Francois Bourienne, Commercial Director, Glasgow Airport: “To be highly commended by our peers is a tremendous honour. It confirms that our ongoing efforts in route development, providing excellent customer service, and continued investment, are well placed. It is also testament to the efforts of the 5,000 people who work tirelessly to ensure Glasgow Airport continues to deliver for the city and for Scotland.”
2014 marked a real step-change both for Glasgow Airport and for the city itself. The year was punctuated by a series of major events, including the 2014 Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup, and the airport’s successes in terms of route growth, terminal investment, and sustainable development, led to it being commended in the ‘5-10 million passenger’ category at this year’s ACI EUROPE Best Airport Awards. Francois Bourienne, Commercial Director, Glasgow Airport, spoke to Ross Falconer.
The eyes of the world were on Glasgow last year, when it hosted a series of major international events including the Commonwealth Games, the MTV European Music Awards, and the Ryder Cup. Acutely aware of the role it had to play in welcoming hundreds of thousands of visitors to the city, Glasgow Airport ensured it was ready to play its part by undertaking a £20 million (€28m) investment programme.
Importantly, the airport has built on the success of last year and has recorded double-digit growth in passenger numbers every month since November 2014. “We expect our passenger numbers for 2015 to step comfortably above eight million, returning us to pre-recession levels,” Francois Bourienne, Commercial Director, Glasgow Airport, commented. Indeed, it was among Europe’s fastest-growing airports in the first half of 2015 (+13.8%).
Glasgow Airport won praise from the ACI EUROPE Best Airport Awards judges for “route growth, terminal investment, quality standards, and sustainable development”. “To be highly commended by our peers is a tremendous honour,” Bourienne stated. “It confirms that our ongoing efforts in route development, providing excellent customer service, and continued investment, are well placed. It is also testament to the efforts of the 5,000 people who work tirelessly to ensure Glasgow Airport continues to deliver for the city and for Scotland.”
Route development is an area in which the airport has enjoyed considerable success over the past 12 months. “We work closely with our city and national partners to provide customers with a choice of destinations and deliver the services they demand,” Bourienne explained. “In 2015 alone, we will launch 22 new routes and services including direct flights to Prague, Budapest, Bordeaux, Las Vegas, and Halifax, Nova Scotia.”
The £20 million (€28m) investment programme in 2014 saw the main terminal building undergo a major overhaul. The airport recently completed a £3 million (€4m) extension to one of its three piers in order to accommodate new airlines and services, and work has commenced on a multi-million pound upgrade to its retail and F&B facilities.
As the airport grows, it continues to work together with its partners to ensure it does so responsibly. “Our sustainability strategy has seen us make great strides towards reducing our carbon footprint and improving our waste management. Since 2010 we have increased recycling by 42%, and in 2014 none of our waste was sent to landfill – 90% was recycled and the other 10% went into creating Refuge Derived Fuel,” Bourienne added.
New routes and passenger growth
Traditionally, Glasgow Airport has had a strong track record in long-haul services due to its large catchment area of 2.3 million, and with 18 such routes it is Scotland’s principal long-haul airport. “We want to consolidate that position and add further routes such as WestJet’s daily, direct flights to Halifax, Nova Scotia, which took off from Glasgow in May 2015,” Bourienne said.
Strengthening European connectivity also continues to be a priority and the airport works closely with its city and regional partners to develop compelling propositions for airlines. Glasgow Airport welcomed Ryanair for the first time in October 2014, which together with Jet2.com, easyJet, and Wizz Air, has helped to significantly enhance Glasgow’s connectivity with key European cities including Prague, Budapest, Milan, Barcelona, and Rome.
“Our success in securing new routes has translated into passenger growth and the challenge, as always, will be to maintain this pattern. It is important to note that we have enjoyed sustained passenger growth since January 2011,” Bourienne added.
Looking ahead, Glasgow Airport is cognisant that growing its route network will not in itself ensure continued success. Like all service-oriented businesses, much of the airport’s reputation depends on its staff. Since the launch of its Customer Charter in 2012, Glasgow Airport has been on a journey to improve the customer experience and create a ‘one airport’ culture, involving all partners in delivering consistently high levels of service. Over 2,500 staff have received customer service training. Glasgow Airport has recorded four consecutive years of growth and expects passenger numbers for 2015 to comfortably exceed eight million, putting it on track to achieve nine million. “We will certainly be seeking to go one step further next year and secure the crown of best airport in the ‘5-10 million passenger’ category. It would mean so much to everyone at the airport who has worked so hard to deliver success in recent years,” Bourienne concluded.
