AOA May Monthly Update

Chief Executive’s Intro

Greetings AOA colleagues, from all at AOA Towers.

I’ve been told that click-through rates for the Chief Exec’s Intro article are at their highest when my

opening words are interesting and I keep the message sho…

Oh well, will give it another go next month.

Before getting on to the important stuff I should publicly apologise to the AOA team for being like a

bear with a sore head these last few days. As some of you may know, history repeated itself last

Saturday when my lifelong football team Crystal Palace once again, 26 years later, failed to keep an

FA Cup Final lead for more than 10 minutes against Manchester United; and given I’ve been waiting

26 years since we were last defeated by United in the Final, as you can imagine this rankles pretty

strongly. It may be that colleagues at Manchester Airport, and those of you who live in Surrey and the

other Home Counties, who support the Reds may be celebrating – all I can say is, sorry Team AOA.

It may be another 26 years til Palace get to another Cup Final, but hopefully it won’t take that long to

get a decision from the Government on expanding airport capacity. On 1 July it will have been a full

year since the Airports Commission published its Final Report; but we are told that there will be a

decision in the summer, once the EU Referendum is out the way, and before the parliamentary

summer recess on 21 July. The Transport Select Committee in a recent report asked for added impetus

to get on with making a decision – see more on this elsewhere in the Update. Let’s hope we get some

clarity soon.

Talking about the EU Referendum, the AOA Board discussed this last month, and the agreed position

view is that:

“Voting in the EU Referendum is a personal matter, and the AOA does not have a view as to how

individuals should vote. It is clear though that the Single European Market and ‘Open Skies’ policy have

been good for aviation. Whatever the outcome of the EU Referendum vote, the AOA will work to

maintain and enhance those aspects of the current relationship which have been beneficial to our

sector, allowing the industry to grow, delivering cheaper air fares, and opening up new destinations,

both at home and abroad. It is vital, irrespective of the vote on 23 June, that the UK continues to benefit

from open access to important international markets.”

Another timely issue this time of the year is borders. While airports gear up for the busy summer

months ahead when passenger numbers are at their highest, overall budget funding for Border Force

(BF) is going down (by 0.4%) with little reassurance from BF that things will be covered in the high

season. The AOA has been prioritising lobbying activities on this, including meeting with the Home

Office Minister with responsibility for borders, James Brokenshire MP, and seeking three asks:

Reassurance that BF will provide the basic level of service over the summer, so that there are not long

queues or inadequate customer service when airports are at their busiest;

With passenger numbers well ahead of forecasts made only three years ago by the DfT, what is the

BF’s longer term plan to ensure resources and basic service levels can match these increases in

inbound passenger throughput?; and

An airport sectoral roundtable with the borders Minister and Border Force to discuss the issues.

We have lobbied for the 8 June Inter Ministerial Group on Tourism – which includes Ministers

responsible for Tourism, Home Office, Business, Innovation & Skills, Communities & Local

Government, Transport, Treasury, Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and Culture, Media & Sport – to

discuss borders and are assured that it will be on the agenda. More on this elsewhere in the Update;

and watch this space for future developments.

As usual, there are a plethora of relevant public affairs, policy and ops and safety issues in this month’s

Update, including: on Air Passenger Duty (the recent Scottish elections have seen the SNP lose their

Scottish Parliament majority meaning the moves to cut APD in Scotland by 50% will need to be

negotiated with other parties if the policy is to get through); the Government’s response to the

Transport Select Committee report on surface access to airports, the Government review of VAT free

airport shops, the announcement of the new department for Transport Director for Aviation, and what

last week’s Queen’s Speech had to say for transport and aviation. There are also reports on three

recent, well-attended, AOA events on market outlook, environment and security. And don’t forget to

book your places for the upcoming Ops & Safety Conference, at Mottram Hall, Manchester, on 20-21

June – plenty to discuss.

Before signing off, I would like to pay final tribute to Leonie Martin and Tim Alderslade, who are

completing their final month at the AOA. Leo has been involved with the AOA for nigh on 15 years,

and in addition to being its Accountant has worked on Ops & Safety as well as helped with office

management and events assistance! Tim has been with the AOA for three and a half years, and has

developed into a top notch lobbyist, with some great wins and awards to his name from his time here

– we wish him luck in his new role as Chief Executive at BATA, so AOA members will continue to see

him on a regular basis.

