44-506394 Airport Operations Management L5 Assessment Brief (Task 1)

Assessment Brief

Global air passenger traffic is projected to grow at an annualized rate of 3.7% and forecast to double by 2037. This growth rate presents an impending worldwide capacity crisis across the aviation industry.

Airport capacity can be limited by several factors such as runways, terminals, aircraft parking stands, airspace, surface access or a combination of these components.

One of the major challenges facing airports are congestion (which translates into flight delays, exerting an additional load on the infrastructure capacity) and the ability to deal with future air traffic growth whilst maintaining high quality standards. Another important issue for airports is their profitability and their related ability to fund the investment in infrastructure needed to cope with increasing demand. Innovative solutions are required to maximise the available capacity prior to any expansion of the infrastructure.

You are tasked to provide a presentation with voice over (equivalent to 3,500-word) to critically evaluate the situation at a major international airport.

1. Provide background information about the airport, its traffic levels and composition and physical layout.
2. Identify and analyse any relevant issues that may affect the airport’s ability to manage capacity. These should include runways, terminals and aircraft parking stand layout, surface transport access, etc..
3. Identify and discuss potential solutions for these issues and make your recommendations.