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By Stuart Bowden, Routes News
This year’s Airports Council International (ACI) service quality survey of air travelers has singled out Porto’s Francisco de Sá Carneiro airport as Europe’s best.
This is quite an accolade for an airport whose ultra-modern new terminal only opened in 2006 — and proof that serious ‘teething’ problems such as those experienced by Kuala Lumpur a few years ago, and most recently Heathrow’s Terminal 5 , need not necessarily dog new airport facilities.
Indeed, by 2007, just a few months after the new terminal opened, it had already achieved third place in the ACI European service-quality rankings, according to Routes News .
Airport operator Aeroportos de Portugal (ANA) invested 108 million euros ($167 million) in the new terminal, with the help of the European Investment Bank, to enable Porto — the three-letter IATA code for which is 'OPO' — to consolidate its position as Portugal’s third-busiest airport in terms of both aircraft movements and passenger throughput, after Lisbon and Faro.
Before the redevelopment began, ANA described the existing terminal as "woefully inadequate" for the forecast increase in traffic. It offered just 60 check-in desks, 17 gates and two luggage-claim areas.
Airport director Fernando Vieira attributes OPO’s recent success in attracting new services directly to development of the new terminal, which received the go-ahead in 2003 in response to a projected doubling of passenger numbers passing through Porto to six million by 2010.
Porto airport's new facilities
“After finishing the terminal works, we were able to offer a list of facilities that originally didn’t exist here at Porto,” said Vieira.
“New check-in desks, bridge gates, luggage sorting systems, more customs and immigration positions and more aircraft parking places have given all our stakeholders better conditions in which to operate,” he added.
The new facility offers an additional pair of luggage carousels, increased check-in space and much more room for retail and catering. Developments also included construction of a two-level, 1,000 space underground car park, plus an additional 500 parking spaces above ground.
Created by Portuguese architects ICQ, the new terminal’s striking design features large glazed skylights, providing plenty of natural daylight to enhance the airy feel of the building. The project also incorporated construction of a new control tower and opening a new cargo centre at the western end of the runway.
These new facilities have had considerable impact on the airport’s operations and efficiency, says Vieira. And according to ANA’s own figures, Porto consistently performs better in terms of passenger satisfaction than its other airports at Lisbon, Faro and Ponte Delgada on the Azores, as well as exceeding the international average.
Increasing passenger satisfaction
So exactly how has the opening of the new terminal helped the airport to achieve such high levels of passenger satisfaction?
“The increase of the terminal area was designed with the aim of keeping passenger flow simple and efficient, and giving the passengers comfort areas they didn’t have before, in a light and modern airport," said Vieira.
“And the increased number of aircraft parking positions allows us now to offer a much better and more efficient performance, according to the needs of the airlines,” he added.
Vieira said that, in itself, the new building has changed the perceptions of passengers using Porto Airport.
“All the equipment and furnishings were just new and modern, giving the passengers a sense of comfort and well-being, a sensation of feeling at home," explained Vieira. "These reasons, together with certain operational conditions, such as the separation of passenger flow by floor, were fundamental in creating harmony at our airport.”
Management is not resting on its laurels, however, and efforts continue to further enhance the facility. Passenger comfort and convenience is clearly a priority.
“Two years after opening the terminal,” said Vieira, “we want to continue serving our stakeholders even better, and our effort continues in the improvement of the services we offer, such as provision of free Internet access; recliner chairs; a free drinking water supply; dedicated transport for people with reduced mobility; staff training; improvements to signage and the organisation of special events like concerts and exhibitions for the passengers’ enjoyment.”
The airport’s reconstruction has certainly borne fruit in terms of establishing new routes to and from OPO.
“The brand new airport, coupled with the significant potential of our catchment area — the whole of northern Portugal and the Galicia region of Spain — and our incentive scheme, helped us to attract more routes and airlines," said Vieira.
“The starting of low-cost-carrier operations in 2005 was essential for us and at the same time to let us show that our catchment area was capable of attracting large numbers of tourists.”
