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Managing Airports

Fully revised and updated to consider recent developments in the industry,

the sixth edition of Managing Airports: An International Perspective provides
comprehensive and cutting-edge insight into the processes behind running a
successful airport.

Logically structured and embellished with illustrative diagrams and tables

throughout, this edition approaches management topics from a strategic and
commercial perspective and provides an innovative and accessible understanding
of how modern-day airports are operated. Containing a plethora of global case
studies covering a range of different airports from many different parts of the
world, the book maintains a balance between coverage of key principles and
practice of airport management, together with thorough consideration of current
and topical issues. This edition has been updated to include:

• New content on the significant economic and operational impacts of the

COVID-19 pandemic on the global air transport industry, technological
and digital advances, the changing air transport environment, airline
developments, net zero goals and evolving markets.
• Updated and expanded content on sustainability development and airports’
adoption of sustainable development goals, changes in airline business
models, airport digital marketing, the passenger biometric airport journey
and airport diversification strategies.
• New and updated international case studies to show recent issues and
theory in practice.

International and multidisciplinary in approach, this edition is a vital resource

for students, lecturers and researchers of transport and tourism, and practitioners
within the air transport industry.

Anne Graham is Professor of Air Transport and Tourism Management at the

University of Westminster in London, UK. One of her key areas of expertise and
knowledge is airport management, economics, regulation and marketing, and
she has 40 years’ experience of teaching, research and consultancy on these
topics. She has published widely, with recent books including Airport Marketing
(Second Edition), Air Transport: A Tourism Perspective, The Routledge Companion to
Air Transport Management, Airport Finance and Investment in the Global Economy
and Aviation Economics. She is also a co-editor of three linked books published
by Routledge in 2021 related to air transport and regional development. She is
a former editor-in-chief of the Journal of Air Transport Management.
Managing Airports
An International
Perspective
Sixth Edition

Anne Graham
Cover image: © Getty Images
Sixth edition published 2023
by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Anne Graham
The right of Anne Graham to be identified as author of this work
has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
First edition published by Elsevier 2001
Fifth edition published by Routledge 2018
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Graham, Anne, 1958– author.
Title: Managing airports : an international perspective/Anne
Graham.
Description: Sixth Edition. | New York, NY : Routledge, 2023. |
Revised edition of the author’s Managing airports, 2018. |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Identifiers: LCCN 2022039997 (print) | LCCN 2022039998
(ebook) | ISBN 9781032216409 (hardback) | ISBN
9781032216386 (paperback) | ISBN 9781003269359 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Airports—Management.
Classification: LCC TL725.3.M2 G73 2023 (print) | LCC
TL725.3.M2 (ebook) | DDC 387.7/36068—dc23/eng/20220819
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022039997
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022039998

ISBN: 978-1-032-21640-9 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-1-032-21638-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-26935-9 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003269359

Typeset in Stone Serif

by Apex CoVantage, LLC

Visit the eResource: www.routledge.com/9781032216386

Contents

List of figures vii

List of tables xi
List of case studies xv
Preface xvii
Acknowledgements xix
List of Abbreviations xxi

1 Introduction 1

2 The structure of the airport industry 13

3 Airport economics 117

4 The airport–airline relationship 163

5 Airport operations 235

6 Airport service quality and the passenger experience 281

7 Provision of commercial facilities 327

8 Airport competition and the role of marketing 383

9 The economic and social impact of airports 459

10 The environmental impact of airports 495

11 Future prospects 555

Index 565

v
Figures

1.1 Passengers at world airports, 2004–2021 2

1.2 Airport passengers by world region, 2019 3
1.3 Airport cargo tonnes by world region, 2019 3
1.4 The world’s 20 largest airports by total passengers, 2019 4
1.5 The world’s 20 largest airports by cargo tonnes, 2019 5
1.6 The world’s 20 largest airports by aircraft movements, 2019 6
2.1 Passengers at major French airports, 2019–2021 50
2.2 Total passenger numbers at Indian airports, 2002–2021
(April–March financial year) 59
2.3 Timeline of the start of operations of privatised Japanese
airports 71
2.4 EBITDA shares of Fraport’s business segments 85
2.5 Percentage of passengers at airports with some private-sector
involvement by region, 2019 91
2.6 Percentage of airports by privatisation model, 2016 91
2.7 Percentage of passengers at airports by privatisation
model, 2016 92
2.8 Types of government financial support to airports, March
2020–March 2021 105
3.1 Operating margin of world airlines and airports, 1998–2018 120
3.2 Net margin of ACI airports by airport size, 2019 121
3.3 Revenue structures at ACI airports, 2019 123
3.4 Cost structures at ACI airports, 2019 123
3.5 Split between aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenues at
ACI airports, 1990–2019 124
3.6 Projected (pre–COVID-19) vs estimated (since COVID-19)
global airport revenues by quarter, 2020–2022 128
3.7 Projected (pre–COVID-19) vs estimated (since COVID-19)
global airport revenues by world region, 2020–2022 128
3.8 Changes between costs and revenues at selected airports,
2019 vs 2020 130
3.9 Impact of COVID-19 on European airport economic
performance, 2020 vs 2019 131
3.10 Factors influencing airport economic performance 138
3.11 Total costs per passenger for selected world airports, 2019 146
3.12 Residual variable factor productivity at selected Asia-Pacific
airports, 2019 150

vii
 FIGURES

4.1 Aeronautical revenues by source at ACI airports, 2019 170

4.2 Airport charges index, 2020 171
4.3 Airport charging practices since COVID-19 200
4.4 Likely impact on charges of a demand shock
(such as COVID-19) 201
4.5 Monthly flights with 10 per cent or less passenger load
factor, March 2020–September 2021 216
4.6 US airport funding sources, 2017 221
4.7 AIP funding, 2005–2021 224
5.1 Main security activities at airports 252
5.2 The goals of Smart Security 263
5.3 The pillars of Smart Security 264
5.4 Airport use or planned use of self-service technology,
2020–2024 267
5.5 Journeys covered in the NEXTT initiative 270
5.6 Different levels of digital airport maturity associated with
passenger processes 273
5.7 ACI’s Airport Health Accreditation Scheme 276
6.1 ASQ award winners 2021: 5–15 million passengers per year
category 292
6.2 Satisfaction with the different parts of the passenger experience 304
6.3 OBR framework for Heathrow airport regulation, 2023–2026 307
6.4 OBR outcomes for Heathrow airport 307
6.5 Examples of airport passenger experience profiles 315
6.6 North American passenger preferences for automated
technology vs customer service at airports 319
6.7 Technology most valued by passengers in the future 319
7.1 Shopping preferences of different traveller profiles 333
7.2 Non-aeronautical revenue per passenger at ACI airports by
world region, 2019 337
7.3 Non-aeronautical revenue at ACI airports by revenue
source, 2019 337
7.4 Minimum acceptable percentage sales for retail concession
at Cochin International Airport, 2019 343
7.5 Retail/F&B and car parking revenue at selected London
airports, 2019 349
7.6 Passenger dwell time at the New York airports, 2019 350
7.7 Possible factors influencing airport commercial revenues 355
7.8 Airside retail sales per departing passenger at Amsterdam
airport, 2012–2021 360
7.9 Airside F&B sales per departing passenger at Amsterdam
airport, 2012–2021 360
7.10 Decision point for airport duty-free sales 361
7.11 Passenger attitudes towards pre-trip and airport online
touchpoints 362

viii
 FIGURES

7.12 Car-related commercial revenues at Los Angeles airport,

2015–2021 367
7.13 Impact on car-related revenues of TNCs on large-hub
US airports 367
8.1 Oxera-proposed SMP screening criteria for airports 392
8.2 CEG-proposed SMP screening criteria for airports 393
8.3 Passenger numbers at Irish airports, 2005–2021 436
8.4 Key features of the DUB+ Partner Marketing programme 437
8.5 Main types of content for airport marketing 440
8.6 Airport use of mobile apps in 2019 446
8.7 Types of mobile marketing 448
8.8 Types of social media 449
8.9 Features of a social media content engagement plan 452
9.1 The economic impact of airports 461
9.2 Impact of COVID-19 on the direct jobs in the aviation
industry, 2019 and 2021 463
9.3 Direct jobs at European airports, 2013 464
9.4 SEO Air direct connectivity index of top 10 European
airports, 2022 and 2019 476
9.5 Examples of airport social impacts 482
9.6 Possible impacts of passenger taxes 490
10.1 Emission and energy management measures used at Asia-
Pacific airports 513
10.2 Environmental benefits and challenges of an air to rail
modal shift 518
10.3 Surface access mode used at German airports, 2017 521
10.4 Surface access mode used at selected UK airports, 2019 522
10.5 Public transport use and targets at selected Norwegian airports 523
10.6 Surface access mode used at San Francisco airport, 2014 and 2017 523
10.7 Surface access modes used at Zurich airport, 2017 526
10.8 Key sustainable surface access solutions, policies and tools 527
10.9 Examples of local emissions at an airport 529
10.10 Examples of net zero practices at Swedavia for its own
operations 531
10.11 Possible performance indicators for environmental
management 535
10.12 The UN’s sustainable developments goals (SDGs) 537
10.13 Examples of environmental policies associated with the
airport passenger journey 540
10.14 Key airport participation requirements at each
accreditation level 542
11.1 Traffic (RPKs) forecast annual growth rates, 2019–2041 561
11.2 Traffic (RPKs) forecasts for the 10 largest regional markets,
2019–2041 561

ix
Tables

1.1 The world’s 20 largest airports by total passengers, 2019–2021 7

1.2 The world’s 20 largest airports by cargo tonnes, 2019–2021 8
1.3 The world’s 20 largest airports by aircraft movements,
2019–2021 9
2.1 Examples of airport privatisation through share flotations 24
2.2 Examples of airport privatisation through trade sales 26
2.3 Examples of airport privatisation through concession
agreements 30
2.4 Examples of airport privatisation through BOTs 35
2.5 Examples of national airport group privatisations 39
2.6 Ownership patterns at main UK airports, 2021 45
2.7 Group/fund ownership of UK airports, 2021 48
2.8 Airport participation in the US Airport Privatization Pilot
Program/Airport Investment Partnership Program 55
2.9 Lease rent payments at major Canadian airports, 2021 58
2.10 Major privatisation projects at Indian airports 60
2.11 Major privatisation projects at Brazil airports 65
2.12 China’s listed airport companies 73
2.13 Major international airport operators/investors, 1998, 2008
and 2021 81
2.14 Top 20 airport operators with private participation, 2019 82
2.15 Fraport’s international activities 85
2.16 TAV Airports: portfolio of airports 87
2.17 Vinci Airports: portfolio of airports 89
2.18 Average EV/EBITDA multiple values since 2000 94
2.19 NAA’s sister airport agreements 103
2.20 Debt refinancing at selected airports, 2020 106
3.1 Profitability for largest airport operators, 2019 and 2020 118
3.2 Airport operating revenue sources 122
3.3 Operating revenue and cost structures at a selection of world
airports, 2019 125
3.4 Performance indicators commonly used to assess economic
performance 142
3.5 Performance indicators suggested by ICAO and ACI 144
3.6 Examples of airport performance and efficiency studies:
parametric (stochastic) cost/production function methods 148
3.7 Examples of airport performance and efficiency studies: non-
parametric index number methods 149
xi
 TA B L E S

