans.

Boasting a manta ray type design and

unique double honeycomb skin, the new

5.3 million sq ft Terminal 3 at Shenzhen Baoan

International Airport (above, centre) is expected to

quickly become a new icon for the Chinese city.

According to architect Studio Fuksas,

standout features of the interior design include

stylised white trees that serve as air

conditioning vents and distinctive white conical

supporting columns that rise to touch the roof at

a cathedral-like scale.

Already the largest public building in Shenzhen,

the 63-gate complex will initially increase the

airports capacity by 60% to 45mppa.Meanwhile, St Petersburg-Pulkovos new

Terminal 1 (above, right) opened for business

on December 4. All flights will be gradually

transferred to the new 700 million Pulkovo

Terminal by the end of January 2014.

When the project is fully completed in

2016 it will increase the capacity at Russias

fourth largest airport from 8.4 million

to 17mppa.

Sergey Emdin, director general of Northern

Capital Gateway, says: We are now close to

the incarnation of plans for Pulkovo to become

a major hub in the Baltic region.

Burgas Airports new 21,000sqm terminal

(not pictured), designed by the British-based

Halcrow Group and Pascall+Watson inpartnership with SavantElbul, opened in

late December.

Next up is the expected January

2014 opening of Qatars new Hamad

International Airport.

TAV to invest in rivalIstanbul airport?TAV Airports is remaining tight-lipped about speculation linking it with a potential

bid to buy GMR Infrastructures 40% stake in Istanbuls Sabiha Gken Airport.

The global airport operator already counts Istanbuls Atatrk Airport in its

portfolio and has made no secret of its intention to add more gateways, although

few industry commentators would have predicted a bid for its rival Istanbul airport.

Located on the Asian side of the city, Sabiha Gken handled 15.7 million

passengers in the first 10 months of 2013.

Its current shareholders are Malaysia Airports (20%), Turkish firm Limak (40%)

and GMR Infrastructure (40%) and the possibility of the former buying out the

latter arguably remains the most likely scenario if the Indian airport operator

decides to sell.

The consortium acquired the operating rights to the airport for 20 years for

1.93 billion in 2007. TAV declined to comment on the speculation.

master plan a $943 million series of projectsthat will create 8,000 jobs in the Tampa Bay area.

Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, hascommissioned the construction of anew $654 million terminal at the JomoKenyatta International Airport. Thetwo-phased construction work is expectedto start immediately and deliver a 20mppafacility by 2017.

Vanderlande Industries has been awarded

build the new baggage handling systemat Luis Muoz Marin International Airportin Puerto Rico. The project is part ofoperator Aerostars $1.4 billion 40-yearinvestment enhancement programme atthe San Jose gateway.

Phnom Penh International Airport is oneof Asias top gateways, according to a surveycarried out by hotel booking site, Agoda.com.Customers ranked the Cambodian gateway10th in the survey of the continents best

The retail concession at Brazils ViracopInternational Airport has been awarded travel retailer, Nuance. The ten-year contrawith a possible five year extension expected to deliver a lifetime turnover more than $450 million. It is Nuances fientry into the South American market.

The Myanmar government has put half tAsian countrys airports up for sale, accordingThe Myanmar Times. It claims that the Minisof Transportation will open tenders in Janua

For daily news updates, visit www.airport-world.com

Brazilian airport salesThe Aeroportos do Futuro group spearheaded by Odebrecht

and Singapores Changi Airport Group has paid $8.3 billion

for the 25-year concession to run and expand Rio de

Janeiros Galeo Airport.

The deal is part of Brazilian president Dilma Rousseffs

programme to modernise infrastructure in Brazil ahead of the

FIFA World Cup next year and Olympic Games in 2016.

Galeo Airport handles about 22mppa and is set to have

26 new gates added alongside expanded cargo storage.

Elsewhere in Brazil, Aerobrasil group comprising

construction company CCR and the operators of both

Munich and Zurichs airports has paid $840 million for the

30-year concession to run Belo Horizontes Confins Airport.

Brazils state-run management company Infraero will

retain a 49% stake in both airports.


10/26

A

irports Council International (ACI) extends its warmest congratulations

to the newly elected president of the Council of ICAO, Dr Olumuyiwa

Benard Aliu.

Dr Alius election was confirmed on November 18 when the 36 States that

comprise ICAOs Governing Council registered their unanimous agreement

during the Councils 200th Session.

His three-year term will take effect on January 1, 2014, and end on

December 31, 2016. Nigeria presented his candidature on March 8, 2013.

Dr Aliu is an outstanding diplomat and civil aviation leader with a great

talent for consensus building and a passion for advancing aviation policy and

practice, enthused director general of ACI World, Angela Gittens.

He has always impressed me with his seamless development and

integration of strategic objectives, policies and programmes, as well as his

warm and open personal style and talent for drawing together people to forge

collaborations and partnerships.His 30 years of exceptional service to international civil aviation and

extensive academic background have garnered the full confidence of ACI that

relies on the Council to advance issues of great importance to the worlds

airports. I look forward to working with him over the next triennium and

congratulate him on his historic appointment.

He is the fifth president of the ICAO Council in its almost 70-year history and

its first president from the Africa region. Prior to his election, Dr Aliu served for

eight years as the ICAO Councils Nigerian Representative (2005-2013), director

of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authoritys Air Transport Regulation Directorate

(2000-2004), and chairman for the formulation of African Civil Aviation Policy

under the African Union (2009-2011).