Replacing them we have Avni Patel on the accounts side, who has been promoted from Accounts

Assistance to Accounts Executive, and Henk van Klaveren, who joins us on 31 May as our new Public

Affairs and PR Manager. Good luck to both in their new roles!

And enjoy the Update.

Darren

AOA Chief Executive

Transport Select Committee urges Government to set clear timetable for airport expansion

The Transport Select Committee has issued a report, urging Secretary of State for Transport Patrick

McLoughlin to set out a clear timetable for expansion, making clear the measures which have been

accepted or rejected and the work which needs to be completed.

The Chair of the Transport Committee, Louise Ellman MP, said:

"The Government must make up its mind. The decision on location is not the end of the process, it is

the start of one. Real progress cannot begin until the location is declared. Work on environmental

issues can run in parallel with other pre-construction work. Across the world, cities are collectively

planning to build more than 50 new runways with capacity to serve one billion additional passenger

journeys by 2036. The growth of large hubs in the Middle and Far East and North America threatens

our position as a hub of international aviation. The UK's connectivity with the world's emerging

markets is a major concern. The months ticking by constitute time wasted for the UK's economic

prosperity. UK plc needs to know that a decision will be taken. Doing nothing means the UK continues

to lose out."

The full report can be found here.

Government responds to the Transport Select Committee report on 'Surface transport to airports'

The Government has responded to Transport Select Committee’s (TSC) recommendations on surface

access to airports, with a number of recommendations to “promote greater use of public transport to

airports as part of its overarching approach to a competitive aviation sector, putting passengers and

airport workers needs at the top of our agenda”.

The response sets out 19 recommendations, covering the issues of ‘Passenger preference and modal

shift’, ‘Planning for future demand’, ‘Planning surface access schemes’, and ‘Who pays?’. The full

report can be found here, and the AOA will be evaluating how these recommendations chime with

the our submission to the TSC’s inquiry into surface access, which can be seen here.

The response is below. For further information on this, please contact AOA Policy Manager Peter

O’Broin at peterobroin@aoa.org.uk and 020 7799 3171.

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Surface transport to airports: Government Response to the Committee’s First Report of Session

2015–16

‘Passenger preference and modal shift’

Recommendation 1 – We recommend that the Department require airport operators to update any

plans and surface access strategies that have not been updated in the last five years by the end of this

year.

Recommendation 2 – There is too little scrutiny of individual strategies and plans which is akin to

letting airports set and mark their homework themselves. We recommend that the Government

consult on the institutional and governance arrangements needed to ensure airport operators are

setting meaningful targets and being held to account for their performance. Any arrangement for

greater scrutiny should provide the Department with an assurance that such targets and actions are

aligned with the Department’s own policy objectives on modal shift.

Recommendation 3 – We welcome the Civil Aviation Authority’s review of the market structure for

surface access, but urge the need for it to strike a careful balance between fairness to motorists and

deterring any increase in the number of private vehicle journeys to airports that might be a result of

a loosening of the penalty regime. The Government must also plan for the effects of any significant

transfer from car to public transport as a result of demand management measures on cars. Integrated

transport planning around airports will ensure that an appropriate balance between public transport

and car is achieved. The Government should prioritise integrated transport planning for airport

surface access for this reason.

Recommendation 4 – We and our predecessor committees have been calling on the Department for

Transport to introduce smart ticketing to a nationally recognised standard for almost a decade.

Delivery has been patchy. Oyster and contactless go from strength to strength across Greater London

and we welcome Transport for London’s enthusiasm for rolling it out across all modes of transport

and beyond the traditional London boundaries.

We also support the work of other conurbations, particularly as part of their devolution deals, to

extend urban smart ticketing to local airports. The Department has been slow to act, choosing to

wait for other bodies and for the commercial sector to act; it should do more to lead. We

recommend that the Department work with airport operators, airlines and others to devise a

workable and affordable system for offering integrated ticketing across all public surface transport

modes and airlines for inbound passengers to the UK.

Recommendation 5 – The Department must clarify how combined authorities, LEPs, regional

transport bodies (including Transport for the North) and the National Infrastructure Commission will

work together—and where the ultimate decision-making power lies—to integrate ticketing systems,

especially in the North.

Recommendation 6 – As a first step the DfT should publish plans which show how it will improve

signposting to, and information about, public surface transport options to and from UK airports.

