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Airport Characteristics
Amedeo R. Odoni
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1.231J /16.781J /ESD.224J Airport Systems 1.231J /16.781J /ESD.224J Airport Systems Fall 2007 Fall 2007
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Airport Characteristics Airport Characteristics
Objective:
To provide background and an overview on
the diversity of airport characteristics
Topics:
Discussion of geometric characteristics of
major airports
Introduce useful background and terminology
Critical aspects of airport layouts
Some international comparisons
Reference: Chapter 9 [esp. 9.1-9.4]
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Airport Physical Layouts Airport Physical Layouts
Airport layouts exhibit enormous variability (general
layout, no. of runways, geometric configuration of
runways, length of runways, location and
configuration of terminal facilities)
Range from very simple to complex geometries
Area occupied is only mildly correlated with traffic
volumes
Layouts are greatly influenced by historical and
local factors
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London Gatwick (LGW) London Gatwick (LGW)
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Designation of Runways Designation of Runways
Runways are identified by a two-digit number,
which indicates the magnetic azimuth of the
runway in the direction of operations to the nearest
10
When parallel runways are involved the indication
R (right), L (left) and, with three runways, C
(center) is also used (e.g., Runway 22R)
Note that 22R is 04L in the opposite direction
With 4-6 runways, one pair is marked to the
nearest 10 and the other to the next nearest 10
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Osaka Kansai International (KIX)
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Seattle Seattle- -Tacoma International (SEA) Tacoma International (SEA)
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Milan Milan Malpensa Malpensa (MXP) (MXP)
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Munich International (MUC) Munich International (MUC)
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Athens International (ATH)
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Singapore Singapore Changi Changi International (SIN) International (SIN)
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DEVELOPMENT PHASE 1A COMMISSIONING DATE 2008
Delhi International Airport (IGI)
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DEVELOPMENT PHASE 1B COMMISSIONING DATE 2010
(FOR 2012 CAPACITY)
Delhi International Airport (IGI)
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New York LaGuardia (LGA) New York LaGuardia (LGA)
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Wind Coverage (ICAO) Wind Coverage (ICAO)
For operations on any given runway, crosswinds
should not exceed:
37 km/h (20 knots) for aircraft whose reference
field length is 1500 m or more, except with poor
braking action, when the limit is 24 km/h (13
knots)
24 km/h (13 knots) for ref. field length between
1200 m and 1,499 m
19 km/h (10.5 knots) for ref field length of less
than 1,200 m
Crosswind coverage (or airport usability factor)
should be at least 95%
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Frankfurt International (FRA) Frankfurt International (FRA)
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London Heathrow (LHR) London Heathrow (LHR)
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Satellite with people movers: Tampa (TPA) Satellite with people movers: Tampa (TPA)
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Satellite with people movers: Tampa (TPA) Satellite with people movers: Tampa (TPA)
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New York JFK International (JFK) New York JFK International (JFK)
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Atlanta Hartsfield International (ATL)
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Atlanta Hartsfield
International (ATL)
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Midfield linear satellites: Atlanta (ATL) Midfield linear satellites: Atlanta (ATL)
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Los Angeles International (LAX) Los Angeles International (LAX)
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Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG)
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Source: Airliners.net
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SATURATION PHASE DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Delhi International Airport (IGI)
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Zurich International (ZRH) Zurich International (ZRH)
3,300 m
3,700 m
2,500 m
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Amsterdam Amsterdam Schiphol Schiphol (AMS) (AMS)
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Passenger Complex, AMS
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Denver International (DEN)
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Boston/Logan: Proposed Airside Changes (2001) Boston/Logan: Proposed Airside Changes (2001)
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Dallas / Ft. Worth (DFW)
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Chicago
OHare
(ORD)
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Land Area of Some Major Airports Land Area of Some Major Airports
Airport Acres m
2
(x10
6)
Denver 34,000 136
Dallas/Ft. W. 18,000 72
Orlando 10,000 40
Kansas City 8,200 33
Chicago 6,500 26
Atlanta 6,000 24
JFK Internl 4,950 20
Los Angeles 3,600 14
Miami 3,250 13
Newark 2,300 9
Boston 2,250 9
Wash Reagan 960 3.8
LaGuardia 650 2.6
Airport m
2
(x10
6
)
Buenos Aires EZE 34
Paris CDG 31
Amsterdam 28
Delhi 20
Frankfurt 19
Athens 16
Munich 15
Singapore 13
Brussels 12
Milan MXP 12
London LHR 12
Tokyo HND 11
Sydney 9
Zurich 8
London GTW 8
Tokyo NRT 7
Kansai 5
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Factors Affecting Airport Area Requirements Factors Affecting Airport Area Requirements
Principal factors affecting airfield size are:
Airside capacity requirements: number and
configuration of runways and apron stands
Weather: no. and configuration of runways
Unused area: noise bufferor for future expansion
Types of aircraft and operations: runway, taxiway,
apron dimensions and separations
Location of passenger terminals and landside facilities
relative to runways
Terminal facilities and related landside space
typically take up only 5-20% of an airports total
area
75 411 30.8 Munich 158 271 42.8 Bangkok
74 418 31.0 Toronto 157 280 44.0 Hong Kong
62 516 31.8 Philadelphia 105 435 45.5 Madrid
168 189 31.8 Tokyo/Narita 105 440 46.1 Amsterdam
84 386 32.5 Miami 75 619 46.2 Las Vegas
95 353 33.5 San Francisco 79 597 47.3 Denver
130 263 34.2 London/Gatwick 129 376 48.5 Beijing
99 350 34.8 Orlando 108 489 52.8 Frankfurt
164 214 35.0 Singapore 105 542 56.8 Paris/CDG
80 444 35.5 New York /Newark 86 700 60.1 Dallas/Ft. Worth
75 476 35.6 Minneapolis 93 657 61.0 Los Angeles
76 482 36.4 Detroit 229 285 65.2 Tokyo/Haneda
77 541 41.4 Phoenix 142 477 67.5 London/Heathrow
114 375 42.6 New York/J FK 79 959 76.2 Chicago/OHare
71 603 42.6 Houston 87 976 84.8 Atlanta
(1)/(2) (2) (1) (1)/(2) (2) (1)
30 Busiest Airports in the World (2006)
(1)= pax (million); (2)= movements (thousand)
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Contribution to Available Seat Mile Growth: Contribution to Available Seat Mile Growth:
US Major Carriers (1970 US Major Carriers (1970- -2001) 2001)
Source: Eclat Consulting (2002)
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Generalizations: Major Airports... Generalizations: Major Airports...
U.S.: Large volumes of passengers and aircraft;
overwhelmingly domestic; numerous regional
non-jets, general aviation; small no. of pax/flight
Europe: Fast-growing passenger volumes at
major airports; primarily international; narrow-
body airline jets still dominate; few g.a. flights;
intermediate no. of pax/flight
East Asia/Pacific Rim: Fast-growing passenger
volumes; strongest presence of wide-body jets;
very few g.a. flights; large no. of pax/flight;
numerous new low-fare carriers
Diversity is enormous; understanding of local
factors is essential.