3.8 Examples of airport performance and efficiency studies: non-

parametric frontier methods 151
4.1 Main aeronautical charges at airports 169
4.2 Main features of the 2009 EU airport charges directive 181
4.3 Examples of economic regulation at selected European airports 188
4.4 The ‘-X’ value used for the UK airport price caps 194
4.5 A comparison of the main features of the new and old UK
regulatory systems 196
4.6 Key features of the 1996 EU ground handling directive 205
4.7 Key features of the 1993 EU slot allocation regulation 208
4.8 Examples of slot trades at Heathrow airport 212
4.9 Use agreement approaches at large-hub US airports 218
4.10 Taxes at US airports (as of 1 January 2022) 220
4.11 COVID-19 federal airport grants 223
5.1 Security fast-track prices at UK airports, 2022 240
5.2 Traditional LCC needs and requirements of airport terminals 242
5.3 Examples of LCC facilities and terminals 244
5.4 Key events related to airport security since 9/11 257
5.5 Airport use/planned use of biometrics for identity
management, 2020, 2021 and 2024 268
6.1 LOS standards for a check-in desk (with queue width 1.4–1.6 m) 283
6.2 ACI’s ASQ average satisfaction scores, 2021 290
6.3 Schedule time: Amsterdam–London, 1985–2022 295
6.4 Top 20 mega-sized airports by OTP in 2019 296
6.5 Service quality elements included in the regulation of Dublin
airports, 2020–2024 299
6.6 Service quality targets in the Mumbai airport concession
agreement 301
6.7 Information sources used by ACCC to monitor service
quality at Australian airports 302
6.8 Examples of outcomes and measures with an outcome-based
approach 306
6.9 Heathrow airport OBR measures 308
6.10 Delivery accountability for the passenger experience 312
6.11 Different levels of the passenger experience 313
7.1 Passenger segmentation related to shopping behaviour at
selected airports 332
7.2 The different markets for commercial facilities at airports 336
7.3 Selected indicators and performance areas used in the Airport
Commercial Revenues Study 359
7.4 Aer Rianta International’s involvement in international
retailing activities, 2022 373
7.5 DDF sales by category and area, 2021 376
8.1 Multiple airport regions (MARs) 386
8.2 The airport’s customers 402

xii
 TA B L E S

8.3 Factors affecting the choice of airports for passengers

and airlines 405
8.4 Ranking of factors influencing LCC choice of airport 407
8.5 Ranking of factors influencing passenger choice of airport 409
8.6 Types of airport charge discounts for new services 418
8.7 Airport incentive schemes launched during the COVID-19
pandemic 419
8.8 Types of data used for market research 429
8.9 COVID-19 traffic recovery support schemes at Dublin and
Cork airports 438
8.10 Social media used by the Changi Airport Group 451
9.1 Direct employment and passenger volume/characteristics of
European airports 465
9.2 Economic impacts at Dublin, Luton, Winnipeg and
Minneapolis–St. Paul airports 468
9.3 Examples of passenger taxes in Europe, December 2020 486
10.1 Landing and noise charges at Paris CDG airport, 2022 501
10.2 US government grants awarded in 2021 to reduce emissions
and improve air quality at airports 511
10.3 Drop-off charges at UK airports, 2022 525
10.4 Key environmental features of Galapagos Ecological airport 533
10.5 Airport impacts and links with the UN’s SDGs 537
10.6 Examples of environmental management targets at Changi
Singapore airport 539
10.7 ACI airport carbon accreditation scheme, 2022 543
10.8 Main climate change risks and impacts for airports 545
10.9 The vulnerability assessment grid 545
10.10 Climate change risk assessment at Istanbul airport 546
11.1 Forecast share of 2019 passengers by region, 2022–2025 559
11.2 Long-term passenger forecasts of global traffic growth 559

xiii
 CASE STUDIES

2.1 Fraport: operating as a global airport company 84

2.2 TAV Airports: providing integrated airport services for Eastern
Europe, North Africa and Central Asia 86
2.3 Vinci: Airport management amongst a global concession and
construction services portfolio 88
2.4 COVID-19 and airport privatisation 104
3.1 The impact of COVID-19 on airport economics 127
4.1 Economic regulation in the UK 193
4.2 The Impact of COVID-19 on airport charges and regulation 200
4.3 The impact of COVID-19 on slot allocation 214
4.4 The US experience 216
5.1 Self-connecting facilities 248
5.2 ACI’s Smart Security 262
5.3 The NEXTT initiative 269
5.4 The impact of COVID-19 on terminal operations 274
6.1 ACI and service quality measures 289
6.2 Outcome-based regulation 305
6.3 Service quality, the passenger experience and innovation at
Munich airport 320
7.1 Groupe ADP: introducing a new commercial strategy 346
7.2 Impact of COVID-19 on commercial revenues 356
7.3 DAA and Aer Rianta International: an international
airport retailer 371
7.4 Dubai airports: non-aeronautical strategies for a competing
airport 375
8.1 The UK situation and airport competition 395
8.2 Competition and marketing issues at the Irish airports 433
8.3 Content marketing at Bengaluru airport and COVID-19 441
9.1 The Airport City or Aerotropolis 472
10.1 Carbon emission policies at Swedavia 530
10.2 The Galapagos Ecological airport 533
10.3 Environmental management at Changi Singapore airport 538
10.4 The ACI airport carbon accreditation scheme 541

xv
Preface

When the first edition of this book was published in 2001, the airport indus-
try had received relatively little attention in the published literature and had
been very much overshadowed by the airline sector. Hence this was the moti-
vation for writing this book. Shortly after publication, the airport sector had
to cope with the unparalleled consequences of the events of 9/11, the Iraq
War, the outbreak of severe acute respiratory distress (SARS) and the continuing
threat of terrorism. These issues were consequently considered in the book’s
second edition, which was published in 2003. Five years on, the third edition
in 2008 concluded that 9/11 had been a significant turning point for the indus-
try and since then it had been operating in a much more unstable environ-
ment. This was not just due to security concerns but also because of changing
airline structures and increased environmental pressures. Another five years
passed, and the world experienced a severe global economic crisis, political
unrest and a number of natural disasters. So again this was the backdrop for
the fourth edition of this book. The fifth edition followed amidst heightened
fears of terrorism attacks, unpredicted political change and geopolitical events,
the unprecedented occurrence of extreme weather events and rapid economic
development in various emerging economies. However, since then the airport
industry has arguably faced the most significant global crisis ever with the
COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time airports have come under more pres-
sure than ever to adopt sustainable development goals and set net zero targets,
and there have been advances in technology enabling the unimaginable to
happen. These developments and others have necessitated this sixth edition of
this book to ensure that all current and significant challenges faced by airports
are covered.

Over the last 20 years there has been considerably more written about the
airport industry, but there is still limited coverage in one place of all the impor-
tant managerial and business aspects of running an airport and how these link
together. Therefore the aim of this book, as in previous editions, is to provide a
comprehensive appreciation of the key management issues facing modern-day
airport operators. As well as providing an up-to date review of all latest develop-
ments, there are discussions concerning key trends, particularly in the areas of
sustainable development, the passenger experience, diversification and techno-
logical innovations. The impacts and implications of COVID-19 and recovery
strategies are examined in detail. At the same time other themes such as airport
privatisation, competition and economic regulation have been revisited, given
the changing airport–airline relationship and external environment.

xvii
 P R E FA C E

Airports are now complex businesses requiring a range of competencies and

skills. The emphasis here is on the economic, commercial, marketing and plan-
ning areas at a strategic level. An approach has been adopted reflecting the
very international nature of most of the industry. The book uses material from
a wide range of airports and has a very practical focus. New case studies have
been provided, not only to cover new topics and COVID-19 impacts but also to
reflect the shift of economic power and corresponding traffic growth to emerg-
ing economies and other challenges that face more mature markets. The book
provides an overview of all the key management challenges facing airports
and so by necessity the scope has to be very far-reaching. The book will enable
the reader to acquire a broad and up-to-date insight into the workings of the
industry which will meet the needs of anyone who wishes to work, or is already
working, in the airport sector.

xviii
Acknowledgements

I am extremely grateful to all my colleagues, students, family and friends who

have helped me in pursuing my passion to write about airports. I am also very
appreciative of the enormous support from the team at Routledge, particularly
Emma Travis and Harriet Cunningham.

A very special thanks goes to Ian, Lorna, Callum and Ewan.

xix
Abbreviations

AAI Airport Authority of India

ACCC Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
A-CDM Airport-Collaborative Decision Making
ACI Airports Council International
ACL Airports Coordination Limited
ACSA Airports Company South Africa
ACROS Airport Climate Risk Operational Screening
ADP Aeroports De Paris
AENA Aeropuertos Espanoles Y Navegacion Aerea
AGI Airports Group International
AGOSS Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme
AI Artifical Intelligence
AIA Athens International Airport
AIF Airport Improvement Fund
AIP Airport Improvement Program
ANSP Air Navigation Service Provider
AOT Airports of Thailand
APD Air Passenger Duty
APU Auxiliary Power Unit
API Advanced Passenger Information
ARI Aer Rianta International
ASA Airport Special Account
ASAS Airport Surface Access Strategy
ASQ Airport Service Quality
ATM Air Traffic Management and Air Transport Movement
ATF Airport Transport Forum
ATRS Air Transport Research Society
ATM Air Transport Movement
ATU Airport Throughput Unit
BA British Airways
BAA British Airports Authority (only prior to 1987 - from 1987
the company was known only as BAA and then in 2012 it
changed its name to Heathrow Ltd)
BCIA Beijing Capital International Airport
BOT Build–Operate–Transfer
BREEAM Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment
Method

xxi
 A B B R E V I AT I O N S

BRIC Brasil, Russia, India and China

BSCA Brussels South Charleroi Airport
BSP Billing and Settlement Plan
B2B Business to Business
B2C Business to Consumer
CAA Civil Aviation Authority
CAAC Civil Aviation Administration of China
CAPEX Capital Expenditure
CARES Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security
CART Council Aviation Restart Task Force
CBA Cost Benefit Analysis
CBP Customs and Border Protection
CRRSAA Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriation
Act
CDA Continous Descent Approach
CDG Charles De Gaulle
CGE Computable General Equilibrium
CIP Commercially Important People
CO2 Carbon Dioxide
CORSIA Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme For International
Aviation
CPH Copenhagen Airport A/S
CPI Consumer Price Index
CRM Customer Relationship Management
CRS Congressional Research Service
CSR Corporate Social Responsibility
CUSS Common Use Self Service Check-In
CUTE Common Use Terminal Equipment
DAA Dublin Airport Authority (Up until 2014)
DBA Decibel
DBFOT Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer
DDF Dubai Duty Free
DEA Data Envelopment Analysis
DFT Department For Transport
DHS Department of Homeland Security
DIAL Delhi International Airport Private Limited
DMO Destination Management Organisation
DMU Decision Making Unit
EBIT Earnings Before Interest and Tax
EBITDA Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation
ECAC European Civil Aviation Conference
EEA European Economic Area
EFQM European Foundation For Quality Management
EIA Economic Impact Analysis

