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SUMMER/AUTUMN 2017
AGS
AIRLINE
GROUND
SERVICES
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com
IGHC HEADS GRAPPLING EGYPT AND INNOVATION: IMPROVING
OVER TO WITH GREEN MIDDLE EAST THE PASSENGER
BANGKOK ISSUES REPORTS EXPERIENCE
FROM LANDING TO TAKE-OFF: WE CARE Swissport International Ltd. Ground Handling, Cargo Services, Aircraft Maintenance, 30th IATA Ground Handling Conference Fuelling, Executive Aviation, Aviation Security May 21 - 24, 2017 • Bangkok, Thailand WWW.SWISSPORT.COM Come and visit us at Stand 23-24
EDITOR’S LETTER | SUMMER/AUTUMN 2017
LETTER FROM AGS
SUMMER/AUTUMN 2017
AIRLINE
GROUND
SERVICES
THE EDITOR www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com
IGHC HEADS GRAPPLING EGYPT AND INNOVATION: IMPROVING
OVER TO WITH GREEN MIDDLE EAST THE PASSENGER
BANGKOK ISSUES REPORTS EXPERIENCE
H
ello and welcome to the Summer 2017 edition of Airline JAMES SHERIDAN
Ground Services. Chairman
james@evaint.com
This issue features an introduction to the IATA
Ground Handling Conference taking place in Bangkok PARVEEN RAJA
Publisher
in May, with details of the programme and what parveen@evaint.com
delegates can expect from the event plus an interview with host
MEGAN RAMSAY
airline Thai Airways.
Editor
IGHC brings together representatives from across the global meganlouiseramsay@gmail.com
aviation industry, providing a platform for intensive networking and
HARLEY KHAN
exchange of ideas, expertise and information. Among the topics for Head of Commercial
discussion this year is the new Standard Ground Handling Agreement harley@evaint.com
that is to be released in 2018. To find out more, turn to page 4. TOM WILLIS
Elsewhere in this edition of AGS: we look at developments in the Journalist
tom@evaint.com
Middle East region as a whole as well as considering the challenges
peculiar to Egypt’s ground handling industry. Other parts of the YASMIN LYDON
Events Coordinator
world covered this time around include Australia, where one yasmin@evaint.com
handler has had huge success; Singapore, where handler SATS has
GEMMA KEEN
opened an e-commerce hub; Ukraine, which is undergoing reforms
Events Coordinator
aimed at improving standards in ground handling; and the UK, gemma@evaint.com
home to Jet2.com – a carrier that recently decided to self-handle at
SHOBHANA PATEL
East Midlands Airport. Head of Finance
Readers will also find reports on refuelling (with a view to shobi@evaint.com
sustainability for the future), aircraft cleaning (inside and out) and, of
SHELDON PINK
course, our regular round-up of advances in technology for the various Creative Director
sheldon@evaint.com
sectors within the ground handling arena.
I hope you find plenty of interest in this issue – and I hope to see
Address changes and subscription orders to:
many of our readers at IGHC! Q circulation@evaint.com
ISSN 2040-476X
EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS
David Smith, Eugene Gerden, Chris Lewis,
Martin Courtenay
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www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com SUMMER/AUTUMN 2017 Airline Ground Services 1
CONTENTS | SUMMER/AUTUMN 2017
8
CONTENTS
4 IGHC heads for Bangkok
A preview of this year’s IATA Ground Handling Conference
8 Keeping standards high
We interview Usanee Sansingken, CEO and acting president at Thai Airways
12 "lSNGPPUIPMEMVDL TUSBUFHZ
and innovation
How Aerocare has grown in Australia
16 3PMMJOHXJUIUIFQVODIFT
Egypt’s struggle against security threats
20 1SPTQFSJUZBNJEUIFDPOmJDUT
A review of Middle Eastern developments
24 8IZ+FUDPNJTCVDLJOHUIFUSFOE
Gavin Marriott explains the benefits of self-handling
28 3FGVFMMFSTHSBQQMFXJUIHSFFOJTTVFT
The latest on environmental efforts in aviation
24
34 'PDVTPOUIFGVUVSF
36 Alex Hungate of SATS on the company’s ambitious plans
37 6LSBJOFDPOUJOVFTHSPVOE
IBOEMJOHSFGPSN
An update on progress
38 $MFBONBDIJOFT
Inside or out, aircraft must be kept spotless
46 *NQSPWJOHUIFQBTTFOHFSFYQFSJFODF
We look at various technological advances
54 *OEVTUSZVQEBUF
Our regular round-up of news
2 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com
IGHC PREVIEW
IGHC HEADS
FOR BANGKOK
I
The 30th IATA ATA head of ground operations more visible within the organisation
Joseph Suidan considers: “We – itself, changes in the industry are even
International Ground all of the key role-players in this more significant.
Handling Conference industry – are used to working “The airside of the airport is poised
(IGHC) will be held at the in a high-pressure, extremely on the crest of a wave of change,”
time-sensitive and ever-changing and Suidan says. In some countries, ramp
Centara Grand Hotel at developing working environment. The jobs are not being filled, causing an in-
CentralWorld in Bangkok, ground handling sector, while maybe creasing problem of handling aircraft
not so visible to the travelling public, in a timely and cost-effective manner.
from 21 to 24 May. It
is just as impacted by the changes that It is interesting that this reticence to
promises to address vital make this such a dynamic and exciting take up ramp jobs comes at a time
issues affecting our ever- industry to work in. when technology seems able to step
“From the IATA side on ground op- into the breach – autonomous cars
changing industry erations, we have brought to fruition a are starting to take their place on city
better structure that brings oversight streets, robot arms have been handling
of ground operations strategy, stand- delicate objects and placing delicate
ards and processes under the newly items with great precision for quite a
established Ground Operations Group number of years and battery-powered
or GOG. This new group comprises cars are entering the mainstream of or-
top-level representation from airlines dinary people’s commuting and pleas-
and ground handlers who can provide ure journeys.
far-reaching and insightful guidance How soon will it be before passen-
to our industry through IATA’s global ger boarding bridges dock themselves
network.” accurately at aircraft doors, and service
While the changes within IATA trucks arrive and station themselves in
ground operations are important in the correct sequence at the correct air-
that they make the ground ops sector craft service points? The technology is
4 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com
IGHC PREVIEW
HIGHLIGHTS
OF THE IGHC
PROGRAMME
Day 1
Business, Engagement and Devel-
opment – Get facts and figures on
the economic outlook and global
business opportunities in plenary
sessions. Afternoon workshops in-
clude what’s new in the SGHA for
2018 and other business develop-
ment topics.
