Operations

European Airport trends 2009

European Airport trends 2009

The worst may be over: 50+ airports report growth in August. By Ralph Anker, Editor, anna.aero.

Solar power: the next safe solution for runway lighting?

Efficiencies in solar and solar LED lighting – widely used at military and remote airfields – continues to advance and support a growing number of commercial airports for specific runway applications. Louise Driscoll spoke to a UK airport using the technology, an airline pilot and a leading supplier of solar power to assess how it could light the way to enhancing safety at airports.

Runway friction standards: finding a workable solution

Developing standards for assessing levels of runway friction is still a work in progress. ICAO’s International Friction Task Force and the FAA’s Takeoff and Landing Performance Assessment Aviation Rulemaking Committee (TALPA ARC) are currently engaged in standardising condition reporting towards the ICAO designations of good/medium/poor/nil runway condition assessments. Louise Driscoll reports.

LCCs dominate in Ireland and Northern Ireland

Traffic at airports in Ireland and Northern Ireland is dominated these days by low-cost carriers (LCCs). Given that Ireland is the home of Europe’s biggest and most successful (though not necessarily most loved) LCC, Ryanair, a strong presence at the airports is not surprising but the gradual disappearance of British Airways and the limited operations of many mainland European flag carriers reveals how dominant LCCs have become in the region…

Newcastle completes runway resurfacing ahead of schedule

Newcastle International Airport completed its £6 million (€7m) runway resurfacing project in March, five weeks ahead of schedule. Louise Driscoll spoke with Chris Davis, Newcastle’s head of operations, about the industry best practices taken to ensure the project’s success.