xxii
 A B B R E V I AT I O N S

EMAS Eco Management and Audit Scheme

ESG Environmental Social and Governance
ETS Emissions Trading Scheme
EU European Union
EV Enterprise Value
EVTOL Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing
FAA Federal Aviation Administration
FAC Federal Airports Corporation
FAQ Frequently Asked Questions
F&B Food and Beverage
GA General Aviation
GAO General Accounting office
GAWC Globalization and World Cities Research Network
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GDPR General Data Protection Regulation
GIP Global Infrastructure Partners
GPU Ground Power Unit
GRI Global Reporting Initiative
GVA Gross Value Added
HTA Hochtief Airport
HVO Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil
IATA International Air Transport Association
ICAO International Civil Aviation Organisation
ID Identification
IDP International Departing Passenger
IFM Industry Funds Management
IGA Istanbul Grand Airport
IOT Internet of Things
IPO Initial Public Offering
ISO International Standards Organisation
KPI Key Performance Indicators
LAGS Liquids, Aerosols, Gels
LCC Low-Cost Carrier
LCT Low-Cost Terminal
LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
LOS Level of Service
LPG Liquefied Petroleum Gas
LTO Landing and Take-off
MAAS Mobility As A Service
MAG Manchester Airport Group and Minimum Annual Guarantee
MAP Macquarie Airports
MAR Multi-Airport Region
MAS Multi-Airport System
MAW Maximum Authorised Weight

xxiii
 A B B R E V I AT I O N S

MBMS Market-Based Measures

MCT Minimum Connect Time
MIAL Mumbai International Airport Private Limited
MIDT Market Information Data Tapes
MII Majority in Interest
MLIT Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
MPPA Million Passengers Per Annum
MPD Market Power Determination
MTOW Maximum Take-off Weight
MWAA Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
NFC Near Field Communication
NATS National Air Traffic Services
NEXTT New Experience Travel Technologies
NPAIS National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
NRI Non-Resident Indian
NOX Nitrogen Oxide
OAG Official Airline Guide
OBR Outcome-Based Regulation
OECD Organisation For Economic Co-Operation and Development
O&D Origin and Destination
OFT Office of Fair Trading
OTP On-Time Performance
PEER Performance Excellence in Electricity Renewal
PEI Passenger Experience Index
PET Polyethylene Terephthalate
PFC Passenger Facility Charge
PNR Preferred Noise Route
POS Point of Sale
PPE Personal Protective Equipment
PRM People With Reduced Mobility
PSO Public Service Obligation
PNR Passenger Name Records
PPA Passengers Per Annum
PPP Public-Private Partnership
PSC Passenger Service Charge
PTL Power to Liquid
QC Quota Count
QR Quick Response
QSI Quality Service Index
QSM Quality of Survey Monitor
RAB Regulated Asset Base
RDF Route Development Fund
RFID Radio Frequency Identification
ROCE Return on Capital Employed

xxiv
 A B B R E V I AT I O N S

ROIC Return on Invested Capital

ROR Rate of Return
RPI Retail Price Index
SAF Sustainable Aviation Fuel
SARS Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
SESAR Single European Sky Air Traffic Management
SDG Sustainable Development Goal
SDR Special Drawing Right
SMP Substantial Market Power
SQRB Service Quality Rebate and Bonus
STEBS Standard Tamper Evident Bags
TNC Transport Network Company
TFP Total Factor Productivity
TSA Transport Security Administration
UAV Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
VAT Value-Added Tax
VFP Variable Factor Productivity
VFR Visiting Friends and Relatives
VIP Very Important Person
VR Virtual Reality
WACC Weighted Average Cost of Capital
WASB Worldwide Airport Slot Board
WASG Worldwide Airport Slot Guidelines
WFP World Food Programme
WLU Work Load Unit
WWACG Worldwide Airport Coordinators Group
UAM Urban Air Mobility
UN United Nations
UNWTO United Nations World Tourism Organisation
YVRAS Vancouver Airport Services

xxv
1 Introduction

Airports are an essential part of the air transport system. They provide all the
infrastructure needed to enable passengers and cargo to transfer from surface
to air modes of transport and to allow airlines to take off and land. The basic
airport infrastructure consists of runways, taxiways, apron space, gates, pas-
senger and freight terminals and ground transport interchanges. Airports bring
together a wide range of facilities and services in order to fulfil their role within
the air transport industry. These services include air traffic management (ATM),
security and fire and rescue in the airfield. Handling facilities are provided so
that passengers, their baggage and cargo can be transferred successfully between
aircraft and terminals and processed within the terminal. Airports also offer an
increasingly wide variety of commercial facilities ranging from shops and res-
taurants to hotels, wellbeing services, conference spaces and business parks.

As well as playing a crucial role within the air transport sector, airports have a
strategic importance to the regions they serve. In a number of countries they
are increasingly becoming integrated within the overall transport system by
establishing links to high-speed rail and key road networks. Airports can bring
greater wealth, provide substantial employment opportunities and encourage
economic development – and can be a lifeline to isolated communities. How-
ever, they do have a very significant effect, both on the environment in which
they are located and on the quality of life of residents living nearby. Intensi-
fied awareness of general environmental issues, especially in relation to global
warming, has heightened environmental concerns about airports.

The focus of this book is on management issues facing airport operators. These
operators vary considerably in their ownership, governance, management
structure and style, degree of autonomy and funding. Typically, airport opera-
tors themselves provide only a small proportion of an airport’s facilities and
services. The rest of these activities are undertaken by airlines, handling agents,
government agencies, concessionaires and other specialist organisations. The
way in which operators choose to provide the diverse range of airport facilities
can have a major impact on their economic and operational performance and
on their relationship with their customers.

Each airport operator will thus have a unique identity, but all have to assume
overall control and responsibility at the airport. Each will be faced with the
challenging task of coordinating all the services to enable the airport sys-
tem to work efficiently. The providers of services are just some of the airport

DOI: 10.4324/9781003269359-1 1
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

stakeholders that operators need to consider. Others include shareholders,

airport users, employees, local residents, environmental lobbyists and govern-
ment bodies. A complex situation exists, with many of these groups having dif-
ferent interests and possibly holding conflicting views about the strategic role
of an airport. All the stakeholder relationships are important, but the develop-
ment of a good relationship with the airlines is critical, as ultimately this will
largely determine the air services on offer at the airport.

The airport industry had been growing virtually continuously since the Sec-
ond World War, with periodic fluctuations due to economic recessions or other
external factors such as the Gulf War in 1991 and 9/11. Since 2000 and up until
2019, the airport industry experienced a number of volatile years, with further
incidents including the outbreaks of SARS (2003) and swine flu (2009), the
Eyjafjallajökull ash cloud (2010) and the Arab Spring uprisings (2010–2012).
These events and others had varying impacts in different world regions, but
overall there was still global growth except for a marginal decline in 2009
because of the world economic recession. In 2019, total traffic numbers peaked
with 9.1 billion passengers, 119 million cargo tonnes and 102 million aircraft
movements. However in 2020 COVID-19 spread to all parts of the world and
arguably became the most significant global crisis ever faced by the airport
industry. By 2021 the total passenger numbers were only 4.6 billion, which
was an increase of 28.3 per cent from 2020, but still a drop of 49.5 per cent
on the 2019 levels. This volume of traffic was in fact similar to what had been
experienced in 2004 (Figure 1.1). Air cargo was less impacted by COVID-19,
primarily because of growth in e-commerce and in the demand for online con-
sumer goods and pharmaceutical products (such as personal protective equip-
ment and vaccines). However, there was a shift from carrying the cargo in the

10
9
8
7
Passengers (bns)

6
5
4
3
2
1
0
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021

Figure 1.1
Passengers at world airports, 2004–2021
Data sources: ACI traffic reports

2
 INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1

bellyhold of widebody passenger aircraft (which nearly all disappeared in 2020)

to freighter aircraft, or passenger aircraft just transporting cargo. Total cargo
tonnes increased by 15 per cent between 2020 to 2021 and were 3.5 per cent
higher in 2021 than in 2019.

Globally pre–COVID-19, the airport industry was dominated by the regions

of Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America in terms of passenger numbers and
cargo tonnes (Figures 1.2 and 1.3). In 1999, North America had a larger share

Latin America- Middle East Africa

Caribbean 4% 3%
7%

Asia-Pacific
37%

North America
22%

Europe
27%

Figure 1.2
Airport passengers by world region, 2019
Data source: ACI (2020a)

Middle East Africa

Latin America- 7% 2%
Caribbean
5%

Asia-Pacific
39%

North America
29%

Europe
18%

Figure 1.3
Airport cargo tonnes by world region, 2019
Data source: ACI (2020a)

3
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

of 47 per cent of the global market share of passenger numbers, followed by

Europe with 30 per cent. Traffic in Asia-Pacific accounted for just 15 per cent
of the total. Since then the share of traffic in this region has increased dramati-
cally, particularly in China, where Beijing Capital was the second largest airport
in the world in 2019 – having been in only ninth position with around 50
million passengers 10 years earlier. In addition, the Middle East area has seen
very significant increases in traffic volumes, particular at Dubai airport, which
handled over 86 million passengers in 2019 compared with fewer than 30 mil-
lion in 2006.

The importance of these three global regions in 2019 was reflected in the indi-
vidual traffic figures of the various airports. Out of the 20 largest global air-
ports, 6 were US airports, 10 were Asia Pacific/Middle Eastern airports and 4
were European (Figure 1.4). Not all the major cargo airports coincide with the
major passenger airports. Memphis is the world’s second largest cargo airport
because FedEx is based there. Similarly, UPS has its base at Louisville (Figure
1.5). In terms of aircraft movements, North American airports tend to have
comparatively high numbers because the average size of aircraft is smaller
due to competitive pressures and the dominance of domestic traffic. The

New York JFK

Bangkok
Singapore Americas
New Delhi Europe
Denver
Asia/Middle East
Frankfurt
Seoul Incheon
Hong Kong
Amsterdam
Guangzhou
Dallas FW
Paris CDG
Shanghai PVG
London LHR
Chicago
Tokyo HND
Dubai
Los Angeles
Beijing PEK
Atlanta

0 20000 40000 60000 80000 100000 120000

Passengers (000s)
Figure 1.4
The world’s 20 largest airports by total passengers, 2019
Data source: ACI (2020b)

4
 INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1

Amsterdam
London LHR
Chicago
Guangzhou Americas
Beijing PEK Europe
Singapore
Asia/Middle East
Frankfurt
Los Angeles
Miami
Paris CDG
Toyko NRT
Taipei
Doha
Dubai
Anchorage
Incheon
Louisville
Shanghai PVG
Memphis
Hong Kong

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000

Cargo tonnes (000s)
Figure 1.5
The world’s 20 largest airports by cargo tonnes, 2019
Data source: ACI (2020b)

larger-than-average aircraft size in Asia meant that none of the 10 busiest air-
ports in terms of movements were situated in this region, with the exception
of Beijing Capital (Figure 1.6).