Porto's attractions as a city
Porto’s attractions itself, with its history, famous port wine industry and iconic bridges, combined with the scenic delights of the Douro Valley region, are drawing ever-increasing numbers of tourists to Portugal’s second city.
The airport also has a direct metro link with the city, which is around half an hour away by rail.
And its proximity to Galicia makes it an even more attractive proposition for the visitor, with the major centres of Santiago de Compostela and La Coruña within easy reach and regular scheduled bus links connecting the airport with Vigo. There is considerable industry in the region, too, business traffic being another factor in the equation.
“We are now connected to 44 direct destinations by 16 airlines, which represents a substantial increase in a two year period,” Vieira pointed out.
Principal operators include TAP Portugal, whose Porto services embrace long-haul routes to South America as well as numerous European schedules, including recently introduced services to Madrid, Amsterdam and Geneva; and Ryanair, which is seemingly constantly adding new routes, the latest being a connection to Birmingham in the UK, starting in June.
Other scheduled operators serving Porto include Air Berlin, Clickair , easyJet, Lufthansa, Luxair and Air France, while there is also considerable seasonal charter activity. Porto now has direct connections with most major European hubs, including Amsterdam , Paris, London’s three major airports and Frankfurt, as well as European regional destinations in the UK, Scandinavia, Spain and elsewhere.
A clear vision for growth
Vieira has a clear vision of how his airport should co-operate with the airlines to further boost its growth in the years to come.
“Porto Airport should not only be able to guarantee the airlines good operative conditions and good terminal facilities, but it should also have a commitment to working together with them to fill the aircraft, because their success will always be our success and we depend on each other,” he said.
Further expansion will not bring erosion of service quality, he stresses. “Our aim is to continue growing, while maintaining the same levels of service both for our passengers and our airlines,” said Vieira.
OPO, unusually (and some might say in poor taste), takes its name from a former Portuguese prime minister who died in a light aircraft accident when en route to Porto in 1980. But in light of recent developments, the airport is very much alive, and looking forward to generating ever-increasing amounts of traffic in the years to come.
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Fonte: Aviation.com http://www.aviation.com/travel/080606-port...-in-europe.html
This year’s Airports Council International (ACI) service quality survey of air travelers has singled out Porto’s Francisco de Sá Carneiro airport as Europe’s best.
This is quite an accolade for an airport whose ultra-modern new terminal only opened in 2006 — and proof that serious ‘teething’ problems such as those experienced by Kuala Lumpur a few years ago, and most recently Heathrow’s Terminal 5 , need not necessarily dog new airport facilities.
Indeed, by 2007, just a few months after the new terminal opened, it had already achieved third place in the ACI European service-quality rankings, according to Routes News .
Airport operator Aeroportos de Portugal (ANA) invested 108 million euros ($167 million) in the new terminal, with the help of the European Investment Bank, to enable Porto — the three-letter IATA code for which is 'OPO' — to consolidate its position as Portugal’s third-busiest airport in terms of both aircraft movements and passenger throughput, after Lisbon and Faro.
Before the redevelopment began, ANA described the existing terminal as "woefully inadequate" for the forecast increase in traffic. It offered just 60 check-in desks, 17 gates and two luggage-claim areas.
Airport director Fernando Vieira attributes OPO’s recent success in attracting new services directly to development of the new terminal, which received the go-ahead in 2003 in response to a projected doubling of passenger numbers passing through Porto to six million by 2010.
Porto airport's new facilities
“After finishing the terminal works, we were able to offer a list of facilities that originally didn’t exist here at Porto,” said Vieira.
“New check-in desks, bridge gates, luggage sorting systems, more customs and immigration positions and more aircraft parking places have given all our stakeholders better conditions in which to operate,” he added.
The new facility offers an additional pair of luggage carousels, increased check-in space and much more room for retail and catering. Developments also included construction of a two-level, 1,000 space underground car park, plus an additional 500 parking spaces above ground.
Created by Portuguese architects ICQ, the new terminal’s striking design features large glazed skylights, providing plenty of natural daylight to enhance the airy feel of the building. The project also incorporated construction of a new control tower and opening a new cargo centre at the western end of the runway.