Dr Alius election to president follows the announced retirement of Roberto

Kobeh Gonzlez (2006-2013), who served as president of the ICAO Council for

two consecutive terms.

ACI held a retirement luncheon for him in November to pay homage to the

tremendous contributions that he has made to the sustainable development of

the international civil aviation industry.The luncheon was held in collaboration with the Civil Air Navigation Services

Organisation (CANSO) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Global traffic trendsThe latest ACI traffic results show that global passenger numbers continued

along its growth path for the month of October increasing by 4.9% from the

previous year.

With global passenger growth in the realm of 3% year-on-year for the

last 12 months, October represented a banner month for passenger traffic,

as airports in advanced economies bounced back with strong gains heading

into the third quarter of 2013.

The Middle East continues to achieve the highest month-on-month

Double-digit growth rates continue to persist for airports across the region.

Dubai (DXB) and Abu Dhabi (AUH) grew by 15.1% and 15.8%, respectively.

ACI Worlds economics director, Rafael Echevarne, commented: While

there is a revived sense of optimism based on the latest traffic figures, it is

still early to adopt the view that we are completely out of the woods.

Nevertheless, key emerging aviation markets, such as Dubai, Istanbul

and So Paulo, continue to post strong gains in passenger traffic in spite of

the downside risks For the month of October only three out of the top

CI WORLD NEWS

ACI congratulates Dr Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu on his election as president of the Council of ICAO.

World in motion

Pictured left to right: CANSOs Jeff Poole; ACI Worlds Angela Gittens; ICAOs Roberto Kobeh Gonzlez and his successor,

Dr Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu; and IATAs Tony Tyler.


11/26

ACI WORLD NE

ACI officesACI World

Angela Gittens

Director General

PO Box 302

800 Rue du Square Victoria

Montral, Quebec H4Z 1G8

Canada

Tel : +1 514 373 1200Fax : +1 514 373 1201

[email protected]

www.aci.aero

ACI Fund for Developing

Nations Airports

Angela Gittens

Managing Director

c/o Geneva,

Switzerland

Tel: + 1 514 373 1200

Fax: +1 514 373 [email protected]

ACI Asia-Pacific

Patti Chau

Regional Director

Hong Kong SAR, China

Tel: +852 2180 9449

Fax: +852 2180 9462

[email protected]

www.aci-asiapac.aero

ACI Africa

Ali Tounsi

Regional Secretary

Casablanca, Morocco

Tel: +212 619 775 101

[email protected]

www.aci-africa.aero

ACI Europe

Olivier Jankovec

Director General

Brussels, Belgium

Tel: +32 (2) 552 0978

Fax: +32 (2) 502 5637

[email protected]

www.aci-europe.org

ACI Latin America & Caribbean

Javier Martinez Botacio

Director General

Quito, Ecuador

Tel: +593 2294 4900

Fax: +593 2294 4974

[email protected]

www.aci-lac.aero

ACI North America

Deborah McElroy

Interim President

Washington DC, USA

Tel: +1 202 293 8500

Fax: +1 202 331 1362

[email protected]

www.aci-na.org

ACI represents 573 members operating 1,751 airports in 174 countries and territories, which in 2012 handled 5.7 billion passengers, 92.5 million

tonnes of cargo and 79 million aircraft movements ACI is the international association of the worlds airports It is a non-profit organisation

March 12-14

Airport Economics &

Finance Conference &

Exhibition

London, UK

2014 2014

May 26-28

ACI World Annual

General Assembly

ACI Asia-Pacific

Regional Conference

Seoul, South Korea

2014

June 16-18

ACI Europe General

Assembly, Congress

& Exhibition

Frankfurt, Germany

2014

April 29-30

ATAG Aviation &

Environment Summit

Geneva, Switzerland

2014

February 26-28

The Trinity Forum

Bangkok, Thailand

ACI events


12/26
http://www.aci.aero/


13/26

Dear colleagues, a century ago, on January 1, 1914, the first

commercial flight travelled between St Petersburg and Tampa in

the state of Florida in the United States.

Its first passenger, the Mayor of St Petersburg, Abraham C Pheil,sat on a wooden seat next to the pilot. Around 3,000 spectators and a

music band witnessed the sound of the wooden open-air seaplane

start its six-cylinder engine and take flight to an altitude of five feet

above water. The world would never be the same.

The St Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line became the worlds first

scheduled winged airline service in history. After only three months of

operations, the airline ceased operation when a city subsidy ran out

and left the airline unprofitable!

As we head into 2014, the image of a wooden aircraft without a

windshield or seatbelts can serve to remind us of the tremendous

gains in safety performance the industry has made.

With ICAO at the global level, civil aviation commissions at the

regional level, civil aviation authorities at the national level, and

industry groups, such as the Flight Safety Foundation, IATA, ACI, CANSO

and ICCAIA, aviation has become the safest form of transportation.

What started as a retrospective activity, reviewing the causes of

accidents and endeavouring to eliminate or mitigate the conditions

found to contribute, matured into the study of incidents that could

lead to an accident. And now, marked by the release of ICAO Annex

19, the Integrated Management Section of The Convention on

International Civil Aviation, we are evolving to a proactive approach

where safety vulnerabilities are sought out and mitigated. Annex 19

exemplifies the concept of a safety culture, which refers to the attitudeand actions of people.