The rankings of airports in terms of passenger numbers changed considera-

bly after COVID-19. Atlanta returned to having the largest numbers of pas-
sengers in 2021 after losing this position in 2020. Eight of the top 10 airports
were in the United States with the remaining two being in China. Nearly all of
these airports had a significant share of domestic traffic which recovered more
quickly than international traffic with the exception of the new Istanbul air-
port (Table 1.1). Beijing Capital airport, which was in second position in 2019,
slipped to twentieth position in 2021. However because cargo traffic was less
affected than passenger traffic, the rankings of the top 20 cargo airports during
COVID-19 were not so different (Table 1.2). In terms of aircraft movements,
since COVD-19 the top 20 list was even more dominated by US airports, again
because of the large domestic markets that they serve. In 2021 there were no
European airports at all amongst the 20 largest airports in terms of aircraft
movements (Table 1.3).

5
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

Phoenix
Tokyo HND
San Francisco
Americas
Mexico City
New Delhi Europe
London LHR Asia/Middle East
Houston
Paris CDG
Guangzhou
Shanghai PVG
Frankfurt
Amsterdam
Las Vegas
Charlotte
Beijing PEK
Denver
Los Angeles
Dallas FW
Atlanta
Chicago

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
Aircraft movements (000s)
Figure 1.6
The world’s 20 largest airports by aircraft movements, 2019
Data source: ACI (2020b)

Looking back more long-term, the growth in demand for air transport has had
very significant economic and environmental consequences for both the air-
line and airport industries. Moreover, since the 1970s there have been major
regulatory and structural developments, which have profoundly affected the
way in which the two industries operate. Initially most change was experienced
within the airline sector as a consequence of airline deregulation, privatisation
and globalisation trends. The pace of change was slower in the airport industry,
but now this sector, too, has developed into a fundamentally different business.
The trend towards airline deregulation began in 1978 with the deregulation of
the US domestic market. Many more markets were subsequently liberalised or
deregulated, initially as the result of the adoption of more liberal bilateral air ser-
vice agreements. In the European Union (EU), deregulation was achieved with a
multi-lateral policy that evolved over a number of years with the introduction of
three deregulation packages in 1987, 1990 and 1993. The 1993 package, which
did not become fully operational until 1997, was the most significant and had
the most far-reaching impact. This European deregulation allowed a large low-
cost carrier (LCC) industry to develop, which has had major consequences for
many airports. This deregulation trend continued in other parts of the world.

6
 INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1

Table 1.1 The world’s 20 largest airports by total passengers,

2019–2021

Ranking in 2021 Airport 2021 2020 2019

Passenger numbers (thousands)

1 Atlanta 75,705 42,919 110,531

2 Dallas Fort Worth 62,466 39,364 75,067

3 Denver 58,829 33,741 69,016

4 Chicago O’Hare 54,021 30,860 84,373

5 Los Angeles 48,007 28,780 88,068

6 Charlotte 43,302 27,205 50,169

7 Orlando 40,351 21,618 50,613

8 Guangzhou 40,259 43,768 73,378

9 Chengdu 40,117 40,741 55,859

10 Las Vegas 39,754 22,255 51,691

11 Phoenix 38,847 21,928 46,288

12 Miami 37,302 18,664 45,924

13 New Delhi 37,140 28,501 68,490

14 Istanbul 36,988 23,330 52,193

15 Shenzhen 36,358 37,916 52,932

16 Seattle 36,154 20,045 51,829

17 Mexico City 36,057 21,981 50,308

18 Chongqing 35,766 34,938 44,787

19 Shanghai Hongqiao 33,207 31,166 44,638

20 Beijing Capital 32,639 34,514 100,011

Data sources: ACI (2022,2021, 2020b)

At the same time that the airline industry was being deregulated, airline own-
ership patterns changed. Most carriers, with the notable exception of those in
the United States, traditionally were state owned and often were subsidised by
their government owners. However, this situation changed substantially as an
increasing number of governments opted for partially or totally private-sector
airline ownership, primarily to reduce the burden on public-sector expenditure
and to encourage greater operating efficiency. It needs to be noted, though,
that the devasting impacts that COVID-19 had on the financial health of air-
lines actually resulted in a reversal of this privatisation trend for some airlines,

7
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

Table 1.2 The world’s 20 largest airports by cargo tonnes,

2019–2021

Ranking in 2021 Airport 2021 2020 2019

Cargo tonnes (thousands)

1 Hong Kong 5,025 4,468 4,809

2 Memphis 4,480 4,613 4,322

3 Shanghai Pudong 3,982 3,686 3,634

4 Anchorage 3,555 3,158 2,745

5 Louisville 3,052 2,917 2,790

6 Seoul Incheon 3,052 2,917 2,764

7 Taipei 2,812 2,343 2,182

8 Los Angeles 2,691 2,229 2,091

9 Tokyo Narita 2,644 2,017 2,104

10 Doha 2,620 2,175 2,216

11 Chicago O’Hare 2,536 2,003 1,758

12 Miami 2,521 2,138 2,092

13 Dubai 2,319 1,932 2,515

14 Frankfurt 2,275 1,914 2,091

15 Paris Charles de Gaulle 2,062 1,746 2,102

16 Guangzhou 2,045 1,759 1,922

17 Singapore 1,970 1,578 2,057

18 Amsterdam 1,681 1,456 1,592

19 Leipzig 1,589 1,378 1,238

20 Shenzhen 1,568 1,399 1,283

Data source: ACI (2022, 2021, 2020b)

as governments took over partial or total ownership to ensure survival of the

airlines. The other most significant development within the airline industry,
partly due to deregulation and privatisation trends, was the globalisation of
the industry and the emergence of transnational airlines. Three major alliance
groupings – Star, oneworld and Sky Team – emerged with global networks. They
dominate the airline business, accounting for over half of all traffic. Airline joint
ventures and mergers have followed and have become increasingly popular.

The airports found themselves caught up in this environment of change.

Radical restructuring occurred, which in many ways mirrored that which had

8
 INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1

Table 1.3 The world’s 20 largest airports by aircraft movements,

2019–2021

Ranking in 2021 Airport 2021 2020 2019

Aircraft movements (thousands)

1 Atlanta 708 548 904

2 Chicago O’Hare 684 538 919

3 Dallas Fort Worth 652 514 720

4 Denver 581 437 632

5 Charlotte 520 398 578

6 Los Angeles 507 380 691

7 Las Vegas 487 323 553

8 Phoenix 408 310 457

9 Miami 389 251 417

10 Houston 379 268 478

11 Seattle 375 296 451

12 Guangzhou 362 373 491

13 Long Beach 350 287 321

14 Shanghai Pudong 350 326 511

15 Grand Forks 350 247 295

16 Salt Lake City 343 277 345

17 Mexico City 328 239 460

18 New Delhi 327 249 466

19 Shenzhen 318 320 370

20 Santa Ana 312 238 301

Data source: ACI (2022, 2021, 2020b) and airport websites

fundamentally changed the airline industry. Three key developments were wit-
nessed within the airport sector, as follows:

1 Airport commercialisation. The transformation of an airport from a public

utility to a commercial enterprise and the adoption of a more business-like
management philosophy.
2 Airport privatisation. The transfer of the management of an airport, and in
many cases the ownership as well, to the private sector by a variety of meth-
ods. These include share flotations, the adoption of strategic partnerships
and the introduction of private management contracts.

9
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

3 Airport ownership diversification. The emergence of a number of different

types of new investors and operators of airports, such as financial investors
and infrastructure companies, some of which have interests in a number of
airports around the world.

This book discusses the implications of the development of the airport sec-
tor, which has moved from an industry characterised by public-sector owner-
ship and national requirements into a transformed era of airport management
where the private sector and international airport companies play a key role.
Airports are now complex enterprises that require a wide range of business
competencies and skills – just as any other industry. Airports no longer see their
purpose simply as providers of infrastructure, but rather as providing facilities
to meet the needs of their users.

Chapter 2 describes the changes in ownership and management models that

have taken place and reviews the current structure of the airport industry.
These developments have had a major impact on airport economics and have
significantly increased the need for an evaluation of economic performance,
which is considered in Chapter 3. Such airport industry trends, occurring at
the same time as deregulation within the airline industry, also meant that the
traditional airline–airport relationship changed irreversibly. Chapter 4 looks at
this, focusing primarily on airport charging, regulation and slots issues.

As the airport sector has evolved, it has focused on serving the needs of dif-
ferent types of customers, rather than offering a more generic product that
appeals to all. This is discussed in Chapter 5, as are regulatory and technologi-
cal developments that are occurring in essential passenger processes such as
security, border control and check-in. The consequences of these developments
are assessed in Chapter 6, which considers the ‘passenger experience’ and the
challenges in achieving overall passenger satisfaction, which is a major con-
cern for many airports.

A key consequence of airport commercialisation and privatisation trends is

that airport operators have devoted much more time and effort to building up
the non-aeronautical or commercial areas of the business. Chapter 7 looks in
detail at this area of operation. Airport competition, hardly considered a rel-
evant issue by many airports just two decades or so ago, is now very important.
Marketing, which for so long has been a basic business competence in most
other industries, is now a firmly accepted management practice at airports.
This is discussed in Chapter 8.

The remaining chapters take a broader view of the airport business and con-
sider the role airports play in the environment and surrounding communities.
This needs to be clearly understood if future and sustainable growth in the
airport industry is to continue. Chapter 9 discusses the economic and social
impacts of airports and how they can act as catalysts for business and tourism

10
 INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1

development. Chapter 10 goes on to consider the environmental impacts and

ways in which airports are attempting to minimise the adverse effects. Finally,
Chapter 11 brings together, and reflects on, the key issues in the previous chap-
ters in order to make predictions for the coming years and to assess the future
prospects for the industry.

At the time of writing (August 2022) the industry was still very much recover-
ing from COVID-19. As a result, huge uncertainties and challenges remained,
which are discussed in the various chapters. In addition, airports have come
under more pressure than ever before to adopt sustainable development goals,
not only in terms of the environment (especially related to climate change) but
also in economic and social areas. Moreover, technological and digital devel-
opments have progressed at a very fast pace affecting most areas of airport
management. Hence these three areas, namely COVID-19, sustainability and
technology, are dominant key themes that flow through all the chapters.

References
ACI (2020a) ‘ACI’s World releases most comprehensive airport traffic dataset’,
Press Release, 20 July, Montreal: ACI.
ACI (2020b) ‘ACI reveals top 20 airports for passenger traffic, cargo, and aircraft
movements’, Press Release, 19 May, Montreal: ACI.
ACI (2021) ‘ACI World data reveals COVID-19’s impact on world’s busiest air-
ports’, Press Release, 22 April, Montreal: ACI.
ACI (2022) ‘Final data released: Top 20 busiest airports confirmed’, Press Release,
25 July, Montreal: ACI.

11
2 The structure of the
airport industry

The aim of this chapter is to discuss the structure of the airport industry, particu-
larly in terms of the ownership and governance models that are used. It traces
the development of the airport sector as it has moved from an industry character-
ised by public-sector ownership and national requirements into a modern-day
era of airport management, where the private sector and international com-
panies play a key role. It identifies the reasons for why airport privatisation
has occurred and provides a timetable of key developments, including COVID-
19. It discusses the advantages and disadvantages of the different privatisa-
tion models that have used, namely share flotations, trade sales, concessions,
build–operate–transfers (BOTs) and management contracts. It then moves to
consider who is buying and operating airports and the reasons for these invest-
ment decisions and developments. This leads to a discussion of the benefits of
international multi-airport groups.