Planning for future demand

Recommendation 7 – We recommend that, in its forthcoming draft National Policy Statement on

airports, the Department set out its policy for addressing long-term airport capacity issues and the

surface access implications of these. This policy should include measures for improving access to

airports with existing spare capacity.

Recommendation 8 – We recommend that the Department sets out, in its response to this Report,

how it expects local authorities, Highways England and Network Rail to cooperate to keep the existing

networks operating effectively and what steps it will take towards eliminating planned road and rail

closures on the same route at the same time.

Planning surface access schemes

Recommendation 9 – It remains an issue of concern to us that having committed to spending £55

billion on the HS2 rail project – which we welcome – the Department has provided no evidence of how

it plans to best leverage the new capacity generated by the project to deliver improvements to our

key international gateways, particularly our airports. We recommend that the Government draw up

plans showing how the HS2 network will link to regional airports so that the plans being drawn up by

airports, local authorities and Network Rail can take this into account and individual projects can be

prioritised accordingly.

Recommendation 10 – With reference to the Airports Commission report, we call on the Government

to explain how it will address the reduction in domestic connectivity caused by a loss of domestic air

slots at Heathrow and how it will develop the subsidised public service operator network set out in

the Airport Commission’s report.

Recommendation 11 – Traffic to and from airports may be only a small component of the total traffic

on the network and these routes may not get the attention from the network operators they need.

The Government should require Network Rail and Highways England to demonstrate in their strategic

business plans how they have considered airport surface access strategies, making clear which plans

for improvements to surface access will be progressed and how they have consulted airport operators,

LEPs and local authorities, on the relative priority that should be given to such schemes.

Recommendation 12 – The Department should set out more clearly its policy on, and expectations for

modal shift. We recommend that the Department develop a strategic plan for modal shift across the

whole road network, with feeder routes to airports being a key part of that. This policy should

underpin the development of national transport networks, as well as airport Master Plans and Surface

Access Strategies.

Who pays?

Recommendation 13 – The Department is understandably wary about falling foul of the state aid rules

and successive Governments have held a settled view that where the primary beneficiary of a surface

access improvement is the airport, the airport should pay. We recommend that this principle is

retained and the Department should develop clear guidance as to how it and other public bodies (LEPs,

councils, combined authorities etc.) should assess the benefit of new surface access schemes to (a)

airports and (b) the wider community.

Recommendation 14 – We recommend that the Government clarify what constitutes a transport

scheme that is primarily for the benefit of a private party, as opposed to providing a benefit secondary

to a wider public interest, using real examples to illustrate where, in its view, the boundary sits.

Recommendation 15 – We recommend that the Government require any airport operator making a

successful application to expand their airport to assess the effect of their plans on local transport

networks, to work with infrastructure operators on the measures needed to provide relief for any

damaging impact, and to make a contribution to the cost of such improvements. In cases where there

is compelling evidence that airport expansion would act as a catalyst for significant local economic

development, the Government should work in partnership with local authorities and airports to

identify relevant surface access infrastructure improvements and help to develop a multi-party

funding solution.

Recommendation 16 – We are encouraged by evidence from local authorities that speaks positively

of the current and hopefully future benefits of devolution. We want to see areas taking advantage of

new financial powers to prioritise and fund their own infrastructure projects without having to wait

for the agreement of or money from the Department. We want to see local areas use these new

powers to help their local airports grow and develop in a sustainable way, to drive further economic

growth. However, we seek guarantees from the Government that those areas that cannot reach

agreement on a devolution deal, or do not want one, are not left behind.

Recommendation 17 – Where devolution deals have been put in place, we recommend that

Government conduct a robust post-hoc evaluation to assess the benefits of devolution deals to local

transport.

Recommendation 18 – In its response to this report, the Government must clarify the roles that

Transport for the North and the National Infrastructure Commission will play in improving surface

access to airports, and how they will work with combined authorities and LEPs to achieve this.

Recommendation 19 – If TfN is to play an effective role, the Government must provide it with

adequate powers to ensure that integrated transport planning which benefits airport passengers and

local commuters is not thwarted by a lack of cooperation from local areas.

AOA Border Force Campaign

The AOA has met with a number of stakeholders, including Minister for State for Security &

Immigration James Brokenshire MP, over the past month to discuss its ongoing campaign on Border

Force manning at UK airports.