As much as civil aviation is about technology, the conquest of

gravity, the muscle of machinery, the massiveness of infrastructure, it

is still a business of people serving people. When we are conducting

research or speaking in technical terms, we refer to human factors

and the human in the loop.

And just as manufacturers and governments have invested in

scientists and engineers to improve materials and machines,

operators and governments invest in the range of human skills it takes

to make our industry safe, secure, customer-friendly and economically

and environmentally sustainable.

ACI, working through our committees, assists airport managers to

get the best from their human resources. We offer an extensive suite of

skills development programmes classroom and online for all levels of

curriculum is dynamic, its development guided by the current and

emerging needs of airports as they attempt to recruit and retain the

skills they need in all areas of the business.

In this increasingly competitive airport environment, our newest

online set of courses, the Airport Operations Diploma, allows airports

to cross-train staff as well as allows staff to broaden their skill-set as

the modern airport breaks down the silos within. The Spanish

language version of the course will begin in 2014.

I am also pleased to announce the publication of a significant new

best-practice guide, The ACI Guide to Airport Security Assessment of

Human Factors in Checkpoint Security. This document is intended to

help airports and airport security managers assess their organisation

across a range of human factors and organisational effectiveness

attributes that have been identified as having a potential impact on

security screening performance.

This is a groundbreaking document, the fruit of a successful

collaboration with LeighFisher. There is no other guidance document quite

like it and it is our intention to develop complementary case studies and

further guidance to help airports achieve these leading practices.

And, of course, we have our Airport Excellence (APEX) in Safetyprogramme which is a hands-on exemplar of the new approach to safety

management, where experts from ACI and Safety Partner airports, along

with friendly inspectors from ICAO or other regulatory bodies,

participate with the Host airport in a review of the Hosts safety

vulnerabilities, in accord with ICAOs Annex 14 (and now, Annex 19).

The review is paired with one or more training courses where that

is necessary and has as one of its outcomes, the establishment of a

runway safety team, to facilitate continuous improvement, the

inculcation of a safety culture and a breaking down of silos among the

players on the airport platform.

The information we derive from the reviews informs our guidance

publication priorities, our training priorities and our feedback to ICAO

on the kinds of recommendations it needs to develop for the States to

help airports improve safety A truly virtuous circle And it all starts

Director general, Angela Gittens, reflects onthe 100th anniversary of commercial flight,training initiatives and the fact that aviation isa people business.

Viewfrom

the top

ACI VIEWPOIN


14/26

RPORT REPORT: SAN FRANCISCO

For many, the highlight of the last 15 years at San Francisco

International Airport (SFO) is likely to be the 2000 opening

of its giant and still eye-catching International Terminal.

The distinct facility with its impressive glass faade, spacious lobby and

rail station is still the largest international terminal in North America and

provides a fitting welcome to San Francisco for nearly one million passengers

that pass through the gateway on international flights each year.

It has stood the test of time well and much better than some of the

rest of us, jokes airport director, John Martin, who oversaw its

construction and opening in the early days of his leadership.Its opening as the major project of a $3 billion construction

programme was a major milestone for the airport. It is a very efficient

building and changed the way we operated and the services we could

provide. The airport has always been good at customer service. When

we opened the international terminal, we became great.

But these days you simply cannot talk about SFO without thinking

about Martin, the airports longest serving aviation director after

clocking up 18 years in the hot seat, its new-look Terminal 2 or

highlighting one or two of its impressive green credentials.

Sense of placeThe modest Martin doesnt often speak about his longevity at SFO

because he doesnt really like talking about himself. It is, however,

something he is very proud of, and his love for the city, culture and its

people clearly came across in my time with him.

Indeed, Martin has gone out of his way to create a sense of place at SFO

and ensure that little pieces of San Francisco can be found throughout his

gateway in the shape of familiar shops, restaurants and services.

These have included opening versions of popular downtown shops

and restaurants in its terminals and encouraging local artists to display

their works as part of its long-established public arts programme.

Martin notes that he is actually a big supporter of pop-up shops,

and reveals that one of the reasons behind this is because he feels thatthey provide an inexpensive way for small, local businesses to come in

and test the market.

It is an ideal way to see if it is right for them before possibly setting

up a permanent outlet, enthuses Martin. We have a retailer who

started out with a little chocolate truck 30 years ago, and now has four

large retail locations across the airport.

This is the sort of thing we want to encourage, as it helps local

businesses and helps create a sense of place.

After car parking and rental car activity, which together make over

$160 million in revenue per annum, concession income is the next

biggest revenue earner for SFO duty free sales bring in $27 million per

annum alone and F&B around $10 million.

In fact, SFOs spend per passenger is one of the highest in

the US with the average customer in Terminal 2 spending around

San Francisco International Airports long-serving boss, John Martin, talks to Joe Bates about

infrastructure development, traffic growth and his gateways impressive green credentials.

Fantasticjourney


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History in the makingTalking briefly about his long association with SFO, Martin says: When I

took the job in 1995, never in the world did I think I would still be here

18 years later! Its been an extraordinary ride with an extraordinary team.

Its the people that keep me here. We have a great culture where

everyone who works at the airport is really committed to providing

service and facilities.

He notes that how he spends his time has changed dramatically

since the early days, when he was preoccupied with construction of the

biggest public works programme in the US [the International Terminal,

extending the Bay Area Rapid Transport (BART) system to SFO and new

parking garages].

