Εντυπωσιακά αεροδρόμια της Ασίας

On Thursday, there could be a scramble to reach gate F31 at Changi airport in Singapore, where passengers will board the first commercial flight of the new Airbus A380.

But for those who can contain their excitement and choose instead to kick off this historic day for world aviation with a gentle stroll around Changi, there are reasons to be impressed by the airport itself.

Almost 26 years since its opening, Changi continues to collect almost every prize bestowed on airports by the tourism and travel industries (last year alone it grabbed another 25 of these eclectic awards). More silverware should soon be on the way, as Changi prepares to open in January a third, state-of-the-art terminal, as well as to upgrade the original terminal.

Changi, however, is not the only Asian airport to excel. In fact, recently it was beaten to the top spot by Hong Kong in the closely watched survey of passenger satisfaction conducted by Skytrax, the aviation research organisation. Overall, Asian airports took four of the top five positions in the Skytrax survey, with Seoul Incheon and Kuala Lumpur completing the Asian triumph. Munich, at number four, was their leading challenger while Vancouver, which ranked ninth, was the only North American airport in the top 10.

The 7.8m passengers surveyed by Skytrax put ease of airport usage and waiting times at the top of their list of priorities, with a focus on the efficiency of security checks at a time of heightened concern about terrorism. On that level, it is very hard to fault Changi, which operates a decentralised screening system, with all the checking done at individual gates, thereby avoiding the long queues and bottlenecking that has become one of the most irksome aspects of travelling through many of the world’s largest airports.

As with almost every aspect of the airport, the Singaporean authorities did not wait for the aftermath of 9/11 to adopt a decentralised screening approach, which requires more staff but makes the process smoother for passengers. “It’s really always been our philosophy to do things well ahead of the demand,” says Esther Ee from the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore.

While that might sound like a tired marketing cliché, it is a view endorsed by most pundits and is consistent with the history of Changi’s development since 1975, when the Singaporean government agreed to build a new airport. In fact, even the decision to have a third terminal was part of the original master plan for Changi, at a time when Singapore Airlines – a product of the political divorce between Malaysia and Singapore – was still in its infancy and Singapore’s traffic was just a fraction of what it is today.

Tony Davis, chief executive of Tiger Airways, which is based in Singapore and is one of Asia’s fastest growing low-cost carriers, sees a contrast between airport planning in Asia and the “piecemeal approach” in Europe. Davis, a former BMI British Midland executive, says: “European airports have tended to be built when demand arises while Asian airports seem to be built for the future. We build on the basis on what is needed and then get very surprised two years later when we find we need to build again.”

Another case in point is Kuala Lumpur’s decision to add a low-cost terminal to help develop AirAsia, the region’s biggest budget carrier. Derek Sadubin, chief operating officer at the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, a Sydney-based consultancy, says: “The Malaysians were very quick at identifying AirAsia’s requirements and it shows how some of these Asian airports have been excellent in their long-term planning for the growth that is coming. You’re seeing this now in the Middle East.”

To be fair to Europeans, however, the building process has also been eased in Asia by the fact that some of the airports have been built on reclaimed land – triggering less debate over planning permission – and generally from scratch. Hong Kong opened its new airport on Lantau island in 1998, but has already lost its new-kid-on-the-block status to several other important transit airports in cities such as Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur. In China, meanwhile, 73 airports are under construction and a further 134 projects are being considered.

Stephen Miller, chief executive of Oasis, one of the five airlines that is using the second terminal that opened in Hong Kong in June, says: “In much of Asia you have been able to start with a clean sheet and that’s a huge difference. In places like Heathrow or Frankfurt, it’s been about just adding on.”

Asian airports such as Hong Kong and Singapore, where flying occurs around the clock, have also developed their transit business, in part by working hard to promote outside activities for passengers with several hours to kill between flights. Hong Kong recently opened a golf course within walking distance of the airport, while anybody facing a five-hour wait in Changi might consider one of the free guided tours of the city-state that have long been on offer.

Sadubin from CAPA says: “Airports in this region have generally been part of a broader national economic and tourism strategy. Singapore is the model that has been replicated and used by several other governments.”

Another feature in both Singapore and Hong Kong is what could be deemed the democratisation of its more luxurious facilities, with access to premium lounges as well as activities such as swimming or fitness training open to anybody with a credit card rather than only upper-class passengers.

Fiona Song, business officer for Plaza Premium, a company that runs paying lounges across Asia, expects the concept to gain popularity in regions such as North America, where Plaza Premium now operates in Vancouver. “I also really think that it makes for better lounges,’’ she argues. “People who pay for something are more demanding and expect better services, otherwise they don’t come back.”

(πηγή: www.ft.com, 19/10/2007)

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