Day 2
Enhanced Operations – Plenary
sessions cover ISAGO’s new model,
human factors and more. In an
afternoon Q&A speed-networking
session, you can discuss topics of
interest with experts, face-to-face.
Day 3
Innovation, Technology, Sustain-
ability – Are we ready to embrace
the tempting new technology so-
lutions on the airside? Find out
what’s in the pipeline and how
we’re getting ready.
there, it is growing ever cheaper and incidence of ground damage, on a
more reliable and – certainly in some worldwide scale, remains a huge worry
locations – there is a growing and ever to the sector. IGHC draws together
more pressing need to get the job done those whose remit is safety – and seeks
with ever fewer people. How are air- to provide some of the answers to the
lines, ground service providers and ramp’s ongoing problems.
airports preparing for this change?
IGHC’s technology-themed third day Topics on the agenda include:
will try to posit some answers to these • The new IGHC Innovator 2017
questions. award
• Meet the expert – your chance to
discuss a variety of ground opera-
tions topics with experts in the field
The airside of the airport is poised on a virtually one-on-one basis
on the crest of a wave of change • Rising stars – University students
IATA head of ground operations present their research work
Joseph Suidan • Is safety still first when handling
services are outsourced, or is price
the key?
• Technology at Work – automation,
robotics, drones, autonomous vehi-
AGENDA cles – how ready is the airside for
The cornerstone of the IGHC the latest advances in technology?
programme is safety – a subject at the • ISAGO: new model
heart of ground handling that should • Employee retention – new and ef-
never be overlooked. Whilst fatalities ficient ways of training people and
on the ramp are rare, nonetheless the retaining your human capital
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 5
IGHC PREVIEW
Æ In addition, with the upcoming re-
lease of the next version of the global
Standard Ground Handling Agree-
ment (SGHA) in 2018, it is expected
that many delegates will be wanting to
get the inside line on what is coming
at the first afternoon’s ‘It Takes Two to
Tango’ session on the SGHA.
The creation of GOG and its vari-
ous Ground Operations Technical Sub-
groups means that IGHC no longer
includes any voting of IGHC officers
or of changes to the AHM (Airport
Handling Manual) and IGOM (IATA
Ground Operations Manual).
Also this year, IATA is launching
its first IGHC Innovator awards for
ground operations to recognise inno- THE FUTURE
vation in service, systems and process-
ing, amongst others. The finalists will
be selected by a jury of industry ex- OF TRAINING
T
perts and IGHC delegates will be able hose attending the International Ground Handling Conference
to cast their vote for “the most innova- (IGHC) this year can visit the IATA booth to experience the new
tive innovator” throughout the event, virtual reality training modules on RampVR – the latest ‘plug-
with the winner being announced dur- and-play’ virtual reality training solution for ground operations.
ing the closing plenary session. RampVR combines high-spec virtual reality hardware and
software with IATA training for ground operations professionals so that theo-
retical knowledge can be backed up with effective practical training in a very
realistic environment, without disrupting active operations on the ramp.
Those who have attended Fully compliant with IATA standards as set out in the Airport Handling
the conference before will Manual (AHM) and IATA Ground Operations Manual (IGOM), RampVR ac-
be well acquainted with the curately replicates the ramp environment and avoids the typical challenges of
multicultural nature of the ground operations training.
event Airside can be dangerous and noisy, and training in this environment can
Joseph Suidan be difficult. Time is often limited during the day due to operational restric-
tions and aircraft availability. Furthermore, different weather conditions and
unexpected, irregular situations cannot be replicated during ‘live’ operations.
Unlike ‘live’ training, RampVR allows users to generate a variety of sce-
NETWORKING narios or aircraft turnaround inspections featuring aircraft damage or foreign
All the morning and afternoon sessions, object debris to enhance training. Users can also simulate day and night op-
as well as the more focused topic erations and adverse weather conditions. It is possible to pause and review
sessions, take into account the fact that ‘operations’ so details can be checked or explained and access notes, forms and
delegates are also attending IGHC to other reference material in real time. The innovative training programme also
meet their counterparts from other allows users to record performance for review and future reference.
parts of the world – whether as possible It has been observed that virtual reality training increases retention rates
clients, as competitors, or to share and by as much as four times and enhances staff motivation and engagement.
exchange experiences. Studies conducted in other industries show that using virtual reality reduces
“Those who have attended the con- the duration of staff training, saving a third of training costs. RampVR is a
ference before will be well acquainted cost-effective solution that enables flexible training anywhere, anytime.
with the multicultural nature of the RampVR can be accessed at designated IATA Training Centers, through in-
event,” Suidan observes. “It accurately company training or via the purchase of the required equipment and modules.
mirrors the broadest width of the inter-
national commercial aviation industry
as a global enterprise, attracting world-
wide representation of many nation-
alities among the almost 800 delegates,
which include more than 200 ground
handlers and 90 airlines.”
For more information about this year’s
IGHC, visit http://www.iata.org/
events/ighc/Pages/index.aspx
6 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com
We pride ourselves on delivering
flight and passenger services
SAFELY AND ON TIME
Ramp services Load control
Passenger and baggage handling Ticketing
Flight operation, crew Catering and cleaning
administration and station
supervision
GROUND HANDLING : handling@wideroe.no | CARGO : cargo.handling@wideroe.no | SWITCHBOARD : +47 7551 3500 | www.wgh.no
THAI AIRWAYS INTERVIEW
KEEPING
STANDARDS
HIGH
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Thai Airways International. AGS caught up with Usanee Sansingken, CEO and acting
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hai and Thai Smile’s com- be phased out of the fleet over the next ports in Thailand such as Hat Yai, Chi-
bined route network covers couple of years. In 2018 Thai’s fleet angrai, Surat Thani and Krabi. It cur-
11 domestic destinations will consist of 100 aircraft altogether rently serves 70 customer airlines.