Traditional airport ownership and

management
Virtually all airports were traditionally owned by the public sector. Euro-
pean airports serving major cities such as Paris, London, Dublin, Stockholm,
Copenhagen, Madrid and Geneva were all owned by national governments, as
were many other airports outside Europe, such as those in Tokyo, Singapore,
Bangkok, Sydney and Johannesburg. Elsewhere, local governments, at either a
regional or a municipal level, were the airport owners. This was the situation
with most US airports. Regional airports in the United Kingdom also followed
this pattern. Manchester airport, for example, was owned by a consortium of
local authorities, with 55 per cent ownership resting with Manchester City
Council and the remaining 45 per cent split evenly among eight councils of
other nearby towns. In Germany, Dusseldorf airport was jointly owned by the
governments of North Rhine, Westphalia state and the city of Dusseldorf, while
the joint owners of Hanover airport were the governments of the state of Lower
Saxony and the city of Hanover.

With a number of airports, there may have been both local and national govern-
ment interest. For example, Frankfurt airport was jointly owned by the state of

DOI: 10.4324/9781003269359-2 13
CHAPTER 2 THE STRUCTURE OF THE AIRPORT INDUSTRY

Hesse (45 per cent), the city of Frankfurt (29 per cent) and the federal government
(26 per cent). Similarly, Amsterdam was owned by the national government (76
per cent) and the municipalities of Amsterdam (22 per cent) and Rotterdam
(2 per cent). Vienna airport was another example, owned by the Republic of
Austria (50 per cent), the Province of Lower Austria (25 per cent) and the city
of Vienna (25 per cent). Basel–Mulhouse, or EuroAirport, situated on the border
between Switzerland and France, was (and still is) a unique airport, being jointly
owned by the national governments of both Switzerland and France.

It was only in the 1990s that there started to be a significant presence of privately
(or partially privately) owned airports. Before this, the only privately owned air-
ports were small general aviation (GA) or aeroclub airports, and so the influ-
ence of the private sector on the airport industry was very limited. Thus public
ownership, at a local and/or national level, used to be the norm. However, the
way in which the government owners chose to operate or manage the airports
varied quite significantly and had a major impact on the airport’s degree of inde-
pendence and autonomy. The strictest form of control existed when the airport
was operated directly by a government department, typically the Civil Aviation
Authority (CAA), Ministry of Transport or, in a few cases, the military. This was
the common practice for airports in areas such as Asia, the Middle East, Africa
and South America. In Canada, the National Department of Transport directly
operated the 150 commercial Canadian airports. Within Europe, Greece was a
good example of a country where airports were effectively run by the CAA.

In other cases, semi-autonomous bodies or companies, but still under public

ownership, operated the airports. In some instances these organisations managed
more than one airport, as was the situation in Europe with the British Airports
Authority (BAA) and Aer Rianta Irish Airports. There were also airport authorities
or companies that operated just one major airport. This was the case at Amsterdam
airport and many of the German airports. In the United States, airport authorities
also existed for some airports, such as the Minneapolis–Saint Paul Metropolitan
Airports Commission. In a few cases there were multi-purpose transport authori-
ties, such as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey or Massport in Bos-
ton, which operated other transport facilities as well as airports.

There were also a few examples of airports being operated on a concession basis
for the central government. At the larger Italian airports (e.g. Venice, Milan),
companies with public (usually local) shareholdings and perhaps some minor-
ity private shareholdings as well held the operating concession for a long-term
period, such as 60 years at Milan airport. The concession could cover manage-
ment of the total airport and handling services (e.g. Milan, Turin) or just some
of the services such as terminal management and handling (e.g. Palermo). At
French regional airports, the concessions were given to the local chambers of
commerce, with the national government retaining some control over the
airfield facilities. At Zurich airport, the Zurich Airport Authority, which was
owned by the Canton of Zurich, was responsible for the planning and overall

14
 THE STRUCTURE OF THE AIRPORT INDUSTRY CHAPTER 2

operation of the airport and the airfield infrastructure, while a mixed public-
private company, FIG, managed and constructed the terminal infrastructure.

Moves towards commercialisation

These publicly owned and often strictly controlled airports were historically
regarded as public utilities with public service obligations (Doganis, 1992). Con-
sequently commercial and financial management practices were not given top
priority. In the 1970s and 1980s, however, as the air transport industry grew and
matured, and as the first steps towards airline privatisation and deregulation
took place, views about airport management began to change. Many airports
gradually started to be considered much more as commercial enterprises, and a
more business-like management philosophy was adopted. Thus ‘commercialisa-
tion’ of the airport industry began to take place. The pace of change varied con-
siderably in different parts of the world, with Europe generally leading the way.
By contrast, airports in areas such as Africa and South America generally held
on to more traditional attitudes towards airports and experienced less change.

Moves towards commercialisation were reflected in a number of different inter-

related developments. First, various airports loosened their links with their
government owners. This was achieved with the establishment of more inde-
pendent airport authorities or, in some cases, by corporatisation, which involved
setting up an airport company with public-sector shareholders. Such develop-
ments generally gave the airports more commercial and operational freedom
and sometimes opened the door to private-sector investment and partnerships.

There had always been a number of airports, such as Amsterdam and Frankfurt,
which had been run by airport corporations or companies. However, chang-
ing attitudes led to many more airport authorities and companies being estab-
lished. For example, in 1972 the International Airports Authority of India was
established to manage the country’s four international airports, while in 1986
the domestic airports came under the control of the National Airports Author-
ity. These two authorities merged in 1995. In Indonesia, two organisations,
Angkasa Pura I and II, in charge of the airports in the east and west of the
country, respectively, became public enterprises in 1987 and limited liability
companies in 1993. Other examples included the Polish Airport State Enter-
prise established in 1987; the Federal Airport Corporation of Australia set up
in 1988; Aeropuertos Espanoles y Navegacion Aerea (AENA) in Spain and the
Kenya Airports Authority, both formed in 1991; and Avinor in Norway in 2003.

In some cases, such as Copenhagen airport in 1991, the South African airports
in 1994 and Narita airport in 2004, the establishment of an airport corporation
was undertaken primarily as an interim step towards airport privatisation. Like-
wise legislation was passed in 2005 which enabled a number of the larger 12
French regional airports to become companies, with the aim of future possible
private involvement.

15
CHAPTER 2 THE STRUCTURE OF THE AIRPORT INDUSTRY

Canada is an interesting example where the management of many of the coun-

try’s major airports, previously under the direct central control of Transport
Canada, was passed over by way of long-term leases to individual non-profit-
making authorities in the 1990s. The aim behind this was to improve efficiency
and integrate each airport more closely with the local economy. The first air-
port authorities were set up for Montreal’s two airports, Vancouver, Calgary
and Edmonton in 1992. By 2000, control of over 100 Canadian airports had
been transferred to local organisations (Caves and Gosling, 1999). In China
too, the central government began a process of handing over airports to local
government control in 1988 with Xiamen airport, and by 2004 all airports,
with the exception of Beijing and those in Tibet, were operated by local govern-
ment airport corporations (Zhang and Yuen, 2008).

Greater attention began to be paid to the commercial aspects of running an air-

port, such as financial management, non-aeronautical revenue generation and
airport marketing. The operational aspects of the airport had traditionally over-
shadowed other areas, and most airport directors and senior management were
operational specialists. However, the commercial functions of an airport were
gradually recognised as being equally important and, as a result, the resources
and staff numbers employed in these areas were expanded. Relatively underused
practices, such as benchmarking financial performance and quality management
techniques, also began to be accepted – albeit rather slowly at the start – by a
growing number of airports as essential management tools. In some airports, the
typical functional organisation structure, with different departments for finance,
operations, administration and so on, was replaced with departments or business
units focused more on customers’ needs, such as airline or passenger services.

One of the most visible indications of moves towards commercialisation and

an increased focus on treating the airport as a business was greater reliance
being placed on non-aeronautical or commercial revenues. Aeronautical rev-
enues, such as landing and passenger fees from the airlines, traditionally had
been by far the most important source. For a few airports, notably in Europe,
non-aeronautical sources overtook aeronautical sources as being the most
important revenue. For instance, this occurred at Amsterdam airport in 1984.
This development was primarily the result of greater space being allocated to
retail and other non-aeronautical facilities, the quality being improved, and
the range of commercial activities being expanded.

The airport industry historically had played a rather passive role towards
marketing and responded to customer needs only when necessary. A more
business-like approach to airport management, coupled with a more commer-
cially driven and competitive airline industry, encouraged airports to play a
much more proactive role. In the United Kingdom, for example, many airports
set up marketing departments, started to use pricing tactics and promotional
campaigns to attract new customers and began to undertake market research
(Humphreys, 1999).

16
 THE STRUCTURE OF THE AIRPORT INDUSTRY CHAPTER 2

In the past, because of government controls, it was sometimes very difficult to

obtain financial accounts that gave a true indication of an airport’s financial
and economic performance. Often an airport would adopt public accounting
practices specific to the country and would use public-sector rather than more
standard commercial procedures. This meant that comparisons with other organ-
isations could not easily be made. Moreover, some airports were not considered
as separate accounting units. This meant that the airport’s costs and revenues
were treated as just one item within the government department’s overall finan-
cial accounts, and rarely were they matched together to assess the profitability
of the airport. In certain cases no separate balance sheet existed for the airport.

However, an increasing number of airports started adopting more commercial

accounting practices in the 1970s and 1980s. This was often a direct result of
the loosening of government links with the establishment of an airport author-
ity or corporation. For instance, in the United Kingdom in 1987, all the major
regional airports became public limited companies. This meant that the air-
ports adopted commercial private-sector accounting procedures. One example
of this was that for the first time they showed depreciation as a measure of cost
of capital. Similarly, when Geneva airport became an independent authority in
1994, it began to show a balance sheet and asset values in its annual accounts,
which had previously been omitted.

Why privatisation?
While the 1970s and 1980s were dominated by airport commercialisation, the
1990s was the decade when airport privatisation became a reality. But what is
meant by ‘airport privatisation’? It is a vague term that can have various mean-
ings. In its broadest sense, it is usually associated with the transfer of economic
activity or control from the public to the private sector. This involves the trans-
fer of management to private hands, but not always ownership.

The theoretical arguments for and against privatisation of publicly owned

organisations are well known. They have been fiercely debated over the years
and are well documented (e.g. Parker and Saal, 2003; Vickers and Wright,
2005). Supporters of privatisation argue that it will reduce the need for public-
sector investment and provide access to the commercial markets. It will limit
government control and interference and may increase an organisation’s abil-
ity to diversify. It may bring about improved efficiency, greater competition
and wider share ownership and provide greater incentives for management
and employees to perform well and be commercially focused. Moreover, gov-
ernments may gain financially from converting fixed public assets into cash
and subjecting the privatised firms to paying company taxes. On the other
hand, opponents argue that privatisation may create a private monopoly that
overcharges, delivers poor standards of service, invests inadequately and gives
insufficient consideration to externalities, such as controlling environmental

17
CHAPTER 2 THE STRUCTURE OF THE AIRPORT INDUSTRY

impacts and maintaining social justice. Less favourable employment condi-

tions may be adopted, with redundancies occurring, and compromises may be
made with health and safety.