The first six years was all about keeping the airport open during

construction. Then came 9/11 and things changed radically, explains

Martin. We suddenly lost 40% of our traffic and the focus was very

much on cost-cutting, maximising our concession revenues while

maintaining customer service levels and getting new air services into

the airport.

Cost-cutting included laying off nearly 30% of his staff at the San

Francisco Airports Commission, about 130 people in total, which Martinsays was a tough but necessary business decision to keep SFOs cost

structure down.

The situation was not helped by United filing for bankruptcy

in the aftermath of 9/11 or the fact that Southwest Airlines had

pulled the plug on services to SFO and moved to Oakland six months

before the terror attacks, citing the airports high costs as the

reason for its exit.

Martin is the first to admit that these were difficult days for

SFO, which had little low-cost carrier traffic at the time, so saw its traffic

figures drop from an all-time high of 41 million in 1999 to

26.5 million in 2002 before starting the long road to recovery.

Attracting low-cost carriers became a huge marketing emphasis for

us and landing Virgin America in 2007, which is headquartered in San

Francisco was a huge deal for the airport in terms of our traffic

Indeed, Martin goes as far as to say that the 2007 arrival of Virgin

America was a game changer for SFO, pointing out that whenever

the carrier enters a new market, airline fees on average drop by around

25% and traffic rises by 22%.

JetBlue and Southwest soon came online, fares dropped and

passenger numbers began to increase. As a result weve been one

of the fastest growing airports in the country in the last five years,

he says.

So, you could say Ive seen the good times, the bad times and

the great times during my time at San Francisco.

Greatest achievementsWhat does he count as SFOs greatest achievements under his leadership?

Without hesitation, Martin states that he is most proud of building a

corporate culture where the employees are dedicated to providing

exceptional service.

Adding: On a physical level, the opening of the International

Terminal which is still very much the centrepiece of the airport

and will be for years to come because of international traffic growth

is the highlight, closely followed by Terminal 2.I am also very proud of our record when it comes to the

environment and sustainable development.

Although he didnt mention it, reducing SFOs costs per enplanement

by 30% over a four year period was also a significant achievement.

He also gets great satisfaction from the recent upturn in

passenger traffic at the airport. In fact, such has been SFOs growth

in recent years that the airport equalled its previous best annual total

of 41mppa in 2011, and handled a record 44.5 million passengers

in 2012.

Green issuesIf Martin is reluctant to talk about himself, he is exactly the opposite

about SFOs environmental record, as he believes that the airport

is one of greenest in the US and a considerate neighbour to

AIRPORT REPORT: SAN FRANCIS


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http://www.vhb.com/http://www.flysfo.com/sustainability


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The gateways environmental roots can arguably be traced back

to 1995 when it decided to build todays AirTrain people mover

system to eliminate the need for rental car buses, and start

introducing CNG-powered ground support vehicles.

He lists the fact that SFO composts 77% of its waste products; that

all new buildings have Gold or Platinum rated Leadership in Energy

and Environmental Design (LEED) certification; and that the airports

CO2emissions are 34% below its 1990 levels, as the highlights of

SFOs green achievements.

SFOs commitment to the environment extends to insisting that all

door-to-door vans, hotel shuttle buses and taxicabs serving the

airport use green fuels.

And it has shown the way by converting 60% of its own fleet

of vehicles to alternative fuels and is aiming for 100% within the

next few years.

The culture of our organisation is that we want to make net

contributions to the environment. We want to be an environmental

leader and our staff embrace this philosophy and genuinely want togo home and tell their kids that we are a green pioneer, says Martin.

We have been doing this for a long time now, so it is not a

passing fad or something we are doing to win political favour. We also

like to share our environmental knowledge and standards with other

airports so that they can benefit from our experiences.

ACI-NA recently honoured SFO with its Environmental Management

Award for its Climate Action Plan, in recognition of its efforts to reduce

its annual greenhouse emissions.

People powerOn the SFO website, Martin claims that he loves the pride his staff

and the public have in the airport.

This is certainly something that the airport commission has

worked on over the years according to Martin who recognises that

I believe that our people, SFOs airline customers and

concessionaires take real pride in providing exceptional levels of service

to customers and the airports reputation for breaking new ground in

environmental achievements, security and customer service.

We have worked hard to create a sense of passion and

commitment for the mission. We work with our employees to create a

vision for the airport. It is not my vision, it is the vision of the airport

staff and the organisation. The high-level goals are not my goals, they

are ones created by my staff. They have a buy-in, and ownership if you

like, to make the airport truly exceptional.

Strategic planHe is quick to point out that much of SFOs Reaching for No.1

strategic plan is based on feedback from staff during committee

meetings, which looked at best practice initiatives across the

world and how they could be adopted and developed at

the airport.

In Martins words, the catalyst for the plan was the need forSFO to re-envision itself and set a new vision, mission and

goals for passenger services, security, safety and the working

environment for employees.

Basically, our vision is to be an exceptional airport and

service for our community, he tells Airport World. We want to

be one of the worlds top rated airports for customer service.

We want to be a great place to work and an environmental

leader among airports.

Arguably, SFO has already achieved at least one of these goals

after being named The healthiest place to work in San Francisco in a

San Francisco Business Timessurvey, beating mighty competition on

the way such as Oracle and Google.

A key factor of the strategic plan, according to Martin, was the

introduction of a new guest service mentality in a bid to enhance

AIRPORT REPORT: SAN FRANCIS


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He explains: We want to treat passengers as not merely our

customers but as our guests. This has meant learning from the hotel

visitor industry and adapting things that it does well, such as

concierge services, to the airport environment.

