Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport’s operations are now fully integrated into an industry-leading program that optimises air traffic management.
The Airport-Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) system is a joint European-wide initiative sponsored by Eurocontrol, ACI-Europe (Airports Council International), CANSO (Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation) and IATA (International Air Transport Association) “to improve the efficiency of airport operations by reducing delays, increasing the predictability of operations and optimising the allocation of resources”.
According to Spanish airport operator Aena, the project represents a radical change in the working model for European airports, and is the culmination of Alicante-Elche Airport’s certification in 2016 as the first “Advanced Tower” airport in Spain.
The objective is to ensure airports have greater agility and efficiency when managing their resources, by committing to joint decision-making and sharing key information.
“The system enables airports to reduce the cost of ground movements due to lower fuel costs by reducing taxiing and waiting times at headways, which also has an impact on the environment and mitigates the environmental impact.
“The benefits are also significant for passengers, as punctuality improves, user satisfaction increases and missed connections are reduced, and they have access to better information and services during periods when incidents occur.
“Studies carried out by Eurocontrol show that the A-CDM model allows for better management and recovery during periods with adverse conditions such as bad weather, or other circumstances, which is of direct benefit to passengers who are affected.”
High Ranking by AirHelp
Meanwhile, Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport has been named as one of Spain’s top airports in the annual AirHelp Score ranking. Seven Spanish airports made the top 150 of the 2022 list, compiled by the global air passenger rights advocacy company.
Madrid-Barajas Adolfo Suárez (12th) was the leading Spanish airport in the ranking, followed by Bilbao, Barcelona-El Prat and Alicante-Elche (66th internationally and 13th in the European Union), then Ibiza and Palma de Mallorca.
The three top-ranked airports in the world were (in order): Tokyo Haneda International (Japan), Recife/Guararapes-Gilberto Freyre (Brazil) and Tokyo Narita International (Japan).
Last year, Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport was named as one of Europe’s most highly valued airports for peace of mind and first-class service.