A number of developments within the air transport industry in the 1980s

and 1990s specifically strengthened the case for airport privatisation in some
countries (Freathy and O’Connell, 1998). First, the demand for air transport
continued to grow and was predicted to do so well into the future. In some
markets, notably Europe and North America, deregulation encouraged growth
and meant that the existing airport capacity could not cope with this growth.
Airport privatisation was seen as a way of injecting additional finance into
the airport system to pay for the needed future investment. Moreover, one
of the major traditional sources of airport financing, namely public-sector
funds, became increasingly scarce as governments strove to reduce their public-
sector spending or to shift their focus onto non-revenue-earning activities that
appeared to be more worthy, such as health and education. Rikhy et al. (2014)
summarised the reasons for airport privatisation as developing traffic demand
or meeting such demand; providing broader economic development; receiving
cash to deleverage the federal and municipal government’s or airport’s balance
sheets; financing large-scale airport infrastructure; reducing or transferring
risks; transferring technology and operational expertise; sharing best practices;
and bringing efficiency to the design and operations.

From one viewpoint, airport privatisation can be seen as just an evolutionary

stage of airport development. Airports have evolved from public-sector utili-
ties to commercial enterprises, and privatisation can be considered as commer-
cialisation taken to its limits. Increased commercialisation generally brought
healthier profits and market-oriented management. Airports showed that they
had the proven ability to meet private-sector requirements. At the same time,
the changes within the airline industry inevitably had a major impact on the
airport sector. The transformation from a predominantly publicly owned, state-
controlled and highly regulated airline industry to a global competitive busi-
ness with much more commercial freedom forced many airports to have a much
more customer-focused outlook when coping with their airline customers.

The increasing number of airport privatisations that took place throughout

the world demonstrated the growing acceptance of this process as a method
of tackling some of the challenges that many airports faced at the start of the
twenty-first century. However, the ownership and control of airports is always
likely to be a controversial area. For many countries, transferring airports,
which are considered to be vital national or regional assets, to the private sector
is a politically sensitive policy. The arguably inherently monopolistic position
of some airports will also continue to be of concern to politicians and airport
users. The fear is that priority will be given to shareholders or investors and
that user and community needs will be neglected. To some opponents, the pri-
vatisation of airports, which is in effect the air transport ‘infrastructure’, does

18
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
 One other thing, the oysters at Kurrachee are not bad, particularly
when you know you won’t get any for five years to come.
We were much struck with the beauty and cheapness of the black-
wood furniture here. This beautiful carved furniture is now, so they
told us, out of fashion in India, and may be had for a song; the worst
of it is, it is brittle and bulky. We went to one of the dealers and
bought a hundred pounds’ worth, and for this sum our Persian home
would have been sumptuously furnished; we made a contract with
the seller, in writing, to pay him ten per cent. extra for the whole to be
delivered free on board, in cases not weighing over three hundred
pounds each, and not measuring more than four by three feet; if
otherwise as to size and weight, the bargain to be off. The afternoon
before the Arcot left, we, on our return from our drive, found the
dealer on board, and he smilingly informed us that the furniture was
all in the hold; he then presented his bill. I smelt a rat, as I had told
him I must see the cases and weigh them before shipment. Luckily I
did not trust the fellow, for some of the cases weighed eight hundred
pounds, and of course could not have gone up country in Persia. I
refused to take delivery, and was threatened with the law. But it
appears that the dealer, on showing his contract to a solicitor, was
told he had no case, and reluctantly removed his packages. I was
sorry the man lost by the affair, but packages of huge size and
weight were useless for mule carriage. So we lost our black-wood
furniture.
We had ten days of the coast of Belūchistan and the Persian Gulf,
stopping at Linga, Bunder Abbas, etc., though we did not go ashore,
having no desire for some hours’ pull, in the sun, in an open native
boat on a very rough sea.
At length Bushire was reached, and after a seven weeks’ voyage
from the time we left London, we landed in Persia; and were
hospitably entertained at the Residency, where Colonel Prideaux,
one of the whilom captives of King Theodore, was Acting Political
Resident in the Persian Gulf; Colonel Ross being at home on leave.
I was anxious to draw pay again, which I could only do on
reaching my station, Shiraz; and to escape the rains: so I engaged a
muleteer, and finding two of my old servants and a boy in Bushire,
we started with thirty mules, ourselves riding muleteers’ ponies.
Our stay in Bushire lasted only four days, and at some personal
discomfort we started, hoping to avoid the rains which were due in a
fortnight.
 CHAPTER XXXII.
FROM THE PERSIAN GULF TO ISPAHAN.

Our start for Shiraz—Camp out—Borasjūn—Spring at Dalliké—Kotuls—Kazerūn—

Buy a horse—A tough climb—Place of Collins’s murder—Arrive in Shiraz—
Hire a house—Settle down—Breaking horses—Night marching—Difficulties of
start—Mūrghab—Find our muleteer and loads—Abadeh—Yezdikhast—
Koomishah—Mayar—Marg—Arrive in Julfa.