It has also meant providing amenities and services that exceed

expectations, such as Terminal 2, which offers the facilities and

services you would expect to find in a trendy hotel in downtown San

Francisco, but not at a busy international airport.

New infrastructureMartin calls the newly renovated Terminal 2, redesigned to fit

the business model of Virgin America and fellow occupant

American Airlines, something special.

Its $383 million upgrade actually resulted in the facility

becoming the nations first LEED Gold-registered terminal and

one of the most modern and sustainable facilities in the US a

remarkable achievement of a complex that originally opened

for business in 1954.

Todays new, improved 640,000sq ft version designed and

built through a partnership between Turner Construction and

Gensler (associate architects are Michael Willis and Hamilton-Aitken)

boasts 14 gates, 30,793sq ft of retail and concession space and thecapacity to handle up to 5.5mppa.

Martin believes that some of the services and facilities that help

T2 break the mould are its local foodcourt with offerings from celebrity

chefs, Tyler Florence and Cat Cora; dozens of works of art from local and

international artists; a childrens play area; luxurious restrooms; free

Wi-Fi and laptop plug-in stations; club-like seating near the gates; and

dehydration stations where visitors can refill water bottles.

He reveals that the challenge ahead for the airport is to do even

better in the soon-to-be completed Boarding Area E expansion of

Terminal 3.

The upgrade of the old American Airlines area of Terminal 3 part

of the next $5 billion development phase at SFO is actually due

for completion in January 2014, allowing for United to move in and

work to start on the phased multi-year remodelling of the rest of

When finished in 2020, the new-look Terminal 3 will become

Uniteds base at SFO and have facilities such as a single new central

security checkpoint, a range of new concessions and some of the

customer friendly facilities found in T2.

Also on the agenda under the 10-year master plan are proposals

to tear down and rebuild Terminal 1, and enhance SFOs appeal to

transit passengers with the construction of a new four-star hotel in

front of the International Terminal.

Like at DFW with the Marriott/Hilton, SFO plans financing and

building the hotel itself and then awarding a long-term operating

lease to a well-known hotel chain. The 10-storey, 450-room facility

will be built on the site of an existing car park.

Another addition will be a new air traffic control (ATC) tower,

which is currently being built between terminals 1 and 2. The complex

is expected to open in 2015 and replace the existing tower on top

of T2 that has served SFO since 1954.

Martin notes that the airport is also planning to improve the retail

and F&B programme in the International Terminal with more unique

offerings, while simple things such as piping music into restrooms is

expected to enhance its overall ambience.

On-time performanceOne thing that isnt on the cards is a new runway Martin

laughingly notes that he tried to get one 15 years ago although

SFO has high hopes that the delays caused by low cloud and fog

on 30% of all mornings will be reduced by the recent introduction of

new FAA-approved arrivals procedures.

Indeed, Martin says the procedures that effectively mean

SFO can still use both parallel runways for landings during

low cloud could eventually boost the airports arrivals capacity

by up to 20%.

He adds that the introduction of NextGen technology should also

help the airport improve its on-time performance record.

Always looking to make improvements clearly goes with the

job, and nobody knows this better than Martin, who appears to

remain as enthusiastic about the challenges ahead as the day he

RPORT REPORT: SAN FRANCISCO

Image courtesy of Gensler/Nic Lehoux.


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http://www.gilardoni.it/


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RPORT REPORT: BAHRAIN

Its been an interesting year for Bahrain International Airport (BIA),

to say the least. Operated by Bahrain Airport Company (BAC)

since 2010, Gulf Airs main base has shifted its development

plans following the national carriers restructuring over the

past 12 months.

Mohamed Yousif Al-Binfalah, who replaced Gordon Dewar as

the CEO of BAC in September 2012, tells Airport Worldthat the airport

is in desperate need of more capacity.

The existing infrastructure dates back to 1994, he says. That

was when the terminal building was constructed, designed for four

million passengers.

Now, the airports traffic is more than twice that, seeing

8.47 million passengers in 2012 after reaching close to nine million

in 2010 stretching the terminal beyond its limits.

Problem-solvingAs a result, BAC and its holding company, Bahrain Mumtalakat, have

devised a three-step plan to improve the situation.In the short-term, around $18 million will be invested to renovate

and replace dated infrastructure assets.

Al-Binfalah explains: Weve started a number of tendering

projects and we are about to place some of the orders.

These projects, expected to be completed in 2015, include

installing seven new air bridges; replacing flooring in arrivals; and

implementing security-related infrastructure, including detection

and CCTV equipment.

The next phase aims to invest $1 billion in expanding the terminal

building an additional 40,000sqm could be added and its related

amenities over the next five years.

While plans appear to lack details at the moment, Al-Binfalah says

the development will include capacity for an additional 13.5 million

passengers per year extra car parking state-of-the-art airport

The need to invest in the existing infrastructure is not a luxury.

Its not a vanity. Its a need that has to be fulfilled, he asserts.

Finally, he states the Bahraini government has decided to build

a brand new airport and is deciding between two locations.

The existing capacity constraints require the ambitious plans to

come to fruition by 2030.

Al-Binfalah suggests BIA will suffer if the situation continues for

much longer. Bahrain is known for its efficiency and friendliness and

weve been internationally recognised for this, he notes.

We are currently handling over eight million passengers per

annum, so there is a lot of pressure on all touch points at the airport.