(excluding Bangkok). The and will remain so until 2021. Finally, TGGS delivers in-flight ca-
carriers also fly to 52 des- Thai is also the biggest ground tering for both domestic and interna-
tinations in 20 Asia-Pacific countries, service provider in Thailand, and tional flights for 60 customer airlines,
and to 17 destinations in 12 countries is known as TG Ground Services and delivers on-the-ground catering
on intercontinental routes. (TGGS). TGGS provides full ser- services too. Recently, it received the
As at 31 March 2017, Thai Air- vices including line maintenance for Skytrax Best Economy Class Airline
ways and its sister carrier Thai Smile ground support equipment for Thai Catering 2016 award.
Airways owned a fleet of 95 aircraft, and other customer airlines at Bang-
consisting of 38 long-haul aircraft, 35 kok and other domestic stations. It TGGS offers a pretty comprehensive
medium-range aircraft and 22 nar- is investing in new ground support range of services – presumably you
row-body short-haul aircraft including equipment to improve ramp services self-handle at your home hub?
B737-400 and A320-200. across its domestic network. Yes, we do our self-handling at
The company will take delivery TGGS has the biggest cargo ter- our home base in Thailand and han-
of five A350-900s in the latter half minal space in Bangkok (90,000m2), dle for our customer airlines’ flights,
of 2017 and five more in 2018. These Phuket (1,800m2) and Chiangmai both in Bangkok and domestic sta-
new aircraft will replace two A330- (2,000m2). It is expanding its cargo tions, together with our 100% owned
300s and five B747-400s, which will terminal network to cover other air- subsidiary company WingSpan. With
8 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comTHAI AIRWAYS INTERVIEW
this strategy, we can manage costs ef- It is necessary to have people who can
ficiently. Furthermore, we can better multi-task. Just like any other indus-
control many aspects of manpower. try, the airline industry needs to attract
We are able to develop new young potential employees with good benefits
people, to have Thai standards, which and a good career path as well as job
greatly satisfy our customers. The security. Definitely, we have to balance
shortage of personnel is at minimum all of this with our cost control in order
to none. In some operations, our com- to keep our people with us. People are
pany provides outsourcing or out-job always the valued resource to maintain
in order to achieve a complete supply our standards.
chain. For financial management and cost
control, one of the most important
What about elsewhere – what projects in our company is to review
is your approach to handling at cost reduction at every operations unit
Thai Airways is investing in new GSE
locations besides Bangkok? without affecting quality of service.
We do self-handling services outside The cargo and mail department has
Thailand only at KTM (Tribhuvan Inter- opportunity to expand its ground han- performed very well on this when they
national airport in Kathmandu). At oth- dling business abroad in the future. launched Cargo Lean Management:
er stations abroad we use various GHAs under this programme, they can short-
depending on factors such as choice or Returning to your home base, en working time, decrease damage
availability of providers at each loca- what do you see as the biggest claim, increase safety and security, cre-
tion, service provision and competitive/ challenges there? ate new service solutions, increase ef-
reasonable prices. Pricewise, we operate From a ground handler’s perspec- ficiency and, finally, increase customer
under a global deal for some locations tive, the main challenges are severe satisfaction. The catering department
such as in Australia (at Sydney, Mel- competition in pricing, financial man- has been successful in reducing im-
bourne, Brisbane and Perth). We expect agement and cost control and service ported raw material by buying more
to expand this concept to other locations expectation from airline customers. locally. Their actions support what the
in Europe and Asia. Our challenges are how we have Thai government calls for. Another ex-
As one of the ground services pro- to manage and control costs that are ample is we are using consultant ser-
viders at locations within Thailand, not stable; that is manpower, use of vices for passenger and ramp areas of
TGGS is also looking for a potential ground service equipment and so on. the business.
BidAir
Safe, Reliable Service
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Providing quality ground handling services to more than 20
PROUDLY airlines operating 17 000 flights a month.
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www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 9THAI AIRWAYS INTERVIEW
Æ
WORKING TOGETHER
Recently, Thai Airways International announced its in-
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repair and overhaul facility at U-Tapao International
airport, and in March, European aircraft maker Airbus
signed an agreement to invest in the new facility.
“The government will accelerate the joint aircraft repair
centre between Thai Airways International and Airbus and
arrange regulations of public-private partnerships to short-
en the EEC Implementation period to three months,” ac-
cording to Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak, who
oversees the economic ministries in Thailand.
He adds that when renovations and upgrades are com-
pleted, U-Tapao will be as large as Suvarnabhumi Interna-
tional Airport, the country’s main international gateway
located on the outskirts of Bangkok. Thai and TGGS plan to
support the EEC project by offering ground handling servic-
es to airlines at U-Tapao. “We believe that our well-trained
staff and full facility will effectively encourage the aviation
service and business there,” Usanee remarks.
