The Fundamentals of The Airline Business Have
Changed.
Your Air Service Program Needs To Change
Fundamentally, Too.
It's No Longer Just Air Service "Development" - Today, It's Managing Air Service Access
Make no mistake. Regardless of how many
studies are done, or the number of responses received from
unscientific internet surveys, or how many
cocktail-party-circuit airline "speed date" events are attended,
the actual potential air service option
s
open to a given community are already obvious and increasingly
limited. The problem is that most traditional approaches to
building new air service are simply no longer effective in
addressing the number one goal for commercial airports:
maintaining access to and from the rest of the global air
transportation system.
At Boyd Group International, we're assisting our clients by providing a new set of services. It's called Air Service Management, and it's a whole new concept - utilizing data-driven and forecast-driven approaches to retain, maintain, and - when an opportunity arises - enhance air service access. Not another one-off "we'll-find-another-airline" project. Instead, It delivers the analytical expertise of our professionals to clients on an on-going basis.
Air Service Management™ programs from Boyd Group International are focused on helping airports meet the new realities of air service access:
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Consultant Studies Won't Create Airlines That Don't Exist. There are very few airlines left - just ten major scheduled passenger carriers in the US. That goes to nine with the US/AA merger. There's no vast "airline store" out there, with lots of undiscovered carriers just hankering' to come to town.
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Airlines Are Not Expanding. On the whole, these ten airlines are focused on building unit revenues, not passenger volumes. They are also focused on specific geographic objectives.
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Fleets Are Not Growing. In the next three years, US airline fleets will shrink by nearly 200 airliners. In 2013, there will be nearly three percent fewer flights operated. These remaining airlines have specific route strategies and specific fleets that define where flying makes sense and where it does not.
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Not Much Is Hidden. In most cases, the actual airlines available and interested to add service to a specific market are not more than one or two - and they are immediately identifiable by ethical aviation professionals. No "studies" or sloppy internet surveys are needed.
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In Many Cases, What's There Is All There Is. Reality: at some communities, there are no airlines left that have any interest in adding service - particularly on point-to-point routes. What service is already at some airports (or isn't) is often in stone, regardless of the perceived needs or wants of the community. These are precisely the airports that can benefit strongly from an Air Service Management program from Boyd Group International.
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Leisure-Destination Service Can't Bring Business From Tucson. Nor From Tokyo. Travel-company service is great to have, such as the high-quality programs offered by Allegiant. But this is separate and distinct customer business from the most important role of a commercial airport, whether small or large: assuring connectivity with the global air transportation system and the global economy it serves. In point of fact, there are airports today that have a lot of travel-company passengers, but no air service access.
Air Service Management™ - Meeting The New Airline Planning Environment
It's a program that recognizes these new realities, and can proactively identify future air service threats and opportunities. When you sign on, the Boyd Group Team is immediately on your team. From that point on, you don't just call us - we call you.
Remember, we're a comprehensive research and strategic planning firm. So,
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We're in contact whenever an event or trend takes place- or appears on the horizon - that will affect your air service.
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We proactively provide you with key data and analyses regarding air service trends - nationally and locally.
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We provide insight on potential airline strategy shifts which may represent a new opportunity, or a potential threat, in the future.
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We supply you with key datasets, forecasts, and trend projections on a monthly or quarterly basis, depending on the metric - generated from Aviation DataMiner™, the industry's most advanced business intelligence system.
The Program Is Simple, Flexible, Customized & Highly Effective:
An Air Service Management program can be quickly and cost-effectively tailored to the needs of any airport - large or small. The program starts with a SWOT analysis, and then it is customized specific to the client's objectives.
Independent Air Service SWOT Diagnostics. We do a
professional review of historical air service metrics and
airline trends at the airport
and in the region, including a near-term traffic
forecast.
We're not talking about a coffee-table report, but instead just the hard facts and data you need to get a clear picture of your airport's air service situation. We look at current capacity, load factors, hub-feed contribution, fare trends, and future schedule patterns. That gives us the foundation to assist in building a realistic and community-supported air service plan.
And because we're using Aviation DataMiner, we deliver the SWOT air service diagnostics report quickly, so we can rapidly initiate Step Two.