As discussed in the last Update, concerns have been raised with us by a number of airports as to the

impact that cuts to the Border Force budget will have on the level of service provided at immigration

halls, especially in the current age of increased passenger numbers. We have sought reassurances

from Border Force and the Immigration Minister that adequate resources will be made available this

summer, when some airports are expecting to welcome substantially more passengers than at the

same time last year, and that the Government will start to put in place a comprehensive

transformation plan that begins to set out how resourcing will be allocated in the long-term, so that

airports do not have to suffer the same anxieties about performance every single year.

A number of meetings have been held on this issue, with Ministers, civil servants and advisers from

across Whitehall. These included the following:

James Brokenshire MP, Security & Immigration Minister

Robert Goodwill MP, Aviation Minister

Caroline Jack & Holly Riley, Head of Tourism Strategy and Head of Tourism Architecture respectively

at DCMS

Amy Gray, Head of Tourism Affairs, Visit Britain

Simon Burton, Spad to Patrick McLoughlin MP

Caroline Wedmore, Visa and Migration Specialist, UKTI

Confederation of British Industry

Robert Goodwill MP, Aviation Minister

Caroline Jack & Holly Riley, Head of Tourism Strategy and Head of Tourism Architecture respectively

at DCMS

Amy Gray, Head of Tourism Affairs, Visit Britain

Simon Burton, Spad to Patrick McLoughlin MP

Caroline Wedmore, Visa and Migration Specialist, UKTI

Confederation of British Industry

In addition, the AOA, accompanied by representatives from Newcastle, Bristol and Liverpool airports,

met with James Brokenshire MP on 27 April to talk through some of these concerns in person. A short

note setting out what was discussed in the meeting can be viewed here.

Since this meeting took place the AOA has written a follow-up letter to the Director General of Border

Force, Sir Charles Montgomery, this can be viewed here. The AOA plans to continue to engage on this

issue over the coming months, including at the next meeting of the Tourism Industry Council on 24

May, at which senior officials from the Home Office and other Government departments including the

Department for Transport and Department for Culture, Media and Sport will be present.

Government review of VAT-free airport shops update

As members will be aware the AOA has been engaging on the issue of VAT-free airport shops since the

Chancellor of the Exchequer announced, on 31 December 2015, a HMRC-led review into the operation

of the current retail concession, so as to “make sure VAT savings are being passed on to shoppers”

and determine whether the UK Treasury is collecting the correct amount of tax from airport shopping.

The background to this announcement was a number of negative newspaper headlines last summer

highlighting the failure of some retailers to pass on the VAT saving to consumers.

Since then the AOA – working together with the travel retail trade body UKTRF and several airport

members – has engaged with Ministers to educate them as to exactly how the concession works and

how the VAT saving is used. Following this work it was acknowledged within Government that a major

intervention into the workings of the concession would not be advisable and that instead the industry

should do more to explain to consumers how the concession works and how this impacts on their

shopping experience. Included in this would be an explanation as to why the issuing of boarding passes

is required, with the overall aim being to boost transparency and the provision of information to

passengers.

Following conversations with Ministers and civil servants within the Department for Business,

Innovation & Skills (BIS), which has overall responsibility for consumer protection and regulation, it

was agreed that the industry would get together to produce some form of code of practice, which

would be made available to passengers at the airport terminal and on the websites of the key players

involved. The code would be voluntary, but airport retailers would be strongly encouraged to sign up

to it, and it would need to be endorsed and approved by the two relevant trade associations – the

AOA and UKTRF.

Over the past few weeks a working group convened of leading retailers and four AOA airport members

(Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow and MAG) have met up to work on the wording of the code, which we

believe will be robust enough to satisfy Government and convince them that a more heavy handed

policy intervention will not be necessary.

The version that has been produced provides background information which sets out the context to

the code, and then proceeds to lay out an explanation as to how the VAT relief is applied and who

gains from it; how the code will be used; and the type of messages that will be displayed in airport

shops offering information to consumers. This has now been sent round the full AOA airport

membership for their thoughts and sign-off. Once agreement has been reached – including by the

UKTRF Board – the code will be shared with Government to ensure that they are happy with it, and

then the aim is to launch it over the next month or two.

New Department for Transport Director for Aviation announced

The Department for Transport has announced the appointment of a new Director for Aviation, to

replace Patricia Hayes, who has moved to a new portfolio within the department.