As a result, some of the passenger experience elements are not what

we would like to have.

Filling the gapCurrently, BAC has direct flights to more than 35 destinations, with

some operating as far as Washington DC, London and Hong Kong.

In 2012, the airport welcomed new flights from Felix Airways,Safi Airways and Mihin Lanka Airways, as well as the introduction of

the Boeing 747-8F on British Airways and Cargoluxs freight services.

Additionally, several routes have seen increased frequencies, such

as Jet Airways Bahrain-Kochi operations, which commenced third

weekly flights in October 2012.

The most significant developments this year have come from

Bahrains national carrier, Gulf Air.

After announcing a major restructuring last December, the airline

has seen alterations throughout its network, fleet and workforce.

Following the resumption of flights to Iraq in September 2012,

Gulf Air has increased services to several destinations in the past year,

including Sanaa, Chennai, Jeddah and most recently Pakistan.

The restructuring further saw the cancellation of several

financially unviable routes from Bahrain including Colombo

Caroline Cook spoke to Mohamed Yousif Al-Binfalah, CEO of Bahrain Airport Company, about

the airports development plans.

Busy

Bahrain


21/26

Al-Binfalah comments: We are expecting to add at least three

new destinations next year. We would like to focus on Asia and the Far

East, moving forward.

We are picking up on a new strategy to try and attract airlines to

serve the discontinued destinations.

He continues: We are also talking to airlines in China, Malaysia,

Indonesia, Thailand and India and maintain a constant dialogue with

home carrier, Gulf Air, about developing their network. In terms of

Gulf Air, we are particularly interested in exploring how they can serve

new destinations in Asia.

When asked if BAC sought destinations to the west, Al-Binfalah replies:

Its very difficult to attract services when the three major carriers Etihad,

Emirates and Qatar Airways are quite aggressive in serving them.

Nevertheless, we have connectivity to the US through United;

to Europe through British Airways, KLM and Lufthansa; and we are

still in dialogue with other carriers to explore how we can attract them

to Bahrain.

There is no denying that Al-Binfalah and his team have high hopes

for BAC and the future of BIA, despite the fact that the airports

long-term future lies on a new site elsewhere.

Indeed, BACs determination to ensure that service standards

at the existing gateway dont suffer in the meantime has resulted

in a big push to raise customer satisfaction levels at the airport.

And the initiative appears to be paying off, as Bahrain has been

named among the top five airports in the Middle East for the last two

years in ACIs Airport Service Quality (ASQ) customer satisfaction survey.

Furthermore, its employees were voted as the Best Airport Staff

in the Middle East in the 2013 SKYTRAX World Airport Awards

earlier this year.According to Al-Binfalah, the SKYTRAX award recognises BIA as a

world-class airport providing efficient, secure, safe and comfortable

travel experiences within friendly surroundings.

He insists that both honours are a testament to the professionalism

of BACs staff and its partners in providing excellence in passenger

services in line with the companys mission to offer passengers an

exceptional travel experience.

We are located in a part of the world which is known for its warmth

and hospitality and therefore take customer service very seriously,

enthuses Al-Binfalah.

We may not be the biggest or best-known airport in the world but this

doesnt stop us from aiming to lead the way in terms of customer service.

Sounds like an ambition that is bound to win favour with the

ever-increasing number of passengers that are set to pass through

AIRPORT REPORT: BAHR

We are expecting to add at least

three new destinations next year.

We would like to focus on Asia

and the Far East, moving forward


22/26

RPORT REPORT: SYDNEY

It is not often that airports feature in election campaigns, but in

a year that Australia had no less than three prime ministers,

Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport found itself at the heart of local

and federal politics.

The debate about whether Sydney needs a brand new 24-hour

airport and where that might be located has been around for

years, but it shot back towards the top of the political agenda

during 2013.

Supporters of a new airport argue that Sydneys growth means

the current airport, which operates under an 11pm6am curfew and

a restriction of 500,000 aircraft movements a year, will be unable to

meet demand in the coming decades.

The location of any new airport is always a political hot potato,

but the current front runner is Badgerys Creek, 51km west of

Sydneys Central Business District (CBD).

Supporters of the project argue that the area could use the jobs

boost a new airport would bring, and handily, the government already

owns the land there on which a new gateway could be built. Prime

Minister, Tony Abbott, has publicly backed the Badgerys Creek site.

Now, it is believed that Australias Transport Minister, Warren

Truss, is aiming to make a decision on any proposed new airport in

early 2014. Truss has been widely quoted in the media as saying he

believes a 24-hour airport will be required before 2027.

A different viewWhile some Australian politicians might be backing a new airport

project, the operator of Kingsford Smith, Sydney Airports

Corporation (SAC), which also has the right to operate any new

gateway, believes the current airport has plenty of scope for growth

and expansion. It argues a new gateway would not be required for

another three decades.

The operator submitted its master plan to the government in

December, outlining its belief that it will be able to service Sydneys

air transport needs until 2045.

The master plan forecasts passenger numbers rising to

74mppa by 2033, with aircraft movements increasing to close

to 410 000 The airport operator argues this is well within its

Sydney Airport CEO, Kerrie Mather, is quick to point out the

facilitys scope for future growth.

Weve got capacity to serve the very strong growth potential

we are seeing here in the market. There has been a lot of

misinformation about our capacity, given the debate around the

second airport, but a number of government studies have been

done in recent years confirming Sydney Airport has capacity for the

foreseeable future, Mather tells Airport World.

