Summary
Airport demand and capacity management is supported by a suite of models and analytical methods, described in this paper. The application of these powerful tools to cases involving a diverse set of airports offers insights into the strengths and weaknesses of existing practices related to airport capacity, flight scheduling, airport operations and demand management. First, airport capacity depends on available infrastructure and air traffic operating procedures. It is primarily driven by the size and the physical layout of the runway system. All else being equal, the more extensive the runway system, the greater the capacity. In addition, for any given state of the infrastructure, airport capacity depends on air traffic handling policies (e.g., on separation requirements between consecutive aircraft) and procedures (e.g., those aimed at optimizing aircraft sequencing and spacing). Available infrastructure and existing operating policies and procedures explain most of the significant capacity differences observed between the busiest US airports (with multiple runways and the use of Visual Flight Rules, weather permitting) and most European airports (with generally less extensive runway systems and reliance on Instrument Flight Rules). In addition, the throughput at any individual airport is sensitive to operating factors, such as weather variability and severity, the mix of arrivals and departures, the runway configuration in use, and the mix of aircraft at the airport. Detailed understanding of airport operating capabilities thus requires the estimation of airport capacity under a broad range of operating scenarios.