Dan Micklethwaite, currently Deputy Director for Transport, Regulation and Competition at HM

Treasury, will take over the role on Monday 25 July. His responsibilities will include a wide range of

aviation policy including sponsorship of the Civil Aviation Authority, UK airport connectivity, aviation

resilience, safety, consumer and financial protection issues, international aviation negotiations, and

national and international aviation security.

The AOA will be approaching Micklethwaite in due course to request a meeting.

Independent Aviation Noise Association Debate

On 18 May, adjournment debate, moved by Hannah Bardell (SNP), was held on the establishment of

an IANA (or ‘Independent Aviation Noise Association’ as she refers to it).

Bardell is clearly very supportive of the idea to establish an IANA and referred to a number of

constituent complaints on the issue, stating that there is a “troubling disconnect between airports and

local residents when it comes to aviation noise”. Jim Shannon (DUP), Drew Hendry (SNP), Hannah

Bardell (Lab) each spoke before Andrew Jones (Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport,

Con) responded to conclude the debate. He acknowledged that change is required, that the basic

structure of UK airspace is outdated, and that the future airspace strategy will address many of these

underlying issues.

The Government want to see growth in aviation but that this be balanced against the costs to the local

environment that more flights bring, noise being the prime example. The government believes it is

vital that those affected by the changes can trust the information provided by those wanting the

changes and making the decisions and the Airports Commission’s proposal for a new noise body might

well help with that. The Government will carefully consider the need for setting up an independent

aviation noise body and its proposed role and functions.

The Queen’s Speech

The State Opening of Parliament is a hugely ceremonial event which marks the formal start of the

parliamentary year. The Queen's speech outlines proposed policies and legislation as well as setting

out the agenda for the next session. The transport bills mentioned in the speech looked towards the

future of transport focusing on technologies that are in the maturity stage of development. New

legislations were mentioned that may possibly impact UK airports. A summary has been listed below:

Modern Transport Bill

Measures to encourage investment in driverless cars, electric cars, commercial space planes and

drones.

Updating Air Travel Organiser's Licence (Atol), the UK's financial protection scheme for holidays.

Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill (England and Wales)

Local communities to have more say over neighbourhood planning.

Changes to make compulsory planning orders "clearer, fairer and faster”.

A new statutory framework for paying compensation, based on market value of land.

National Infrastructure Commission to be put on statutory footing.

Consultation on future of Land Registry with a view to privatisation.

Local Growth and Jobs Bill (England only)

Framework to be put in place to enable local authorities to retain 100% of business rates levied.

New powers to be devolved to local authorities to be set out in law.

Combined authority mayors to have scope to levy business rate supplement to fund infrastructure

projects.

Wales Bill

Clarification of the division of powers reserved to UK Parliament and those devolved to National

Assembly of Wales.

Devolving powers over energy, transport and elections, including voting age, to Welsh Assembly.

Repeal of requirement for referendum prior to devolution of income tax powers.

Draft bill was published in October 2015.

A debate was also held on the Queen’s Speech, including a long debate on Transport and Local

Infrastructure issues.

In addition to contributions from Patrick McLoughlin (Secretary of State for Transport, Con), Lillian

Greenwood (Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Lab), Louise Ellman (Chair of the Commons

Transport Select Committee, Lab), and Drew Hendry (Transport lead, SNP), the following MPs also

spoke on matters relating to airports:

Ben Howlett (Con), Steve Double (Con), Jim Fitzpatrick (Lab), Andrew Gwynne (Lab), Alan Brown (SNP),

Jim Shannon (DUP).

The full transcript of the debate can be found here

The Scottish election and Cabinet Reshuffle

On 5 May, Scotland went to the polls to elect a new Scottish Government. The Scottish National Party

(SNP) won 63 seats, two short of the 65 needed to win the parliamentary majority they held

previously. The Conservative party made significant gains, coming second, and Labour fell to third

place.

Readers of the Update will know that the SNP are strong supporters of a 50% APD reduction in

Scotland, now that the tax has been devolved to Holyrood - however, with the majority vote lost it

will now be more challenging for the SNP to implement the reduction. The AOA will continue to call

for a cut anywhere in the UK to be matched immediately for a cut everywhere, to prevent market

distortion.