Next, service expectation: we un- There were concerns over aviation compliance culture and EASA stand-
derstand our airline customers can save safety in Thailand a couple of years ard for senior management, managers
costs by using full ground handling ser- ago; what practical steps has Thai and staff were also completed.
vices. They can also conveniently moni- Airways taken to improve safety? Implementation of a new safety
tor our services at headquarters. We In May 2015, Thai Airways man- and compliance management tool,
have introduced several new technolo- agement launched a new policy to namely the Integrated Quality and
gies to support operations such as on- align the airline to EASA standards to Safety Management System (IQSMS)
line check-in, kiosk check-in, highly ef- ensure a world-class airline manage- began on 16 November 2015. The com-
ficient systems/equipment, etc to avoid ment system. An upgrade to meet with plete cutover date from the former in-
manpower shortages and/or to reduce the EASA Part ORO (Organization
time-consuming processes as well as Requirements for Air Operations) was
controlling costs whilst enhancing con- completed in September 2015 along Our long-term plan is to look
venience and satisfaction for our cus- with the EASA-based Organization for an effective partnership
tomers. Our long-term plan is to look Management Manual (OMM), spe- project with the Thai group in
for an effective partnership project with cifically called THAI Integrated Man- order to synergise the Three
the Thai group in order to synergise the agement Manual (TiMM). The newly Brand Strategy
Three Brand Strategy (Thai Airways, drafted EASA-based OM-A and OM-D
Usanee Sansingken
Thai Smile Airways and Nok Air) so we were produced on 31 October 2015.
can cover all customer sectors. Workshops and trainings on the new
house developed Air Safety Reporting
program to this Company Safety In-
formation System (CSIS) tool will co-
incide with Thai’s 57-year anniversary,
namely 1 May 2017.
A joint collaboration between
Scandinavian Airline Systems (SAS)
and Thai in the implementation of a
safety performance monitoring and
analysis platform named ENPLORE
began on 4 January 2016 and was fully
implemented on both airlines on 7 De-
cember 2016, expanding to three more
Star Alliance carriers with the prospect
of adoption by the whole alliance if
found effective. This platform doesn’t
only provide real-time SPIs (service
provider interfaces) but also combines
the correlation of SPIs to predict the
likelihood of safety events such as the
European Aviation Safety Agency ‘Sig-
nificant 7’ to give airlines a chance to
intervene before such mishaps occur.
10 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comTHAI AIRWAYS INTERVIEW
More generally, how is Thailand’s
aviation industry developing?
The number of tourists is grow-
ing because of the government policy
to promote Thailand’s tourism, with
floods of tourists coming from China
and all over the world. Air transporta-
tion has become easier and more popu-
lar. Tourists can choose among various
airlines to fly from/to Thailand. Low-
cost carriers (LCCs) have definitely
come in and taken some market share
from the premium airlines. The trend
of this industry depends on several
factors. Customers come with more
expectations, and they are more cost
conscious than ever. Therefore, the
airline business is much more aggres-
sive. In order to compete with LCCs,
premium airlines raise their standards
to a higher level for both service qual- TGGS delivers in-flight catering for both domestic
and international flights for 60 customer airlines
ity and safety.
TGGS has to customise its services
in order to serve its various customer Thailand is obviously attractive for land (AOT) will expand Midfield, Ter-
airlines. For example, LCCs need less Chinese tourists, so we do focus on our minal 2 within five years, to serve
ground time, services for narrow-bod- staff ’s potential for second language the growth of the industry. AOT also
ied aircraft, less baggage allowance skills as well. launched a Passenger Baggage Recon-
and so on while legacy airlines need At Bangkok Suvarnabhumi airport ciliation System (PBRS) on January 1,
full premium services. Besides this, (BKK), the Airport Authority of Thai- 2017.
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 11HANDLER FOCUS
Glenn Rutherford, the CEO of Australian ground
handler Aerocare, has been on what he calls a
“rollercoaster ride” in his two decades with the
company, as David Smith discovers
A FIRM
FOOTHOLD:
LUCK, STRATEGY
AND INNOVATION
R
utherford first worked at have asked, ‘what could be done differ- terrorist activities in New York city,
Aerocare as a student, with ently?’” Aerocare’s fortunes changed overnight
a casual job on the ramp The story of Aerocare’s rapid rise with the collapse of Australia’s second-
at weekends. At that time, is a mixture of great strategy and good largest domestic carrier, Ansett Air-
Aerocare had only 37 em- old-fashioned luck. The company be- lines.
ployees. Later, in 1997, he rejoined in a gan life in 1992 with one man running The demise of such a big operation
managerial role and has since overseen operations supported by his friends had far-reaching implications for eve-
periods of growth at breakneck speed. and family. For a long time, Aerocare ryone in the Australian aviation sector.
In the past four years, Aerocare’s share had only small bases at three Austral- For a start, it was the largest sacking
of the market has grown by 300% ian airports – Newcastle, Sydney and in Australian corporate history, with
compared with less than 10% for its Melbourne. But on September 14, 16,000 staff laid off instantly. Ansett
competitors. Aerocare now has 3,000 2001, just three days after the terrible had been hit hard by cutthroat com-
employees working at 35 airports and petition in the industry, particularly
the fourth-largest percentage of the from the arrival a year earlier of two
Australian and New Zealand ground new budget airlines, Virgin Blue and
handling business. The company Impulse. For Aerocare, the most sig-
services 3,200 flights per week and nificant consequence of Ansett’s col-
41,200 passengers per day. lapse was that it opened up a host of
“It’s been a rollercoaster ride for opportunities with the emergence of
sure,” says Rutherford. “We’ve always Virgin Blue, which later became Virgin
run our own race and not followed our Australia.
competitors down any paths. We were “Virgin Blue approached us in Sep-
a new entrant to an established indus- tember, 2001, and asked us to set up
try and we challenged every accepted ground handling operations at six
method with our processes, resource airports in six weeks all over Austral-
structures, role demarcations and even ia, from Darwin in the north of the
our GSE design. At every stage we country to Canberra in the south,”
12 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comHANDLER FOCUS
Rutherford recounts. “We were given chased Aviation Ground Handling passenger transport and other ground
36 hours to set up operations at Can- (AVGH) from Queensland Airports. services. It employs around 400 staff
berra. We were notified on the Friday AVGH is now integrated and operat- and a fleet of 140 vehicles.
