INTERNATIONAL
by Mario Pierobon
The aviation boom is underway in South America: New airports and major
expansions to existing airports are being built in Bogotá, Quito, Sao Paulo
(GRU and VCP) and Rio de Janeiro (GIG); in addition to a new terminal under
development in Santiago. Are these airports being designed to prevent the
infrastructural constraints that make ground damage more likely and exist at
many large airports in the West?
The Chance to Build A Better Ramp
A
irport infrastructure is often overlooked
when considering the safety of the apron
environment, and little can be done in
the short term to change airport design.
When airport projects do materialize, however,
designers should engineer safety features to prevent
aircraft ground damage, such as avoiding intersec-
tions between aircraft taxiways and lanes dedicated
to ground support vehicles as well as reducing GSE
traffc around aircraft.
According to David Stewart, head of airport
development at the International Air Transport
Association (IATA) new airports and major expan-
sions to existing airports in South America are
being designed with close consideration to interna-
tional standards regarding ramp layouts and GSE
requirements as recommended by ICAO, IATA and
other industry and regulatory bodies. "The new
terminals in Bogotá, Quito, Sao Paulo and Rio de
Janeiro and the new terminal under development
in Santiago all adhere to international standards,"
Stewart says.
Santiago's Arturo Marino Benítez (AMB) airport
represents one of the main airport infrastructure
overhauls in South America. Nuevo Pudahuel is
the operator of Santiago AMB and it acts as a con-
16 GROUND SUPPORT WORLDWIDE MARCH 2016