On 18th May First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, announced a Cabinet reshuffle that saw

Deputy First Minister John Swinney move from Economy and Finance to Education. Swinney was a

vocal supporter of cutting APD describing it as a ‘barrier’ to Scottish growth. Derek Mackay is now

Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution with Keith Brown replacing Patrick Harvie to

become Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work. Both supported APD reduction and have

criticised its negative impact on Scottish business. Both Swinney and Brown have backed Scottish

Governments commitment to reducing APD by 50% between April 2018 and 2021 as part of the

Scottish Devolution plan.

Following the reshuffle, the new Transport Minister is Humza Yousaf.

The new Cabinet is listed below:

First Minister - Nicola Sturgeon MSP

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills - John Swinney MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution - Derek Mackay MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport - Shona Robison MSP

Cabinet Secretary for the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform - Roseanna Cunningham

MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs - Fiona Hyslop MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Social Security and Equalities - Angela Constance MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Justice - Michael Matheson MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work - Keith Brown MSP

Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy and Connectivity - Fergus Ewing MSP

Ops & Safety Update from Roger Koukkoullis

We are reminded too often of the continued challenges of keeping our airside operations as safe as

possible. There have been a number of non-airport accidents which are solely aircraft related, but

airport operations remain at the forefront of our efforts. Whether a reported “near miss” (UK)

between a drone and a manned aircraft, a runway incursion (Norway) during winter operations or a

departing aircraft striking a towed aircraft on the runway (Indonesia).

We continue to seek out and manage the complacency risk, while understanding the need for progress

of other airport users. This may bring change to equipment, new operating procedures, methods of

working, alongside the introduction of new staff, particularly as the summer approaches.

Oversight of procedures by airports users, as well as our aerodrome basic requirements all adds up a

demanding program for safety achievement. Particularly when incidents like the aforementioned

occur.

For airside operations specifically there is also a host of unique and specialist ground service

equipment to service aircraft turnarounds and to keep aircraft operational. Staff operate both day and

night in many cases, in all weathers which makes for a huge ingredient of multifaceted procedures,

with the added pressure to achieve on time. With landside tasks as well, this all requires a robust

safety management systems to ensure some sense and order and that everybody operates within the

safest possible environment. Drawing all of this together has to be delivered with a determination and

precision.

Please click here for this month's update including UK Airports Safety Week, Operations & Safety

Group (OSG) Meeting and Activities, Red Diesel, Future Airspace Strategy and Airspace Infringements.

AOA/BAG UK Market Oulook Summit

On Wednesday 20 April AOA and BAG (British Aviation Group) came together for the first time to

deliver an afternoon conference of panel discussions - targeted at airport and supplier members with

an interest in security, operations, safety, planning and development.

Held at the National Liberal Club (pictured) in London the event saw around 100 delegates come

together to network and discuss various issues related to their field in what was a very successful and

beneficial afternoon.

AOA Chief Executive, Darren Caplan opened the event and MAG Chief Strategy Officer, Andrew

Harrison gave the final keynote speech.

Speakers included a mixture of airports and suppliers including Jon Bottomley, Principal Planner,

Manchester Airport; Rob Cooke, Operatios Director, Peel Airports; Kata Cserep, Principal, ICF

International; John Hamshare, Airside Policy and Oversight Manager, Heathrow Airport; Andrew

Harrison, Chief Stratergy Officer, Manchester Airports Group; Alan Lamond, Director, Pacall+Watson,

Emma Mason, Senior Security Manager, London Luton Airport, Tom McWilliams, International Sales

Manager, Northrop Grumman Parkair Systems, Martin Parker, Regional Sales Director, Morpho

Detection and more.

This was a first of its kind event and the AOA are always looking for new ideas and initiatives for our

events in order for us to deliver even more opportunities for our members.

AOA Environment Conference 2016

The 2016 AOA Environment Conference took place on Wednesday 27 April at the National Liberal Club

in London. This year saw the highest number of attendees and a number of important issues raised.

The day started with an introduction from AOA Policy Manager, Peter O'Broin and an update on the

Sustainable Aviation Progress Report from Dr Andy Jefferson, Programme Director for Sustainable

Aviation.

The discussion then went onto 'What more needs to be done to achieve SA's goals?' with an

interesting panel debate. The afternoon then saw a compelling Noise Session and the day closed with

a discussion about the 'Local Environment Impacts at Airports'.