and were operating on Sunday. Need- ing as Aerocare with 200 staff offering In New Zealand, Aerocare secured
less to say, we didn’t sleep much at the a full range of ground support services a strong foothold four years ago when
time. But we called up every resource for passenger, cargo and military air- it purchased Skycare, a significant
and we managed it.” craft at Gold Coast, Townsville, Rock- fixed-based operator (FBO) and the
Fortunately, at the time of Virgin hampton, Mackay, Sunshine Coast, ground handler for JetStar. In addi-
Blue’s approach, Aerocare had recently Miles, Brisbane, Roma and Whyalla tion to other ground handling services,
landed a ground handling contract
with the other recent low-budget en-
trant to the Australian market, Im- A CLEAR DIVISION
pulse. But as part of the 2001 realign- Andrew Bartlett, head of Qantas Airport Services, agrees that the mar-
ment of the sector, Impulse had been ket in Australia is divided into two between the major cities (which are
sold to Qantas, which had its own dominated by the big ground handlers) and regional areas, especially in
ground handling teams. As a result, Western Australia and inland Queensland (where smaller players prevail).
the Aerocare ground handlers who He describes these companies as “small businesses with highly motivated
had just been laid off from the Impulse owners, but sometimes hindered by transient workforces”.
contract could be re-deployed with
Virgin Blue. h5IFTF NBSLFUT mVDUVBUF XJUI TVQQMJFST SFMJBOU PO BJSMJOF USBGlD XIJDI
With the Virgin Blue contract in may be linked to mining and industry changes,” Bartlett adds. “Periodically
place, Aerocare’s workforce expanded one of the larger Australian ground handling companies makes inroads into
from 37 to 200. Soon afterwards, the these markets linked to securing contracts with the larger Australian airlines.
company moved its home base from Generally the service provided by these companies is very personalised and
Sydney to Brisbane, where it was easi- highly responsive.”
er to meet up with Virgin Blue’s repre-
sentatives in person. The strong part-
nership between the two companies
was to be the bedrock of Aerocare’s
growth over the next two decades.
MARKETS
Most of Aerocare’s business comes from
domestic demand, which is enormous
in Australia. As the world’s sixth-largest
country, much of it uninhabitable,
Australia’s population is scattered far
and wide. Last year, there were about 59
million domestic passengers compared
with 36.6 million international flights,
according to Australian Government
data. Although there are 19 air operators
in the domestic market, it is dominated
by three airlines: Qantas (35%), Virgin
Australia (29%) and Jetstar Airways
(21%).
“In Australia there are two distinct
markets: domestic and international,”
explains Rutherford. “Aerocare has the
largest share of the domestic market, airports. A year before the AVGH pur- Skycare has become the flight support
with a handful of smaller agents that chase, Aerocare also acquired Airline service provider for VVIPs and govern-
create a competitive environment. But Handling Agency – a regional Queens- ment officials throughout Australasia.
lots of smaller operators have disap- land competitor. Another important part of Aero-
peared over the past few years. To suc- Another major acquisition came care’s success has been its embrace of
ceed in this market, we’ve taken an ag- the following year with the purchase technology solutions to increase effi-
gressive approach to scaling up, which of Carbridge, a leader in passen- ciency. When it could not afford to buy
has been the right strategy to lower ger transport and aviation solutions expensive kit in its early days, it opted
overheads and meet customer expec- which transports more than 25 mil- to build its own. Fortunately, these
tations of better prices. We’ve grown lion passengers each year at Bris- cheaper versions usually turned out
300% in the past four years compared bane, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth and to be much better options. “We went
with our competitors growing at less Melbourne and Singapore airports. about building software that suited
than 10%.” Carbridge operates under its exist- our modern business. We were able to
Part of Aerocare’s success is down ing brand and business structure. In keep our modern practices and let the
to making strategic acquisitions of addition to aviation bus transport, software fit around the business rather
smaller companies to scale up its op- Carbridge provides transport consul- than trying to adapt old technology,”
erations. In 2015, for example, it pur- tancy, bus design and manufacture, Rutherford observes.
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 13HANDLER FOCUS
Æ
Aerocare, he says, has developed
some of the most impressive technol-
ogy solutions to be found anywhere
in the ground handling world. In par-
ticular, the company has access to an
extraordinary quantity of input data
from customers, airports and air traf-
fic. “We’ve got more data than anyone
and a fully integrated database, which
includes payroll, performance report-
ing, resourcing and asset management.
We analyse so much information that
we can fix issues even before our cus-
tomers come close to knowing there’s a
potential problem,” Rutherford states.
Aerocare has mainly used a ca-
pable small in-house team to design
technology solutions. But it employed
an outside company of specialists in
optimisation to design its latest piece
of kit, which is called AROS (Aerocare
Resource Optimisation System). “It
enables us to combine all the permu-
tations of training and rosters and live
schedules and staff preferences. It’s
the most efficient roster possible and
in such a competitive environment, it’s
fundamental,” says Rutherford.
For a long time, Aerocare employed
just one payroll person part-time to
pay 1,000 employees at 15 sites over
two and a half days each month. Now
there are triple that number of employ-
ees based in two separate countries
and the entire payroll consists of just
three people. “This is tactical as well
as technical. Although we are a happy
company where people enjoy working,
we don’t want to do work that doesn’t
need to be done. If a machine or a web
tool can populate forms, or write ros-
ters, then we will invent it,” explains
Rutherford.
GOING INTERNATIONAL
Most of Aerocare’s expansion has been
domestic, but Rutherford says that in the
past four years, its share of international
ground handling has grown from 4%
to around 17%. It now lies in fourth
position behind the two multinationals,
dnata and Menzies, and the legacy
Australian airline, Qantas. Aerocare,
he says, is getting enquiries all the time
about its international services.
“The multinationals tend to be only
interested in international and cargo
because the contracts are more lucra-
tive than domestic business,” he out-
lines. “They have the advantage that
they can leverage global deals and keep
their prices down. But Aerocare has
advantages, too, because local knowl-
edge counts for a lot in the Australa-
sian region. As an Australian company,
we understand the cultural and indus-
14 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comHANDLER FOCUS
trial landscape very well. Our busi-
ness model is continually evolving and We analyse so much information that we can
there are always international con- lYJTTVFTFWFOCFGPSFPVSDVTUPNFSTDPNF
tracts coming up for renewal, whereas close to knowing there’s a potential problem
the domestic market is more static.” Glenn Rutherford
More international ground han-
dling business is bound to emerge in
the coming years in Australasia, one
of the world’s most dynamic aviation
markets. The International Air Trans-
port Association (IATA) is predicting
3.4% average growth in international
passengers until the end of the decade.