These new facilities have had considerable impact on the airport’s operations and efficiency, says Vieira. And according to ANA’s own figures, Porto consistently performs better in terms of passenger satisfaction than its other airports at Lisbon, Faro and Ponte Delgada on the Azores, as well as exceeding the international average.
Increasing passenger satisfaction
So exactly how has the opening of the new terminal helped the airport to achieve such high levels of passenger satisfaction?
“The increase of the terminal area was designed with the aim of keeping passenger flow simple and efficient, and giving the passengers comfort areas they didn’t have before, in a light and modern airport," said Vieira.
“And the increased number of aircraft parking positions allows us now to offer a much better and more efficient performance, according to the needs of the airlines,” he added.
Vieira said that, in itself, the new building has changed the perceptions of passengers using Porto Airport.
“All the equipment and furnishings were just new and modern, giving the passengers a sense of comfort and well-being, a sensation of feeling at home," explained Vieira. "These reasons, together with certain operational conditions, such as the separation of passenger flow by floor, were fundamental in creating harmony at our airport.”
Management is not resting on its laurels, however, and efforts continue to further enhance the facility. Passenger comfort and convenience is clearly a priority.
“Two years after opening the terminal,” said Vieira, “we want to continue serving our stakeholders even better, and our effort continues in the improvement of the services we offer, such as provision of free Internet access; recliner chairs; a free drinking water supply; dedicated transport for people with reduced mobility; staff training; improvements to signage and the organisation of special events like concerts and exhibitions for the passengers’ enjoyment.”
The airport’s reconstruction has certainly borne fruit in terms of establishing new routes to and from OPO.
“The brand new airport, coupled with the significant potential of our catchment area — the whole of northern Portugal and the Galicia region of Spain — and our incentive scheme, helped us to attract more routes and airlines," said Vieira.
“The starting of low-cost-carrier operations in 2005 was essential for us and at the same time to let us show that our catchment area was capable of attracting large numbers of tourists.”
Porto's attractions as a city
Porto’s attractions itself, with its history, famous port wine industry and iconic bridges, combined with the scenic delights of the Douro Valley region, are drawing ever-increasing numbers of tourists to Portugal’s second city.
The airport also has a direct metro link with the city, which is around half an hour away by rail.
And its proximity to Galicia makes it an even more attractive proposition for the visitor, with the major centres of Santiago de Compostela and La Coruña within easy reach and regular scheduled bus links connecting the airport with Vigo. There is considerable industry in the region, too, business traffic being another factor in the equation.
“We are now connected to 44 direct destinations by 16 airlines, which represents a substantial increase in a two year period,” Vieira pointed out.
Principal operators include TAP Portugal, whose Porto services embrace long-haul routes to South America as well as numerous European schedules, including recently introduced services to Madrid, Amsterdam and Geneva; and Ryanair, which is seemingly constantly adding new routes, the latest being a connection to Birmingham in the UK, starting in June.
Other scheduled operators serving Porto include Air Berlin, Clickair , easyJet, Lufthansa, Luxair and Air France, while there is also considerable seasonal charter activity. Porto now has direct connections with most major European hubs, including Amsterdam , Paris, London’s three major airports and Frankfurt, as well as European regional destinations in the UK, Scandinavia, Spain and elsewhere.
A clear vision for growth
Vieira has a clear vision of how his airport should co-operate with the airlines to further boost its growth in the years to come.
“Porto Airport should not only be able to guarantee the airlines good operative conditions and good terminal facilities, but it should also have a commitment to working together with them to fill the aircraft, because their success will always be our success and we depend on each other,” he said.
Further expansion will not bring erosion of service quality, he stresses. “Our aim is to continue growing, while maintaining the same levels of service both for our passengers and our airlines,” said Vieira.
OPO, unusually (and some might say in poor taste), takes its name from a former Portuguese prime minister who died in a light aircraft accident when en route to Porto in 1980. But in light of recent developments, the airport is very much alive, and looking forward to generating ever-increasing amounts of traffic in the years to come.
----------------------------
Fonte: Aviation.com http://www.aviation.com/travel/080606-port...-in-europe.html
