Regional update
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ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East’s manager for communications and brand marketing, Yuman Lau, provides a comprehensive round-up of the latest developments and insights from the airport industry.
ACI ASIA-PACIFIC & MIDDLE EAST GREEN AIRPORTS RECOGNITION 2024
ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East took the opportunity to celebrate the winners of its Green Airports Recognition (GAR) 2024 during the recent ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East/ACI World Annual General Assembly, Conference and Exhibition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The awards recoignised 12 airports in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East for their outstanding accomplishments in sustainability projects.
Biodiversity and nature-based solutions was the theme for the awards, with airports encouraged to submit their best practices in preserving ‘biodiversity’ and utilising ‘nature-based solutions’ on their respective campuses.
As a result, we received submissions on a wide range of topics that included plantation for carbon reduction and social benefits; marine life conservation by airports; wetland/ecological rejuvenation; in-house airport horticulture and nurseries; and wildlife management for safe operations.
There are three categories of recogntion for the awards (‘Platinum’, ‘Gold’, and ‘Silver’) which are based on four different airport size categories – Over 35mppa, Between 15-35mppa, Between 8-15mppa, and Less than 8mppa.
You can find out more about several of the GAR 2024 projects in a new publication that showcases the award winning work of Hong Kong International Airport, Kansai Airport, Mactan-Cebu International Airport, and Queenstown Airport.
The publication is available for members only. Access full publication www.aci-asiapac.aero/media-centre/library
YOUNG EXECUTIVE AWARD WINNER
Manoj Kumar Ashokkumar of Bangalore International Airport Limited, operator of Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport, has been named as ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East’s Young Executive Award winner for 2024.
Kumar, manager of standards and performance at BIAL, received his honour for his exceptional research paper, The Collaboration of Airport Stakeholders on Promoting Cyber-security Culture, at the ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East/ACI World Annual General Assembly, Conference and Exhibition in Riyadh.
In his award-winning paper, he emphasised the urgent need for airports to invest in strong cyber-defences to protect operational technologies from cyber-attacks. His research also highlighted the importance of implementing advanced cybersecurity measures within the airport community.
The panel of judges also awarded an Honourable Mention to Do-hee Kim, manager at Korea Airports Corporation (Manager).
REGISTRATION IS LIVE FOR AIRPORTS INNOVATE
Airports Council International’s global innovation trade show is coming to Rome, Italy.
Packed with business, commercial and strategic leads and intelligence, the reimagined event is the premier global aviation conference where innovation takes off. This is a must-attend event for anyone looking to stay at the forefront of innovation, and be part of shaping the aviation ecosystem.
ACI EUROPE, ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East, and ACI World, together with our host, Aeroporti di Roma, are thrilled to invite you to our global innovation trade show.
Book your place for the event via the this link Registration (miceconciergeme.com)
ACI APAC & MID ADVOCATES FOR IMPROVED AIR CONNECTIVITY AND INTEGRATION OF AAM INTO THE AIR TRANSPORT SYSTEM
The fourth week of May saw a high infusion of top aviation events in the Middle East, the week commencing with the all-important ICAO DGCA for Middle East with the conference making several key decisions.
The ACI APAC & MID team had the opportunity to present two discussion papers, emphasising the importance of ‘Air Connectivity’ and the integration of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) into the air transportation framework. We achieved our objectives as the conference acknowledged the need for greater connectivity, and urged member states to consider further liberalisation of market access policies, and to simplify visa processes.
States were also encouraged to consider AAM in airport master planning and engage in continuous and inclusive dialogue with stakeholders.
In addition, we submitted three information papers on ‘One Stop Security’, the adoption of technology in airport security operations, and a paper urging the conference to take advantage of our guidance documents to help airports mitigate climate change.
ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East director general, Stefano Baronci, said: “Recognising the key role of air transport in driving economic growth and facilitating global trade, ACI APAC & MID underscored the need for cohesive strategies that bridge geographical divides and promote accessibility.
“We urge governments to put in place regulations that are tailored to the needs of the aviation industry and passengers, as well as ensuring that aviation stakeholders are provided with the necessary resources and support.
“We are confident that these initiatives will help to ensure that the aviation industry is well-positioned for the challenges of the future.”
MAKING HISTORY: AIRPORTS CORPORATION OF VIETNAM (ACV) AND IPP GROUP TO CO-HOST TRINITY FORUM 2024
ACI APAC & MID has signed a groundbreaking Memordanum of Understanding (MoU) with organiser, The Moodie Davitt Report (TMDR), Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), and IPP Travel Retail to host the Trinity Forum 2024 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on November 5-6, 2024.
The event further solidifies the relationship between ACI and TMDR and brings airport members, concessionaires and brands together to exchange ideas and knowledge on how airports can boost their non-commercial revenue at the same time as enhancing the passenger experience and customer satisfaction levels.