Australia is increasingly becoming a
tourist destination for well-off Chi-
nese, Japanese and Koreans. Figures
from the Australian Bureau of Statis-
tics showed double-digit year-on-year
growth in visitor arrivals was recorded for China-based carriers to maintain “Asia is the fastest-growing mar-
in all of the first 10 months of 2016. Al- their strong growth into Australia and ket and we are right on the fringes
though New Zealand remains the larg- add new routes from China’s emerg- and well-placed. The business model
est market by annual visitors, China ing second and third-tier cities. It will is changing there, too, and that will
will soon overtake it. An estimated 1.17 also open up opportunities for Aerocare help us. The old model of cheap labour
million passengers arrived in Australia both in Australia and New Zealand, and won’t work there as time goes on. As
from China last year. potentially in China. Rutherford says wages in Asia are rising quickly, the
Chinese and Australian airlines Aerocare is now looking to expand into ability to manage the labour workforce
now have unrestricted international ac- overseas markets for the first time and efficiently becomes a high priority and
cess into each other’s markets through is weighing up a few options, including we have done a better job building
a new arrangement for an ‘open avia- in the Indian and Chinese markets. He technology to manage that because of
tion market’ between the countries. believes market conditions are increas- the comparatively higher Australian
This will pave the way, in particular, ingly favourable to such a move. wages,” he concludes.
THINK DIFFERENTLY
How did Aerocare
become Australia’s leading
independent ground handler?
We NEVER stop looking
for better ways.
www.aerocare.com.au
Meet us at the IATA Ground Handling
Conference in Bangkok from May 21-24.
SAFETY EFFICIENCY INTEGRITY
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 15EGYPT REPORT
ROLLING WITH
THE PUNCHES
E
gypt’s history over the Services Company (EGS). Presiden-
The challenge of last few decades has been tial and parliamentary elections have
balancing quality and marked by numerous ter- led to the formation of a stable gov-
QSJDFJOEJGlDVMUQPMJUJDBM rorist attacks alongside ernment, which has taken significant
economic struggles and steps towards economic reform that
and economic times concerns about human rights viola- Tharwat believes is essential to the
is made all the more tions under a dictatorial regime. Pro- Egyptian economy as a whole.
EJGlDVMUGPS&HZQUT tests against President Hosni Mubarak In addition: “Both airlines and
led to a revolution in 2011, military ground handlers have huge support
handlers in the light crackdowns and a coup d’état remov- from the holding company for airports
of continuing security ing power from the then President Mo- and navigation which is reflected in
concerns hamed Morsi in 2013. continuous meetings and communica-
The current President, Abdel Fat- tions with both sides, and in taking all
tah al-Sisi, was elected in 2014, and the needed steps to raise the security
(although his rule has included mass bars and procedures at all airports.”
trials, widespread jailing of opponents Ground handling in Egypt is im-
and a crackdown on civil liberties), proving in respect of working practices
things have stabilised in recent times, and service quality. For example, EGS
according to Bahaa Tharwat, market was one of the first five companies in
research manager at Egyptair Ground the world to obtain ISAGO (IATA Safety
16 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comEGYPT REPORT
Audit for Ground Operations) and is country is slowly growing, with some
now certified at six stations in Egypt: countries resuming air travel and oth-
Cairo, Hurghada, Sharm el Sheikh, ers promising to do so in the near fu-
Borg El Arab–Alexandria, Luxor and ture. Egyptian experts are certain that
Aswan. The company remains focused the tourists will come back.”
on training and is also in the process
of renewing its equipment, investing SETBACK
in passenger steps, conveyor belts, air However, this issue of AGS went to
conditioning units (ACU), air start press in the aftermath of the terrorist
units (ASU), potable water trucks, toi- attacks on two Coptic churches in Tanta
let trucks and passenger buses. and Alexandria that took place on Palm
Another handler, Z-Aviation Ser- Sunday. Egypt is now several weeks
vices (ZAS – which operated as an air- into a three-month state of emergency
line itself between 1982 and 1997 and, declared by President Abdel Fattah al-
as such, has first-hand understanding Sisi, and the country’s tourism industry
of the needs of its airline customers) has taken another hit just as it seemed to
is also ISAGO certified and RA3 regis- be picking itself up.
tered, while Link Aero Trading Agen- Bahaa Tharwat, market research manager
The UK Foreign Office, as well as
cy holds a security licence from the at Egyptair Ground Services Company its equivalents in some other coun-
Egyptian Civil Aviation Authority and tries, warns travellers of “a high threat
prides itself on its “top-of-the-line” se- from terrorism in Egypt. Terrorists
curity services. Looking back on last year, Sami Eli- continue to plan and conduct attacks.
Tharwat is hopeful that the overall as, vice president commercial and op- Further attacks are likely. Most terror-
political stability in Egypt will contin- erations at ZAS, characterises 2016 as ist attacks target the security forces,
ue for at least the next couple of years, “a year of hard work. Egypt fulfilled all their facilities and other government
leading to growth in both passenger its obligations in terms of security and buildings. You should take great care
and freight transport demand and equipment. It has to be noted that the near these places. It’s also likely that
possibly a return to pre-2010 figures. representatives of different countries, foreigners, including tourists, will be
Nonetheless, he has an eye on “some who had visited Egyptian airports, re- targeted.”
promising opportunities” outside the marked on significant progress. At the Egypt is also among the countries
country, too. moment, the number of tourists in the affected by the laptop ban imposed by
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 17EGYPT REPORT
Æ
Amr Samir, Link Aero Trading Agency CEO
the US and UK, which requires large Elias is not surprised. Egypt, he night to adapt our capabilities, training,
electronic devices to be stowed in the says, is naturally more of a target for etc to match and comply with the new
hold and not brought into the cabin in terrorists than some other locations. non-stop ways of conducting attacks.”