We ourselves, our small dog “Pip” in a cage, and our canaries—

almost unknown in Persia—and seventy-two tiny “avadavats”
(bought at Kurrachee for three rupees), left in a boat for Sheif, on an
estuary of the gulf, thus avoiding the Macheelah plain, a dreadful
march of mud and water, and shortening the journey to Shiraz by two
stages.
After four hours’ pull and sail in the burning sun we reached Sheif.
This appeared simply a mud hut on the beach. There may have
been a village, but we saw nothing of it. Here we mounted our sorry
steeds.
Some three hours after we caught up with the rest of our loads,
which had struggled out through the Macheelah the day before. All
the mules were knocked up, and my wife was fatigued with the
unwonted exertion of riding a muleteer’s pony. This is at any time
hard work for a man, for the beast does not answer the bit, bores
continually on it, and strokes with a light-cutting whip are quite unfelt.
There is also a struggle among the riding ponies, more used to loads
than riders, as to who shall be last of all; in which a lady’s pony is
generally the victor.
It had been impossible to buy a hack suited to a lady in Bushire. I
had been asked English prices for the ghosts of steeds—quite
honestly, however, for Bushire prices are much higher than Shiraz
ones. So after my wife’s trying my pony, the cook’s, and the head
muleteer’s, I got one of our escort, a good-natured fellow, clad in
rags and smiles, to lend her his. This “yabū” (common pony) was at
all events easy, and had a canter in him at need.
At sunset the muleteer informed me that we were twenty miles
from our halting-place, Borasjūn, and that the mules could do no
more. It was hopeless to attempt to go on, as my wife was as tired
as the mules. Night (happily a warm one) was coming on; there was
no sign of any shelter for miles, the only thing visible on the sandy
plain being the distant date-groves, and these are of course no
protection. The road was dry, which was something, and we had
plenty of food with us; so we halted, spread our carpets, had tea,
and later on dinner, and camped out—rather a dreadful first day’s
travelling in Persia for a lady, to sleep without shelter, and in her
clothes, in the middle of the road, after travelling since ten a.m.
However, there was nothing else for it. The Sheif road is a very
unfrequented one, and the country was safe and undisturbed. It was
a lovely night, not a breath of wind. At four a.m. we had tea, and
started at five, getting into Borasjūn at ten.
For the time of year the luxuriant vegetation near the village was
extraordinary; it was now late in October, the heat was great, and the
amount of moisture in the air somewhat oppressive. We found
capital rooms in the caravanserai, and the clerk at the telegraph-
station made us welcome to high tea, being rather indignant that we
had not come straight to the office. After that we started again, and
reached our halting-place at midnight.
At Dalliké is a rest-house maintained by the Department for the
use of the employés. A short distance from the rest-house at Dalliké
is a hot spring of clearest water; the temperature is about one
hundred degrees, and being in a circular natural basin, some four
feet deep in the centre, and in a place where no warm bath can be
had, it is a favourite halting-place for travellers. Besides giving a
comfortable bath, there is a peculiarity that I have seen nowhere
else; the basin is full of myriads of fish about the size of whitebait.
On dipping the hand in, they at once cover it, and in a minute it is
quite hid from sight by crowds of tiny fish: they have no fear, and can
be removed in handfuls. On stripping and entering the basin a
curious effect is produced by one’s limbs becoming black with the
fish, which nibble at the skin, and only leave it when you plunge
violently. On becoming still, one’s body is again entirely covered with
fish.
From thence we travelled by day only. At each village I tried to get
a pony for my wife, but nowhere could I succeed, though I was ready
to buy anything not absolutely vicious.
Mr. M⸺ kindly gave us quarters at the telegraph-office at
Kazerūn, and here we rested a day.
The kotuls, or passes (literally ladders), well known throughout the
country, had astonished my wife: they are terrible places to ride up,
and nearly impossible to ride down: she, however, was determined
not to be beaten, and had ridden them all. We had been especially
fortunate in our weather; no rain, though we saw many clouds, and it
was imminent.
As I was looking out of window at the Kazerūn telegraph-office, I
saw a man mounted on a handsome grey mare. I hallooed, and he
stopped. I went down and parleyed. The mare was sound, and six
years old, fast, light-mouthed. I felt that, if free from vice, she was
what my wife wanted. I rode her, and succeeded in getting the man
to close for seven hundred and fifty kerans, about thirty pounds. I
gave him fifty kerans in cash, and a bill on Shiraz for the remainder. I
never regretted the purchase. The mare was all that a lady’s horse
should be. She was tall for Persia, being fourteen three in height, no
goose rump, and very handsome. Her mouth soon got very light, and
her only fault, a very trifling one, was that she carried her ears badly.
My wife and I constantly rode her for four years, and after marching
twenty-eight stages from Ispahan to the Caspian on her with a side-
saddle on, I handed her over in good condition, having sold her for a
fair price.
Of course the journey to my wife became now a pleasure. She had
a horse of her own that did not jolt, and who at a word or a shake of
the rein would canter or gallop, instead of the thwack, thwack of the
muleteer’s yabū. By fancying the troubles of a lady compelled to
cross the Rocky Mountains on a small Hampstead donkey, with a
tendency to fall, one might form some faint ideas of my wife’s trials in
getting over her five days’ climb from the coast to Kazerūn. We here
left the date-groves, which had been numerous till now.
Two more passes remained to us—the Kotul Dokter and Kotul Peri
Zun (the Passes of the Virgin and the Old Woman). That of the Old
Woman is very bad indeed, and it is a wonder how loaded mules do
get up it—miles of awful road among loose rocks and stones, and
then steep zigzags of paved road up a perpendicular cliff. Awful
work! We did it, however, and did it in the night; for we had been
stopped by a great firing of guns and alarm of thieves in the beautiful
Oak Valley, and so lost the daylight. We avoided a great part of the
pass by scrambling up “Walker’s Road,” a straight path under the
telegraph-line, well enough to walk down, but almost impossible to
ride up, particularly at night; fortunately, we had a moon, and the
weather was fine. My wife, however, was compelled to dismount
twice, and we lugged, shoved, and dragged the horses up, the
mules, of course, going by the high-road: at last we did get in, but all
tired out.
Next day a longish march brought us to the hill leading down into
the plain of Desht-i-arjeen. It was on this hill, some eleven years
before, that Major St. John[33] was riding, when a lion suddenly
sprang upon his horse’s hind-quarters. St. John had only a very
small Colt’s revolver with him at the time, when suddenly he saw a
lioness some thirty yards in front; he cracked his whip and shouted
at her, thinking that she would bolt. She charged; sprang, and came
down under his foot. With so small a pistol it would have been
useless to fire, so he spurred his horse, which, however, would not
move. The lioness now attacked from the rear, standing on her hind-
legs, and clawing the horse’s hind-quarters; he then jumped off,
getting, however, one slight scratch.
The horse now plunged and reared, knocking over the lioness on
one side, and the man on the other. The horse now was moving
away. The lioness stared at the horse, the man at her; then St. John
fired a couple of shots over her head to frighten her, but without
effect; she sprang again on the horse’s hind-quarters, and both were
lost to view. After an hour St. John found his horse, who, however,
would not let him mount. He drove the animal to the little hamlet,
where he found a single family, but the fear of beasts would not let
the head of it come out to search for the horse; however, next
morning he was found quietly grazing; his quarters and flanks were
scored in every direction with claw-marks, and one wound had
penetrated the flesh, which St. John sewed up. In a week the horse
was as well as ever, but bore the marks for the rest of his life.
I have taken the liberty of abridging Major St. John’s own account
of this real lion story from his note to the article “Leo,” in the work on
the ‘Zoology of Persia,’ volume ii., edited by Mr. W. Blandford, the
well-known naturalist. At the time the affair took place, Major St.
John was superintendent of the Persian Telegraph Department;
shortly after, I had the honour of serving under him in Shiraz for
some time, and was indebted to him for many kindnesses. I saw the
horse some two years after the affair, and the scars were very
apparent. I did not tell my wife this story till we had passed the stage,
and there was no more lion country.
Our next march brought us to Khana Zinyun, where a handsome
caravanserai has been built by the Muschir, the great man of Shiraz.
Before reaching it we passed a pole, marking the place where the
body of Sergeant Collins was found, after his murder by highway
robbers in the famine time.
The next morning we rode into Shiraz, and had no sooner reached
our house than the expected rain, which had happily held off during
our journey, began to fall, the sky was overcast, and continuous
storms took place, which lasted for a fortnight. Thanking our lucky
stars, we prepared to make ourselves as comfortable as possible,
and set to to unpack and arrange our quarters.
When we arrived at Shiraz, the superintendent’s house, which was
in a garden just out of the town, was kindly placed at our disposal. In
a few days I succeeded in hiring a good new brick-built house. We
bought a few carpets, and moved into it.
My colleague, Dr. Odling, kindly gave us the loan of his furniture
for the six months he expected to be away on leave, which was a
good thing, as one cannot get furniture made in Shiraz, and
everything has to be ordered in India or Ispahan. In the latter place
there are fairly good carpenters.
Our house was the property of the superintendent of the
Government powder mills, and for ten tomans, or four pounds a
month, we hired it for the six months that we should have to stop in
Shiraz during my colleague’s leave of absence. On his return it had
been arranged that we were to go to Ispahan, where we were to be
permanently stationed.
The house was formed of a quadrangle, having rooms on three
sides, and a dead wall at the end.
The greater portion of our kit being in tin-lined cases, and intended
for our permanent abode, we did not unpack. After about a week we
had settled down into working order, obtained a fair cook, and old
and respectable servants; put our little “Crescent” car together, a
small low dog-cart, built by McMullen, of Hertford, which has the
great advantage of taking to pieces, being easily put together, easily
packed in small and light parcels, and was thoroughly seasoned; and
stood the extraordinary dryness of the climate without cracking or
warping, which is saying a great deal.
The next thing was to get a trap-horse. The roads are mere tracks,
and very rough and heavy, and a strong animal was required. I
managed for twelve pounds to pick up a cobby pony of thirteen two. I
had him gelded, as even in Persia it is considered unsafe to drive an
entire horse; and he with another animal I gave seven pounds for,
were handed over to the coachman of the Muschir to be broken. I
had vainly attempted to break them myself with a gun-carriage, for
my little dog-cart was too light and pretty to risk a smash with. After a
fortnight the Muschir’s coachman informed me that both were quite
broken. I suggested that he should drive them in his master’s trap, a
big brougham; but he evidently feared an accident, and gave up the
job in despair. Another fellow, however, took it in hand, and after a
few days I rode out some five miles, and was delighted to find that
one of the ponies was fairly broken, the little grey one. The other one
was hopeless; he, however, answered well as a servant’s drudge.
 We were able now to take frequent drives, though a long one, from
the heavy state of the roads, generally kept the pony in the stable for
a couple of days. Still it was nice driving over the plain, when once
outside Shiraz and its environs.
My wife found the life amusing from its novelty; and as we were
not to remain in Shiraz during the summer, which is the unhealthy
time, our stay was enjoyable enough.
As Shiraz has been previously described, there is nothing more to
be said than that the winter soon slipped away, and the spring, the
most enjoyable part of the year in Shiraz, arrived, bringing the jaunts
to gardens so usual there.
My colleague, anxiously expected, did not, however, arrive till July,
and the weather had then got so hot as to necessitate our marching
up to Ispahan by night. As I have not noticed this mode of travelling
before, I cannot do better than quote my wife’s diary, which gives her
experience of the matter.
“On Tuesday, July the 17th, 1877, everything being ready, we
were informed that our muleteer was unable to start, his mules being
a hundred miles off; so after much delay we found another, and
engaged with him for forty mules, each carrying three hundred and
fifty pounds, at the rate of seven hundred pounds, from Shiraz to
Ispahan, for two pounds eight. Besides this, our cook had three
mules for himself and his family, and with our own three horses, we
shall form quite a respectable cavalcade.
“Shiraz to Zergūn, 24 miles.—On Wednesday the 18th, after
weighing all our cases and tying them up with the charwardar’s
ropes, at six p.m. we rode out, accompanied by Mirza Hassan Ali
Khan (our friend the British Agent here); having started all our
servants, bedding, and road-kit, on six mules. We kept one servant
with us, and a gholam (or irregular cavalry man), having an order
from the Governor of Fars on all the chiefs of villages to vacate their
houses if needed, and to find us with food and forage, of course
being paid for them. No sooner had we cleared the town, than, to our
disgust, we found our pantry-man surrounded by his weeping
relatives, his wife and our cook’s lady being unable to tear
themselves from their sympathising friends. This, of course, did not
matter, but, alas! the mule-load with our bedding was with them.
“My husband, by a free use of threats, compelled Abdul Hamid
(the pantry-man) to start, the gholam following in charge of the mule
which carried Hamid’s wife and the cook’s wife and daughter, a girl of
nine; all closely veiled, and weeping copiously.
“On getting about a mile out, the cage containing eight canaries,
two goldfinches, and eighteen avadavats, which we had got at
Kurrachee, was given to Hamid to carry in front of him; but as it was
his first journey and attempt at riding, after about a couple of
hundred yards he and the cage came crash to the ground, some
avadavats escaping; so we gave the cage to a villager to carry on his
head; we then bid good-bye to Mirza Hassan Ali Khan; and my
husband now was occupied in whipping on the mule of helpless
Abdul Hamid, to get him up to the other servants, in which he
succeeded after we had gone twelve miles. From the packing, and
excitement about getting mules, and not having had anything since
breakfast at one p.m., we were very tired; as were the horses, which
we had been from peculiar circumstances obliged to keep on grass
for the last three weeks.
“The road was a good one, but the moon gave very little light, and
we could not canter on that account, and for fear of the servants
lagging. This stage was formerly a very bad one, but the road was
made good last year, when the king was expected in Shiraz.
“At last, at eleven p.m., we reached the chupper-khana (or post-
house) at Zergūn, where we took the bala-khana (or upper room);
we drank some milk, and lay down till our dinner—a roast fowl and
potatoes, and custard pudding—was ready, which was not till nearly
one hour after midnight.
“After that we slept heavily till seven a.m., when we were glad of
our tea and devilled fowl. We had breakfast at twelve, and vainly
expected the mules all day; and after seeing our horses groomed
and fed, we dined at seven on soup, boiled fowl, and caper sauce,
Irish stew, custard pudding, figs, and grapes; ice, of course, was not
procurable; our wine we brought with us, and we always have a flask
full of it for the road.
“Just before starting, at half-past two a.m., in the dark, we had a
basin of soup; and having got all our servants off, started for our
second stage.
“At three we got off, and after nearly missing the road, we
marched along with our mules till dawn, when we cantered over a
good and level road, and feeling tired at sunrise, got down and had
some cold fowl and wine. Another hour brought us to Hadjiabad,
where we found two comfortable rooms occupied by some small
official, of whose carpets and water-skin we took possession (by
means of a few kerans), and slept till breakfast. We again rested till
five p.m., when we had soup, and started, reaching Sivend at nine
p.m., seven hours’ journey, thirty-two miles from Zergūn.
“To our disgust we found that the inspector had locked every room
in the telegraph-office, he being on leave; so we took up our quarters
on the verandah, which was fairly cool. In the morning still no mules,
so we moved over to the best house in the village, where we are
very comfortable. We were glad to give our horses a rest, for the
sudden exertion after grass had done them no good. We passed our
day in seeing our saddles cleaned, the washing of ‘Pip,’ and writing
letters.
“At night, the place being full of cats, who attacked the birds, C⸺
shot two and missed two more. They, however, ate one canary, and
the wires being broken, C⸺ had to pursue another bird over many
roofs, catching him at last unhurt.
“Sunday.—Still no news of mules; sent a ‘kossid’ (or foot-
messenger) with a letter to Shiraz asking for steps to be taken to get
them out. The man is to get half-a-crown for walking the fifty-six
miles in eighteen hours, and to bring back an answer!
“Monday.—Venison for breakfast. We got a welcome present of
snow last night, and by laying the top of the table on the bird-cage,
succeeded in defying the cats.
 “At twelve p.m., Wednesday, having no news of our mules, we
engaged two muleteers, started, and in two hours marched to
Kawamabad, eight miles, fording the river Bendamir half-way. A fair
road. The weather changed here; it was very chilly on arrival, and
cool and windy all day.
“Left Kawamabad at six p.m., Thursday, and reached the tomb of
Cyrus at twelve, where we rested a little, and ate some fowl, and
found the night very cold. The monument is like a huge dog-kennel,
of great squared stones, on a stone platform. Ussher states the tomb
itself to be forty-three feet by thirty-seven. There are seven stone
steps, which diminish in thickness as one ascends. The kennel-like
edifice at the top is twenty-one feet by sixteen only; the thickness is
five feet. The interior dimensions are ten feet long, seven wide, and
eight high. There are no inscriptions. The door is four feet high only.
There are the remains of twenty-four columns, six on each side.[34]
“Got to Murghāb, twenty-eight miles, at two a.m. A very long and
fatiguing march; several passes. This place is celebrated for carpets,
but we failed to obtain any. In the centre of the village there is a large
piece of turf like a cricket field—the only piece of turf I have seen as
yet.
“Left at six p.m. A bad road, with several passes, till half way, when
it became a sort of steppe; here we came on a number of mules
grazing: we fortunately sent a man to ask whose they were, and they
turned out to be our loads and the missing charwardar,[35] who had
passed us when we halted at Sivend.
“Our difficulties will now be much less, as with lots of muleteers we
shall get loaded and off quickly, and our bedding mule (which at
present carries my fortnightly box, C⸺’s portmanteau, a carpet,
two heavy chairs, and a table, a champagne box full of wine, an
india-rubber sack full of odds and ends, my little black bag, a heavy
cage for Pip, and the birds’ cage a yard long, besides our bedding;
and its pack-saddle weighing thirty pounds) will go much lighter: we
shall also get our bath, which had gone on with the loads.
 “We reached Dehbeed, twenty-six miles, at two; we had soup and
fowl on the road, and were very glad to get in. There is nothing here
but a chupper-khana, a caravanserai (in ruins), and a telegraph-
office. It is delightfully cool and windy, the water, too, is like ice, and
very good. Nothing to be got but bread; but we had supplies with us.
Left at nine p.m., and over a fair road with two small passes to Konar
Khora, twenty-four miles. This is a more lonely place than the last;
water only and cucumbers to be got; a post-house and caravanserai
(in ruins) the only houses, and nothing nearer than twenty-four miles.
The flies so hungry here that they bite and hurt.
“Left at six p.m., over a level plain and splendid road; stopped at
Faizabad, twenty-four miles, at twelve midnight, and taking the best
house, a very good one with two rooms overlooking a garden, slept
again in the open air; much warmer here; meat to be got again; we
are now out of the wilderness; had a really comfortable rest here; left
at ten p.m.
“Reached Abadeh, sixteen miles, at two a.m. Our groom had
lagged behind with the horse-clothing, and the other two men had
lost their way; so we, the cook and the bedding, arrived alone. C⸺
had to tie up the horses as best he could, and we took an hour to get
to bed. The road was good, and in the morning we got a fair mutton
steak, but no fruit was to be had. Left at ten p.m. Abadeh is a large
place enclosed in a mud wall, the post-house being outside; it is
celebrated for spoons carved in wood in a wonderful manner, but
they are useless and dear. Here Mr. Carapet, of the Department,
hospitably entertained us and gave us a capital dinner, and a leg of
mutton for the road.
“Over a long plain, twenty-four miles to Shūrgistan; put up in the
guest-house of the shrine; arrived at half-past three. Nothing to be
got here; so hot that we had to go downstairs—the lower rooms are
cooler. Left at half-past eight p.m., and over a long plain to
Yezdikhast, twenty miles, where we arrived at one. A fine
caravanserai; got a good room on the roof. People here report the
king’s death, and there is a panic. The place is peculiar, being built
on a high cliff which is in the middle of a deep gorge nearly a mile
wide, a small river running down the middle. Our gholam left us here,
this being the frontier of Fars.
“Left at six p.m. with three guards on horseback, the road reported
to be not safe. This stage is where C⸺ was robbed, and where the
Bakhtiaris make their incursions. Twenty-six miles to Maxsud Beg: a
long road. Arrived at two a.m. Took the guards the whole way, or we
should never have found the chupper-khana, which is off the road.
Got some good bread here at a small village. Found a load of ice
sent us from Kūmishah; a welcome present from the inspector there.
A good room twice the usual size, very cool; a high wind all day and
night. Left at half-past seven for Kūmishah, sixteen miles, a fair road,
wind very high and cold. Arrived at half-past eleven, after much
trouble in a rocky valley, servants losing themselves and coming to
grief. The brown horse went lame (from a projecting nail) and had to
be led. Were hospitably entertained by the inspector, Sergeant
McIntyre, who gave us a breakfast of many dishes. A large place,
but in ruins; very cool; a fine shrine and resting-place for pilgrims,
accommodating some thousands.
“Left at half-past five; twenty miles over a dreary plain to Mayar, a
large caravanserai, and a village which is the Shah’s personal
property (in ruins); arrived at half-past eleven. No beds, as we had
got in two hours before the loads. I was so tired, I lay down and slept
in my habit. We were all too tired to eat, and the servants were dead
beat; so we went without dinner, ordering a good breakfast to be
served as soon as we should wake. Being determined to try and get
into Ispahan (or rather Julfa) to-morrow, an early move was
necessary; we started at five p.m., and reached Marg caravanserai,
twenty-eight long miles, at two a.m.; here my husband determined to
halt for a few hours, and I slept till dawn in a wretched hole. There
were good quarters in the chupper-khana (post-house), and the
post-house and caravanserai are all that Marg consists of; but we
were told that glanders had been rife there, and we were afraid to
trust our horses in the place.
“At dawn our caravan arrived; the muleteers and servants swore
they could do no more, but a little persuasion and a promise of a
present got them off, after feeding their mules, and we cantered on,
reaching our quarters at ten a.m., after a hot ride in the sun. By this
forced march we escaped the meeting with new friends, who
otherwise, had we arrived the next day, as was calculated, would
have ridden out to meet us. I lay down at once, and the mules and
their riders dropped in one by one, each man on his arrival seeming
to shout louder than his predecessor.
“But our journey was over, and I trust I may never again have to
march three hundred miles at night.”
 CHAPTER XXXIII.
JULFA.

