Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
(BA) is currently in its third transatlantic alliance after links with United and US air-
lines failed.
The transient nature of airline alliances and their vulnerability poses a problem
for airport infrastructure planning and utilization. Alliance partners in global group-
ings have begun to request co-location in terminals at airports in order to gain econ-
omies of ground handling and ease of connectivity between flights. This has affected
a large number of major hub airports across the world. The fleet mix and nature of
operations is often not compatible with the planned usage and design of particular
aprons and terminals.
Airports can accommodate some change; but often there are losses in efficiency
regarding the use of infrastructure. This places further pressure on capacity. There is
now more of a need than ever before for flexible airport infrastructure planning to
maximize the use of capacity under a range of different alliance behaviour scenarios.
Global airlines?
It is uncertain whether or not alliances could provide a more sustainable airline net-
work. The continued development of global alliances depends upon national govern-
ments and their view of the benefits and drawbacks of multinational global airlines.
Global airlines may represent a more sustainable air service network for the world if
airlines coordinate the provision of air service capacity and create a network that
needs fewer larger aircraft operating, that in turn may reduce the fuel consumed and
emissions produced per revenue passenger kilometre. On the other hand, global air-
line competition may result in increased frequency competition between alliances
that may increase environmental and airport capacity impacts per revenue passenger
carried.
A further threat might be that global airlines will be able to play off one country
against another, so that some parts of the world become peripheral to the air service
network. Smaller nations might not receive an air service network that serves the eco-
nomic and political interest of their countries. New hub locations may be selected
according to airline interests, geographically skewing the economic benefits, and
environmental and social problems associated with airport development.
It is interesting to note that governments have allowed three airlines to have glo-
bal networks, these being integrated carriers Fedex, UPS and DHL. These airlines
offer express door-to-door service for freight. Clauses in the bilateral air-service agree-
ments related to freight are generally more open because countries do not have their
own integrated carriers and can see the economic benefits for their nation of being
included in the global network. Whether or not multinational global passenger air-
lines are permitted in the future depends upon whether governments lift regulation
of airline nationality and of air-service agreements, which is only likely if they per-
ceive the advantages to outweigh the disadvantages.
A
IRPORT
COMMERCIALIZATION
AND
PRIVATIZATION
Airports have traditionally been regarded as facilities to be publicly owned, operated
and subsidized. Since the mid 1980s, there has been a significant shift in many
countries towards airport development being funded by the private sector and being