hand luggage on flights originating in “What do we expect when we have a lit- Link Aero Trading Agency CEO
certain Middle Eastern and North Af- tle town (Luxor) that contains a third Amr Samir notes that although the
rican nations that are deemed to pre- of the world’s monuments? What do Egyptian airport authorities have al-
sent a high security risk. we expect, when Egypt is in a strategic ways implemented international secu-
According to Tharwat, the ban on position for holiday makers from all rity standards, “they have also been in-
flights from some countries due to se- over the world? vesting in more sophisticated security
curity concerns continues to present a “Global terrorist organisations con- measures in order to regain trust from
significant challenge. “Most countries tinue to demonstrate motivation to the tourism sector”.
have removed the ban but still we are carry out attacks on the aviation indus-
facing difficulties with receiving flights try,” he adds. In the light of that fact, POSITIVE
from both UK and Russia,” he says. and the use of the technology such as Taking a wider view, geopolitical issues
With air travel having fallen for the Internet (closed forums or social across the Middle East have had a
all these reasons, competition among media sites, for instance) as a tool for negative impact on the handling business
Egypt’s handlers has naturally be- the discussion and planning of these at- elsewhere in the region besides Egypt,
come fierce. The airports most affected tacks, Elias considers: “If we agree that and major airports in countries where
are those that depend for their busi- the whole world is in one war against there are active conflicts or instability
ness mainly on international tourists one enemy, then it is [a case of ] coop- have been subject to significant declines
– Sharm el Sheikh, Hurghada, Luxor eration on all levels from every country in activity. But: “Air traffic in Dubai,
and Aswan. with every country, working day and Abu Dhabi and Doha hubs will still be
strong as they are mainly driven by the
major Middle Eastern carriers using
these airports to connect the Asia Pacific
region with Europe,” Samir says.
The ongoing expansion of the
private jet industry is also keeping
Middle Eastern aviation growing rap-
idly, he notes. This trend is creating
opportunities for ground handling
companies in the region – including
some Egyptian firms, who are focus-
ing on their neighbouring countries
to obtain more business. Link Aero,
for instance, is strengthening its op-
erational bases in Jordan, UAE and
Morocco by transferring experienced
employees. It is also studying other
opportunities in Africa with a view to
Passengers travelling from Egypt to the US (and the expansion into new markets in order
UK) may no longer carry large electronic devices in to help mitigate the negative effects of
their hand luggage amid security concerns
the unstable aviation sector in Egypt
– all the while remaining hopeful that
better times are soon to come.
• See page 20 for more on the Middle East
18 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com/AeroGround Living ideas – Connecting lives Premium services in Munich and Berlin Your reliable partner AeroGround provides flexible solutions by offering the full range of premium ground handling services at Munich, Berlin-Schönefeld and Berlin-Tegel airports. www.aeroground.de
MIDDLE EAST REVIEW
The Middle East may be going through troubled times, but that
isn’t stopping the region’s aviation industry from expanding
PROSPERITY
AMID THE CONFLICTS
I
In the Middle East, great wealth all within less than 100 miles of each be a European company, its planes
rubs shoulders with great strife. It other, all feature in the regional top include many US-made components
is a place of two parts, very broadly. 10 and they have lately been joined by and would be subject to any continued
There is the troubled Middle East the new Al Maktoum International (or sanctions that President Trump might
– the countries torn by war and Dubai World Central), which promises choose to impose in Iran.
strife and the ones that get the most eventually to outshine them all when it In any case, Iran badly needs to sort
coverage in the western media like Iraq finally gets up to speed. out its aviation infrastructure before it
or Syria – and the opulent Middle East In this part of the world, countries can contemplate the large-scale opera-
– the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia, for build infrastructure first and then wor- tion of fleets of shiny new aircraft. It
example. ry about finding business to fill it. has been estimated that the country’s
As one might expect, the latter have But not all countries belong to the airports alone need the equivalent of
well-developed aviation sectors, while elite; many have a much more troubled billions of dollars for repairs and to
the former have a great deal of rebuild- recent past. bring them up to anything approach-
ing to do. Iran appeared to have achieved ing contemporary standards.
The region is home to some of the something of a breakthrough when Still, Iran could possibly become a
world’s most dynamic aviation mar- international sanctions were lifted as regional aviation powerhouse. While
kets. In the UAE, new low-cost car- part of a nuclear deal. In remarkably suggestions in the wake of the lifting
riers such as flydubai and Air Arabia quick succession, it announced an or- of sanctions that it could become a
are competing with somewhat longer der for over 100 Airbus planes, to mod- second Dubai now seem over-euphor-
established – though still relatively ernise its decrepit fleet of ageing and ic, this country of close on 80 million
young – carriers like Emirates and obsolete planes. people is in fact the Middle East’s sec-
Etihad. The UAE also packs in a large However, with a new, apparently ond-largest economy and it certainly
number of airports, relative to its size: much more hawkish occupant of the has the potential to grow its airports
the original main hub, Dubai Inter- White House, that order has been and aviation sector several-fold. It has
national, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah are thrown into doubt. While Airbus may around 55 airports, though most of
20 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comMIDDLE EAST REVIEW
DXB’s Concourse D can accommodate
60 international airlines
them are severely under-invested and welcomed a number of new carriers to winter months.”
fall well short of modern standards Dubai in 2016/17. Much of the increase in traffic is
and customer expectations. These include new operators to home grown, with Emirates and fly-
DXB such as Corendon Dutch Airlines dubai continuing to boost their net-
FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH and Rossiya Airlines as well as the re- work and frequencies. The gauge of the
In many other countries, aviation sumption of services by Thomson Air- Emirates fleet continues to increase,
continues to break all records. lines and Nepal Airlines at DWC and incidentally also making dnata the
Passenger traffic at Dubai International DXB, respectively. Dnata is also “excit- largest handler of the A380 worldwide.