We have a number of operational restrictions that were put in

place to alleviate noise they were put in place 20 or 30 years ago

well before new-generation aircraft that are having a very

favourable outcome on noise. They dont reflect modern aviation,

she adds.

Industry changesThe CEO, who has headed up the listed Sydney Airport Holdings Limited

since 2002 and has been managing director and chief executive of

Sydney Airport since June 2011, believes structural changes in the

industry have transformed the way the gateway operates.

Mather says new-generation aircraft will allow Sydney to meet

demand, even with current restrictions in place, well into the future.

The way our capacity is being used at the airport is fundamentally

different to the way it was used five years ago, or even 10 years ago. It

is unique because we are an O&D market, she says.

We are not a hub we are the end of the line of major long-haul

routes. If you look at those operation restrictions, we have close to

500,000 movements per year, and we are using about 320,000 of

those. That hasnt varied a lot over the past 10 years because those

new-generation aircraft and the low-cost carriers are carrying

While the politicians are talking about a new

airport for Sydney, Kerrie Mather, CEO of the

existing one, is getting down to the business

of running Australias busiest gateway.

Lucy Siebert reports.

Readyand willing


23/26

AIRPORT REPORT: SYD

Highlighting this is the fact Sydney was the first airport to

receive a commercial A380 service in 2007 with Singapore

Airlines, and it now handles 120 super jumbo services a week.

Mather says this type of investment from the airports airlines

bring major benefits for all stakeholders.

The airlines are all investing significant amounts in this

new-generation technology, which is driving better outcomes for

them with more fuel-efficient operations; for passengers, its driving

great product experience; and for the community, it leads to better

noise outcomes, she says.

Mather continues by pointing out the impact that the growth in

low-cost carriers, including Jetstar, Tigerair Australia and AirAsia X,

are having on Sydneys operations.

Meanwhile the QantasEmirates partnership has also altered

scheduling at Sydney, with the Flying Kangaroo now hubbingthrough Dubai instead of Hong Kong or Singapore.

Once upon a time, when Heathrow via Asia was a major hub,

most of our growth was into our peak, but we are finding that is

moving throughout the day. And the LCCs are increasing their

operations in the off-peak as they are serving the markets at

different times of day, she says.

Expansion plansWith Sydney Airport Corporation in no doubt Kingsford Smith

has sufficient capacity to meet the medium-term demand,

its master plan includes a number of proposed schemes aimed

at expanding facilities and improving the airport experience

for passengers.

The main one of these is integrating the domestic and

Mather explains: The concept creates two integrated precincts

each accommodating international, domestic, regional and

freight. It is actually a mixing of international and domestic, and

will improve the airport experience and make our operations

more efficient.

She adds that the plan is possible as there is no overlap

between the three busiest international hours and the four busiest

domestic hours of the day.There are significant periods of the day the airport is relatively

empty so the mixing of terminals provides a better balance of

activity between the two precincts, she adds.

Transport headachesWhile the city of Sydney is known for its sweeping harbour views

and beach-side living, it is also famous for its transport woes.

The airport is no exception. While it is just eight kilometres

from the CBD and its fast and efficient airport rail link is

popular with passengers, the gateway still suffers from road

transport congestion and delays.To address this, the master plan foresees the creation of an

integrated ground transport system and an upgrade of major

roads and intersections around the airport.

We are working closely with the government on some of

the issues to improve the traffic flow to the airport. The government

has now prioritised Sydney Airport in terms of ensuring the

transport links, investment in and expansion of the major

intersections are one of the highest priorities, says Mather.

Under the plan, there will be a new one-way ring road for

the T2 and T3 precinct, and a new free-flowing road through the

T1 precinct, as well as a new city-bound exit by 2018.

The airport claims this will increase green light time at key

intersections by up to a third. There will also be a new bus and

multipurpose parking facilities.

Ongoing investmentAnd despite the uncertainty surrounding the future of

Sydneys airport system, Mather points out the operator

has continually made significant investments over the

past decade.

Weve invested A$2 billion in capacity and improved

facilities over the past 10 years and we will continue to invest

significantly in enhancements, she enthuses.The investments in recent years include the significant

expansion of Terminal 1, which completed in 2010, and

a significant capacity expansion of nearly 30% at

Terminal 2.

And during December it opened a new domestic two-level

car park, creating an additional 964 car parking spaces.

This brings total car parking across the airport to 16,700.

So while there are question marks around what the future might

hold for Sydney Airport, Mather is adamant that the current

gateway will continue to play its central role in Australias

economy for years to come.

Every airport plays a vital role in the economy but Sydney

has a particularly vital role in facilitating tourism and providing

all the associated infrastructure for tourism and growing the


24/26

SPECIAL REPORT: PEOPLE/HUMAN RESOURCES

When you have a staff of 2,600 made up of 40 nationalities

working to serve every nationality under the sun, the

importance of recognising and respecting cultural

differences could not be higher.

This is an average day for London Gatwicks staff. The challenges faced

by them are many and unpredictable, but the airport is going all out to

ensure its team is well equipped to cope.

Since leaving the BAA stable in 2009 after its purchase by Global

Infrastructure Partners (GIP), London Gatwick has upped the ante on staff

training and HR issues as it competes head-to-head with LondonHeathrow to become Londons airport of choice.

