Global Connectivity: Capacity,
Resilience and Future Flexibility
Europe is the ideal location for a hub airport, because of its
central location between the cities that account for 94% of global
GDP. Heathrow’s success proves this, but it is now full. Frankfurt,
Paris and Amsterdam will soon fill up, due to growth in demand.
A new hub airport offering resilience and capacity is needed for
Britain’s economy and for Europe.
We have got to understand where our
peers are heading – Beijing, Dubai and
Istanbul are charging ahead, Mexico City
is building a next generation global hub.
Last month we saw the opening of
the new Doha Airport and the question
it raises is around the need for 24 hour
airports. The economy is growing.
There is an understanding that we
are now in global markets with global
supply chains.
CAPacity FOR THE FUTURE
Heathrow claims that a third runway will provide capacity for 130mppa,
but this means operating at 98% capacity with an average of 188
passengers on each flight. This is worse than Heathrow today and
provides no resilience for delays and cancellations. Based on the
same criteria, the 4-runway Thames Hub Airport could provide capacity
for up to 221mppa. However, for resilient operations, a maximum
of 85% runway use and an average 164 passengers per flight is
our target, resulting in capacity of 167mppa – a figure that still far
exceeds Heathrow’s capacity