Airport reached another all-time high edly awaiting the commencement of Likewise, regional carriers such as
in January 2017 – 8 million – and traffic operations by Himalayan Airlines and Saudia, Gulf Air, Kuwait Airways and
is continuing to grow at near double- Salam Air”. Qatar Airways have all bolstered their
digit levels. Deane adds: “We have also seen operations to DXB over the past year,
One of the major players in Middle strong growth from Air India, Air In- with Qatar Airways also adding flights
Eastern handling is dnata, which has dia Express, Jet Airways, Indigo and to DWC. The geo-centricity of Dubai
now expanded far beyond its original Spice Jet, as India and Dubai continue and the Middle East generally lends
home market of Dubai and has op- to strengthen their tourism and busi- itself to building itself into a natural
erations in countries throughout the ness ties. Given the challenges posed to hub between East and West, and with
world, including the UK, Singapore, the airline industry over recent years, all regional carriers scheduled to re-
the Netherlands and Australia. it is encouraging to see the eagerness ceive significant numbers of new air-
Back in its ‘home’ market, vice- to be a part of the growth story of craft over the coming year, dnata an-
president for commercial and business Dubai remains strong in all corners of ticipates that this trend will continue.
development Emma Deane says that as the globe. We also receive regular re- Dubai World Central (DWC), Dubai’s
the ground handler at Dubai Interna- quests from ad-hoc charter operators, new airport, is at the heart of the long-
tional (DXB) and Al Maktoum Inter- taking advantage of the tourist ap- term growth strategy of aviation in the
national (DWC) Airports, dnata has petite for exploring Dubai during the emirate.
www.ags-airlinegroundservices.com Summer/Autumn 2017 Airline Ground Services 21MIDDLE EAST REVIEW
Æ In 2016, dnata handled 850,633
passengers, up 84.5% compared to
2015. Deane comments that “dna-
ta is excited to support the recently
launched next phase expansion of the
ment such as oxygen masks.
Thankfully, perhaps, the influx of
refugees has abated lately, along with
the number of refugee flights – though
not before the estimated one million
DWC Passenger Terminal, which on refugees had swelled the population of
completion in late 2017, will accom- this small country by around 25%.
modate 26 million passengers per an- Lebanon itself has had its troubles
num. In the meantime, we continue to in the past, of course. MEAG’s parent,
see significant enhancements to the Middle East Airlines (MEA/Airliban)
existing facilities at DXB.” MEAG’s parent carrier, Middle East endured the country’s civil war from
The latter’s Concourse D, which Airlines, has strengthened and improved 1975 to 1990, often having to operate
opened almost a year ago, can accom- its services as an airline in exile with the planes
modate 60 international carriers. The removed to the safety of neighbouring
18 million passengers that will pass countries.
through annually can avail of the flag- a GSA through its travel business, to Everything has now stabilised,
ship Marhaba lounge, which includes uplifting meals onto flights through its though, and MEA was able to rebuild
sleeping rooms, a movie theatre and catering operations, not just in Dubai, its route network; indeed, it strength-
business centre, various airline loung- but in 82 other countries. ened and improved its services to Eu-
es and retail outlets prior to boarding As a result: “The handling market rope, the Middle East and the Gulf.
through open gates, a concept which is is becoming one which values strategic MEAG now employs more than
unique to Concourse D. relationships and corresponding bene- 1400 people and, as the main handler
Following the refurbishment of fits generated for a carrier from dnata’s at RHIA, serves 28 airline customers
Concourse C, dnata will support Emir- knowledge of its core product.” and handles over 24,000 departures a
ates across three concourses, the fly- year. “Life is back to normal here,” con-
dubai hub at Terminal 2 and interna- THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN firms Hindi.
tional carriers across both Terminal 1 While life in most of the Middle East is In 2015, MEAG handled 83% of
and Terminal 2. Occupying an impres- more ‘normal’ than the news bulletins passengers, 92% of cargo and 83% of
sive footprint of over 2 million m2, would have you believe and this is all flights at RHIA. It lists 32 carrier
DXB handled over 83 million passen- reflected in airport operations, events in customers, although the actual opera-
gers in 2016, with Marhaba Meet and other countries can sometimes impinge tors tend to fluctuate.
Assist agents and dnata ground staff on otherwise peaceful places, points out MEAG will concentrate on its core
ensuring smooth connection of pas- Nada Hindi, responsible for marketing Beirut market for the foreseeable fu-
sengers and their baggage. at MEAG – Middle East Airlines ture, Hindi adds. There are plans for
Deane considers: “Carriers contin- Ground Handling – which provides full expansion outside Lebanon, but these
ue to seek safe, on-time performance ground handling services at Rafic Hariri are long term, she stresses.
from dnata – which we are delighted International Airport in Beirut (RHIA). Meanwhile, MEAG is expanding its
to consistently deliver. Over and above Since the ending of the country’s Beirut operations, including building a
basic ground handling, we have seen civil war, Lebanon has been quietly re- new, modern cargo terminal – “Cargo
an increasing trend of outsourcing building its aviation sector and has en- is a growing business,” Hindi explains.
non-core business to ground service joyed many years of comparative calm, Again, this is partly due to events in
providers. Consequently, we are in- out of the international spotlight. neighbouring countries. Syria is effec-
creasingly asked to provide a full-ser- However, it can’t entirely ignore tively closed to air transport so Leba-
vice package to carriers including sta- events on its doorstep. Beirut has been non has increasingly taken on the role
tion management and lounge facilities handling large numbers of refugee of transhipment hub for neighbouring
to name a few.” flights from its troubled neighbour, countries such as Iraq.
As an organisation, dnata can pro- Syria. Some of these unfortunate peo- Another major MEAG develop-
vide a one-stop-shop for carriers by ple need immediate medical attention ment is its investment in an extensive
supporting several aspects of an air- on arrival, so MEAG must arrange new handling fleet and equipment in
line’s business – from selling tickets as doctors, nurses and medical equip- line with the latest IATA directives.
Emirates aircraft at DXB
22 Airline Ground Services Summer/Autumn 2017 www.ags-airlinegroundservices.comYou can also read