GIPs results-driven approach has seen London Gatwick develop a stronger

corporate culture and adopt a new, more customer-focused philosophy.

Leading the change in terms of staff approach is Tina Oakley,

appointed as HR director of London Gatwick in September 2010. She

joined the airport from P&O Ferries where she was HR director, but is no

stranger to the unique nuances of the aviation sector, having clocked up

26 years working for British Airways in a variety of operational, customer

service, commercial and HR roles.

Since coming onboard at London Gatwick, Oakley has introduced new

staff training schemes, a new look and helped the airport define its vision

and ambition for the future.

The philosophy we have here is about treating every customer and

employee as an individual and recognising that everyone is different;

their reasons for travelling and working will be different, Oakley stresses.

Turn It UpLondon Gatwick introduced its Turn It Up staff training programme to

frontline security teams last autumn, with a view to making the journeythrough security less stressful and more human.

Our Turn It Up training focused on helping our people to recognise the

individual differences of customers. We taught them to look for body language

and read individual needs. Its about altering your style, Oakley explains.

Turn It Up proved such a success that London Gatwick is now rolling it

out elsewhere, including to those that work with passengers with reduced

mobility, car park staff, and even third party providers.

Since the GIP buy-out, staff training has been a core element of London

Gatwicks pursuit of improved operations and key performance indicators.

Tina Oakley, HR director of London Gatwick, talks to Sarah McCay about the airports new

corporate culture and its positive impact on the passenger experience.

Culture club



25/26


When GIP first took over, the focus was on operational excellence.

Now we have that as a bedrock, we are looking more at the passengerexperience, reveals Oakley.

London Gatwick is now a very energetic, fast-paced environment

focused on competing and wanting to win. We are very performance-based.

All of our staff now have an appraisal twice a year and get messages on how

they are performing that was a first for London Gatwick.

As well as the new appraisals system and the Turn It Up programme,

London Gatwick also operates an on-the-job mentoring scheme.

Frontline staff are assigned to a team leader who offers support in terms

of development and needs for the business. Reinforcement, while it might

happen in a training facility, also happens on the job, Oakley explains.

Her team also works closely with third party service providers. The

airports Rhythm of Gatwick programme is about putting our values out

across the airport with third parties, enthuses Oakley.

Their staff are key to making sure everyone is in tune with where

Gatwick wants to be. Retail operators also want us to run the Turn It Up

programme for them. We are taking it step by step across the campus.

Language barrierCommunication is key and all members of the London Gatwick team have

to speak a high level of English. Some members of the concierge staff can

speak up to 30 languages.

Technology is another tool used to help overcome the language barrier

and some frontline staff now carry iPads.Weve got iPads around the building and people can self-serve; but

we also feel strongly that you do need that people element, so it is a

combination of the two, explains Oakley. The iPads are used in certain

circumstances, but the human element is key. We like to think that we are

able to host our passengers as guests as they come through.

London Gatwick also has Google Maps for the airport and a lot of

the passengers who are tuned into technology use these to help them

navigate around.

New lookIn addition to a new staff ethos, London Gatwick has also unveiled a new

wardrobe of staff uniforms, inspired by employee feedback.

Stylish but designed to be fit for purpose, the new 21-piece collection

was designed to stand out and give staff and passengers the feel of

The new uniform is teal and purple in colour and designed to look

more approachable, less like a security uniform, says Oakley. Namebadges have been added to maximise the approachability of all staff.

The new uniform is the result of a 12-month project that gained the

feedback of 1,400 airport employees who were asked for their comments

on their clothing needs and invited to vote on their favourite designs.

Investors in peopleLondon Gatwicks HR success can be easily seen throughout the terminal.

However, if further evidence was required of how the new corporate

culture is working then the airports recent Investors in People (IiP) 2013

status is a testament to how programmes such as Turn It Up are

contributing to the success of the organisation.

When I first arrived, there was a survey that showed our relationship with

our people was slightly wanting, admits Oakley. After getting that information

we put a real focus on people leadership and making that a way of life, so when

we came to be benchmarked we were successful in getting accreditation, but

more delighted to have changed our relationship with our people.

The IiP standard is defined and set by business leaders, based on

39 must-haves that organisations measure up against. IiP accreditation

covers everything from business planning and leadership, to

management effectiveness and performance measurement.

However, now London Gatwick has IiP status, it is not sitting back. In fact,

Oakley and the team are now going for the Best Companies survey to benchmar

again. The aim is to keep moving the bar further and further, admits Oakley.London Gatwick also uses events such as the London 2012 Olympics

as a spearhead for change and improvement.

We had eight different organisations working together as a team to

make sure those coming through [for the Olympics] had a great

experience. It was great to be part of that, she says.

Afterwards, we look at the whole picture and learn from it so we are even

better the next time. We are good at looking forward here. There are always

other things around the corner and so we look at the next challenge.

Looking ahead, London Gatwick has its eyes on the prize and HR is to play

a central role in achieving its ambitions, says Oakley.Todays London Gatwick

is change-focused, energetic and very competitive with a strong vision of

where we are going. I think most people would say its a very exciting time at

Gatwick as there is literally so much happening, she muses.

Our focus is on people We recognise that customers do have a



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Airport World 6 2013

Now available online

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The magazine of the Airports Council International

In this issue

In the spotlight:People/Human resources

Airports:Bahrain, San Francisco & Sydney

Special report:Retail innovation

Plus:IT trends, security & the environment

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airport world, issue 6, 2013

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