Strategic & Tactical Air
Service Plan. Depending on the airport's needs,
we then work with the airport to
design a workable air service
management, retention and enhancement plan,
within the context of airline realities.
Vulnerabilities to capacity reductions will be isolated
specific
to your airport, and remediation recommended. Potential
enhancements will be identified and tactical plans outlined for
attainment. Solutions/improvements for each will be identified.
Community Team
Building. It's natural for communities to want service
to markets that simply are not possible, or from airlines that
have no chance of serving the local airport. To this end, we
offer an on-site Community Team Building™
On-Going Monitoring & Management. With an Air Service Management Program, Boyd Group International staff essentially become the airport's air service support team. The team meets weekly to discuss air service events, dynamics and changes in airline strategies. Using DataMiner, we review the week's changes in filed schedules to determine future shifts in fleets, capacity and hub access.
The
program is proactive. For example, here are just some of the key
focus areas we're currently reviewing for our clients: Effects
of service shifts in the long term as a result of the merger of
Southwest and AirTran, particularly at regional airports. We're
also closely watching how the US/AA merger will represent
opportunities for a number of communities in the East and in the
Midwest. Delta's retirement of more 50-seaters is another air
service factor to watch. Remember, Boyd Group International is
an aviation research firm, and we continuously monitor the pulse
of the airline industry.
Keeping You On Top Of Air Service Dynamics. We prepare and transmit the following on-going data, including professional insight, analysis and appropriate recommendations:
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Schedule & Capacity Report - Monthly - analyzing changes year over year, and month to month. Where necessary, recommendations for shifts in patterns will be made.
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Traffic Metrics Report - Quarterly. This report is a combination of ranking of top O&D by several timesets and datasets. These include market ranking by passengers and by fare. In addition, hub-feed performance will be included, which provides indications of the contribution the airport is making to the carrier's system. In addition, hub-feed can reveal points where new/additional service may be pursued.
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Fare Shifts & Comparative Airports - Quarterly. The report provides analysis of fare changes in top 25 O&D markets (or more, if requested) on a year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter basis. Each major O&D market will be compared to traffic generated and fares at competing airports. Fares will be expressed in
average one-way dollars and, to provide more accurate
comparisons of the cost of air travel, in per-mile yield.
From this report, recommendations will be made regarding
contact with carriers to address markets where fares are a
material problem, or where schedule changes have adversely
affected demand. -
Load Factors - Monthly. A load factor report will be provided comparing year-over-year and month-over-month metrics for each nonstop scheduled market. This is an early warning system in regard to increased leakage, as well as for contact with carriers for more capacity.
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Liaison With Carriers. (On-Going). As needed, staff of Boyd Group International will provide liaison with airline planners on the your airport's behalf. In addition, at an additional fee, specific route-and-market presentations can be completed as needed.
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On-Going Information. Boyd Group International staff will be in contact whenever new trends or events arise that may affect air service at the client airport.
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Special Analysis Reports. On request, Boyd Group International can develop and deliver reports specific to the airport's request and needs. In many cases, where the report is of universal value, there is no charge to clients for this.
Quarterly Air Service Community Update Presentation. Because the support of the community is critical, each quarter, a clear, concise Community Update will be provided for presentation to community groups, the local media and for posting on the airport's website. The presentation will cover key air service access issues, as well as any local "hot button" issues that may arise. Prepared with the input of the airport, this is a feature that will assure that the community's expectations are managed and that the airport is viewed as the solution, not the problem.
In short, with an Air Service Management™ program, our staff become actively involved with your airport.
The Cost?
Air Service Management™ programs are scaled by airport size, and are tailored to your specific goals.
In any case, it's more than an even bet that your airport can get the benefit of a tailored Air Service Management™ program annually for less than sending staff to speed-date events throughout the year, just to get a 20-minute audience with airline planners who would really rather be someplace else.
Give Scott Stewart, our Director of Airport Planning, a call. Or, just drop him an e-mail at Scott @ Aviation Planning.com. He'll fill you in. You will be surprised how cost-effective it is to move your air service planning to meet the opportunities of the new airline environment.
78 Beaver Brook Canyon Road, Evergreen, Colorado 80439 USA
(303) 674-2000
© 2013 Boyd Group International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.