Speakers throughout the day included Jonathon Counsell, Group Head of Sustainability, IAG; Tim

Johnson, Director, Aviation Environment Federation; Matt Gorman, Environment Director, Heathrow

Airport; Tim May, Director for Aviation Policy & Head of Airports Noise Strategy & Policy, DfT and

Andrew Dutton, Environment Manager, Liverpool John Lennon Airport.

If you you were unable to attend the event and would like to see any of the slides show please

contact Sally Grimes at sallygrimes@aoa.org.uk

AOA Security Conference 2016

On 16-17 May, the AOA hosted its annual Security Conference at Oulton Hall, Leeds. The event, which

took place across two days, brought together airports, manufacturers, government officials and other

stakeholders to discuss the current state of play in UK aviation security. Among the speakers, keynote

addresses were given by Peter Drissell (CAA), and Martin Jones (DfT).

2015/16 has seen a number of aviation-related terrorism incidents and much of the Conference

debate centred how the aviation community has been adapting to deal with new and emerging

threats, as continuing to deal with more traditional threats. Issues examined included the rollout of

SeMS, Advanced Cabin Baggage Screening, facilitation issues, human factors in Security, and dealing

with increased regulatory burden.

The conference closed with a compelling speech from Philip Baum, Editor, Aviation Security

International who gave a compelling insight to recent events and how the future of aviation security

will move forward.

If you you were unable to attend the event and would like to see any of the slides show please

contact Sally Grimes at sallygrimes@aoa.org.uk

NIPA Conference

The National Infrastructure Planning Association are holding their Annual Conference on Wednesday

28 June and we would like to bring this to the attention of any members who may like to attend:

The NIPA conference brings together a diverse group of leading experts in the Planning Act regime,

providing delegatea with the opportunity to gain valuable insight, discuss and share best practice from

those directly involved in nationally significant infrastructure projects.

Speakers will include representatives of DCLG, the Planning Inspectorate, the National Infrastructure

Commission, the Welsh Government, DCO promoters and local government.

Member Congratulations

Congratulations to Gatwick Airport for celebrating 80th anniversary of first flight passengers

On 17 May Gatwick Airport marked the 80th anniversary of the very first commercial flight from

Gatwick. The first flight was to Paris, with this being just one of five scheduled routes served from the

airport in its first year of operation.

Throughout its history Gatwick had played host to many prominent figures including Queen Elizabeth

II, Princess Diana and John F Kennedy as-well as making key aviation milestones including the first ever

Virgin Atlantic flight taking off from the airport on 22 June 1984.

Gatwick has grown a tremendous amount over the years and has become the the world's most most

efficient single runway airport, with a flight taking off or landing nearly every minute, and this week

has served 41 million passengers for the first time ever.

Congratulations to Sustainable Aviation/NATS for the Continuous Descent Operations Campaign

The Sustainable Aviation / NATS Continuous Descent Operations (CDOs) campaign has been

recognised again in the 2016 Responsible Business Awards for continuing to demonstrate the positive

effects of CDOs. A CDO is an aircraft descent technique that reduces noise, fuel burn and emissions.

This follows initial recognition in the 2015 awards, ‘Engaging Customers on Sustainability’ category,

with the aim of the campaign to increase the number of CDOs being delivered across the UK. The

initiative was reaccredited as responsible business practice for showcasing innovation and the

continual positive impact it has had in the last 12 months.

Comparing 2014 with 2015 CDO performance there was an improvement from 77.8% to 78.0%. The

total annual saving for 2015 was 190 tonnes per year of fuel and 604 tonnes per year of CO2 emissions.

The best performing airports during 2015 showed on average a 6.5% increase in CDOs compared to

2014. This included Bristol, Gatwick and Heathrow.

Ian Jopson, Chair of SA and Head of Environmental and Community Affairs at NATS, said: “It is an

accolade to be reaccredited in the Responsible Business Awards for the collaborative work we are

doing with airlines and airports to increase Continuous Descent Operations and to be recognised for

the tangible benefits that the campaign is delivering in reducing CO2 and noise.”

The 2016 Responsible Business Awards, are run by Business in the Community, HRH The Prince of

Wales’ Responsible Business Network, and celebrate businesses that are making a significant

difference by taking action to improve their local communities, create more inclusive workplaces and

tackle environmental challenges. The announcement of the 2016 Responsible Business Awards re-

accreditations coincided with Responsible Business Week (18-22 April 2016), an annual initiative to

increase awareness of the positive contribution of business in society.