Airbus is bringing a brand-new conference – New possibilities for airports by Airbus – devoted to how it is helping airports prepare for the future, to ACI Airport Exchange 2018. The conference will take place on 28 November and will bring together Airbus specialists alongside invited airport strategic planners. Airline keynote speakers will also be present. By Nick Preston
Airports are a crucial factor in the aviation ecosystem. Booming air travel demand on the one hand and constraints on airport infrastructure growth on the other, have thrown up new challenges that airports, airlines and aircraft manufacturers must address together, such as increasing airport congestion that stifles airline network expansion. It is with this spirit that Airbus participates in ACI Airport Exchange 2018 and looks forward to an exciting exchange.
David Dufrenois, VP Sales, Head of A220 Sales, Qatar and A380 Market Development, Airbus, will deliver a keynote address in the Airbus airport-devoted conference: New possibilities for airports by Airbus, which takes place at ACI Airport Exchange 2018.
11 Airbus experts will present specialist analysis and solutions at the conference:
• David Dufrenois, VP Sales, Head of A220 Sales, Qatar and A380 Market Development
• Laurent Boisson, Deputy Head of Air Transport Affairs
• Fabrice Valentin, Head of Market Research and Forecast
• Andrew Armitstead, Fleet and Network Profitability Director, Market Consulting
• Fabrice Villaume, Head of Digital Growth & Innovation
• Frederic Sutter, Digital Transformation Leader
• Willy Pierre Dupont, Director Airport Operations & Chairman IIWG, ICCAIA member to ICAO ADOP
• Peter Esteie, Head of Ground Operations
• Olivier Chauvet, Airside Operations Engineer
• Frederic Eychenne, Director Air Transport Affairs & Environmental Matters
• Sunny Guglani, A380 Product Marketing
The aircraft manufacturing giant will summarise its Global Market Forecast and traffic and fleet forecast with a focus on Europe. Airbus will also discuss balancing growing air traffic with increasing airport congestion, its view on airport congestion trends, new ICAO airport regulation and its benefits to airports, the future of ground handling, and airport digital solutions. There will be an interactive reveal of Airbus’ new application for airport demand & capacity modelling, plus a panel discussion between Airbus and a selection of airports on delivering a family of aircraft to meet market needs and sustainable air transport growth.
The Airbus product line offers a variety of aircraft, each contributing to airport development. This includes the A220 which will be represented at the conference by its largest European customer airBaltic, and the A380 which offers a unique solution to airport congestion due to its unmatched capacity.
Latest generation Airbus aircraft unlock new route opportunities
In addition to Airbus and airport experts, the conference will also feature presentations from airlines, including A220-300 launch customer airBaltic, and Aer Lingus, which currently has a fleet focused on Airbus aircraft and is an early adopter of the A321LR.
Lander Dominguez, Director of Fleet Assets, Aer Lingus, is expected to explain the Aer Lingus “fleet investment plan” subtitled in new IAG investor materials as: “an accelerated North Atlantic fleet growth opportunity.” The Irish airline operates A320 and A330 family aircraft and expects to begin services with its first A321LRs in 2019. Aer Lingus has already stated that it expects this latest, long-range iteration of Airbus’ largest narrow-body aircraft to open up new city pair opportunities.
Wolfgang Reuss, Senior Vice President, Network Planning at airBaltic, will discuss what the airline’s decision to move to an all-A220-300 fleet could mean for airports. The Latvian carrier was the A220-300 launch customer and is currently the largest operator of this variant. It expects to have 14 A220-300s in its fleet by the end of 2018. In May, airBaltic announced a firm order for 30 A220-300s, with options for an additional 30 aircraft. This is in addition to its existing order for 20 A220-300s. Reuss is likely to cover how the A220’s performance might open up new route opportunities, and if its in-service noise and emission benefits have exceeded expectations.