AIRPORT TRAFFIC THINK TANK MEETS IN VIENNA TO DISCUSS FORECAST TRENDS
The ACI Airport Traffic Think Tank (AT3) convened in Vienna in June 2024 to discuss the future of air traffic forecasting with artificial intelligence, new entrants of aircraft and manufacturers, sustainability and cargo development. The AT3 is a sub-committee of the ACI World Economics Committee dedicated to air traffic forecasting.
ACI APAC & MID JOINS FORCES WITH ICAO TO ENHANCE AVIATION SECURITY IN BHUTAN
At ICAO’s invitation, ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East (ACI APAC & MID) participated in an ICAO security assistance mission in Bhutan in late June 2024.
Hosted by the Bhutan Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA), the assistance mission was part of a broader capacity-building initiative led by ICAO Asia & Pacific Regional Office to help States in Asia-Pacific improve security standards from national perspectives.
The mission team in Bhutan were comprised of two team members – Remington Low from ICAO APAC and Gary Leung from ACI APAC & MID. Various recommendations for improvement were offered by the mission team, and a number of ACI’s tools and materials on security were shared and discussed during the onsite engagement.
A detailed written report of the recommendations and follow-up actions that came out from this mission will be provided to BCAA at a later stage.
NEW SAFETY RECOGNITION AWARD 2025
In an effort to recognise airport operators’ efforts in promoting an effective safety culture and safety management through innovative, cost-effective solutions, ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East has launched Safety Recognition Award 2025.
Regular Members (airports) of ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East are now invited to submit a paper on a successful case in the promotion of aerodrome safety by November 30, 2024.
MID-AIR TRANSPORT STRATEGIC PLAN 2025-2040
The most important output of the ICAO DGCA for Middle East was the approval of the MID-Air Transport Strategic Plan 2025-2040.
States are encouraged to reference this Strategic Plan when developing their national plans and to implement the recommendations provided. This achievement is significant for ACI APAC & MID as we were appointed by ICAO as the co-rapporteur for the working group tasked with drafting the Plan in 2022. We contributed comprehensive input on air connectivity, taxation and charges, security and facilitation, and environmental considerations, alongside submissions from other stakeholders.
AIR CONNECTIVITY RANKING
ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East’s newly released ‘Air Connectivity Ranking 2023’ presents a diverse recovery pattern, with notable improvements amidst geopolitical challenges.
Developed in partnership with PwC, the ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East connectivity index offers a consumer centric approach that considers consumer choices and quality of connections, in addition to frequency of flights, seat capacity and the number of destinations.
This index has been endorsed by the ICAO DGCA Conferences of the Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions in October 2023 and May 2024 respectively.
The second edition of the Report is built on standards that are globally acclaimed, measuring direct and indirect connections as well as connecting experience and quality. The ranking covers a sample of 300 airports, accounting for almost 93% of the combined passenger traffic in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East.
The Middle East, which reported near 4% growth in passenger traffic in 2023 vs 2019, is on its way to recover with the region lagging just 5% below 2019 level in air connectivity.
In the Asia-Pacific region, the latest figures from the 2023 Ranking indicate significant strides towards recovery connectivity, despite remaining 13% below 2019 levels. This represents a substantial improvement from the 36% decline observed in 2022 compared to pre-pandemic levels, highlighting gradual but steady progress towards recovery.
Top 10 Airports in Asia-Pacific & Middle East-2023
1. Dubai international Airport (DXB)
2. Tokyo Haneda Airport (HND)
3. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN)
4. Changi Singapore (SIN)
5. Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK)
6. Incheon International Airport (ICN)
7. Hamad International Airport (DOH)
8. Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG)
9. Delhi International Airport (DEL)
10. Bangkok International Airport (BKK)
MUSCAT HOSTS SIXTH MEETING OF ICAO AERODROME SAFETY & PLANNING IMPLEMENTATION GROUP
The sixth Aerodrome Safety & Planning Implementation Group (ASPIG/6) in Muscat, Oman, addressed various agenda items focused on enhancing aerodrome safety and efficiency in the Middle East region.
Key discussions included the implementation of aerodrome certification, runway safety teams, GRF methodology, and ACR-PCR deployment. Draft conclusions were adopted, urging states to provide progress updates to the ICAO MID Office using newly developed templates.
The meeting also emphasised the importance of wildlife strike reporting and ground operations safety, encouraging collaboration among stakeholders to foster a positive safety culture and improve operational standards.
Adeeb Mobaraki, manager-environment, represented ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East. The meeting noted with appreciation the best practices and indicators of a positive safety culture at the aviation workplace presented by ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East.
These examples aim to ensure a common understanding of safety culture across industry sectors and states, encourage discussions and facilitate learning between industry and states, help understand the broader context of safety culture, and encourage senior leadership of aviation stakeholders to demonstrate commitment toward an evolving safety culture.