Hire a house—Coolness of streets—Idleness of men—Industry of women—Stone

mortars—Arrack—Hire a vineyard—A wily Armenian—Treasure-trove—The
“Shaking Minarets”—A hereditary functionary—A permanent miracle—Its
probable explanation—Vaccination—Julfa priests—Arrack as an anæsthetic—
Road-making—Crops of firewood—Fire temple—Huge trees—The racecourse
—Disappearance of ancient brick buildings—Donkeys—Healthiness of Julfa—
Zil-es-Sultan—His armoury—Prospects of the succession to the throne—Bull-
terriers—Mastiffs—Politeness and rudeness of the prince.

After a considerable amount of diplomacy, we managed to secure

a fine large house with a good garden and stabling, in the principal
and best street of Julfa. My wife was pleased with the cool climate of
Ispahan, the abundance of water, and the rows of trees with which
each street is planted.
The Armenian is a thrifty fellow, and plants the Zoban-i-gūngishk,
or sparrow-tongue, a kind of willow, on either side of the small ditch
which runs down the side or centre of the streets; this ditch brings
the water for the irrigation of the gardens, and by planting the trees
he obtains shade and fire-wood; for the “Zoban-i-gūngishk” is the
best of all woods for fuel, and the roots keep the ditch-bank solid and
in good repair. Cool and pretty as the streets look from the
unaccustomed masses of foliage, one soon finds that one is in a
Christian village. Sheep and oxen are slaughtered all down the
principal street, in the most public manner; and on Saturday night
especially drunkards are common, while swarms of loafers, generally
men who live on small pensions from relatives in India, lean with
their backs against the wall, basking in the early sun, or sprawl in the
shade during the heat.
In each doorway sit or lounge the women, but their hands and
tongues are busily employed; they knit socks as long as daylight
lasts; some widows even maintain a family by this industry. With
nose and mouth hidden, poorly fed, but well and warmly clad, the
Armenian woman makes up by her industry for the laziness of her
husband; she sweeps the house and yard, cooks the food, makes
the clothes, bakes the bread, makes wine, arrack, flour—for this is
generally ground in a hand-mill by the poor; and the rest of her time
is filled up by knitting. These Armenian women are notable
housekeepers, and though generally ignorant and ungraceful—a girl
is never even fairly good-looking after seventeen—they are hard-
working and very virtuous.
In most of the quarters of Julfa may be seen at the roadside huge
stone mortars for the pounding of rice, by which means it is extracted
from the husk; these are the remains of the teeming Julfa of other
days, when it was a large city with twenty-four crowded parishes,
each with its church, the ruins of most of which are now all that
remain of the parishes. You seldom see a Julfa man pounding at one
of the huge mortars; he prefers to hire a Mussulman or villager to do
the heavy work for him, and as he does not care to part with his
money—“Thrift, thrift, Horatio!”—the payment is generally a glass of
spirits. These spirits cost nothing, as each man makes his own wine,
which he sells, and from the refuse his arrack, which he drinks.
Armenians seldom drink wine; it is not strong enough for them, and
arrack is much more to their taste. All the refuse, after clearing the
wine, is put in a big pot, a head and worm is fixed on with mud, and
distillation by means of a very slow fire of big logs is proceeded with.
The product is redistilled once, and even a third time. A strong rough
spirit is the result; it is generally coloured green, and flavoured by
thrusting a handful of leaves of anise (rasianah) into the receiver. Of
course the spirit is quite pure, being after a third distillation simply
strong spirits of wine. What the Armenians sell, however, is much
adulterated and drugged; it is known as “fixed bayonets,” and is
simply made to produce intoxication.
I secured a fine house in Julfa for forty-eight pounds a year. One
side of this house—it formed two of the four enclosing sides of a big
garden—is shown in the illustration. The immense window indicates
the great size of the huge T-shaped summer room, or Orūssee, the
floor of which was tiled. The fountain is seen playing in the hauz, or
ornamental tank, in front of the Orūssee.

DR. WILLS’S HOUSE IN JULFA.

My landlord had a fine vineyard at the side of my house, and for a

yearly payment of one hundred kerans I secured the right of entry,
and the privilege of eating as many grapes as we pleased. The
landlord, however, made mud bricks, and covered over all the paths
with the freshly-made bricks laid to dry; it was only, finding
remonstrance ineffectual, by calling our five dogs in with us, and
letting them run over the soft bricks, that I could get him to clear the
paths. I found, too, that I was waterless directly water became
scarce and dear, the man having sold our water. Fortunately the
lease specified the water, so I took the water, and referred the
purchasers to my landlord. They beat him, and got back their money.
I saw the three arguing and fighting for several days; how the matter
ended I did not inquire. I got my water.
Twice in my house concealed treasure had been discovered; once
to a large amount by the grandfather of my landlord, and a second
time to a smaller value by his father.
On this second occasion, the well running dry, men were sent
down to deepen it; a door was found in the wall, and a quantity of
arms and clothing were discovered in a small chamber in the wall,
but no money or jewels. I found a secret chamber in this house, but it
was empty.
Of course my wife had to be taken to that terrible fraud, the
Shaking Minarets. Why, no one knows, but every one has heard of
the Shaking Minarets. “You went to Ispahan. What did you think of
the Shaking Minarets?” is constantly asked by those who have not
been there. Even those who have, much on the principle of the
bumpkin, who, on paying his penny, is triumphantly shown the
biggest donkey in the fair, in a looking-glass, and urges his friends to
go and see that show: so does a feeling of having been defrauded
cause people to advise their friends to see the Shaking Minarets.
The mere name is poetical and mysterious.
Upon a gentleman high in the diplomatic service being asked what
was the use of the British Agent at Ispahan, he replied:
“Oh, it is an hereditary office; he shows British travellers the
Shaking Minarets.”
But then that “excellency” was a humorous man. He it was who,
on being troubled by a pertinacious clergyman with many
grievances, and told by him (the parson) that “he was but a humble
member of the Church Militant,” replied, “Church Pugnacious, you
mean.”
Dearly did the British Agent love to perform his “hereditary
function.” The new-comer, full of desire to see the Shaking Minarets,
and really pleased with his visit to the town of Ispahan, would make
the appointment for the sight, and, seeing the “hereditary
functionary’s” enthusiasm, not liking to damp it, would acknowledge
that he had seen the eighth wonder of the world.
An hour’s sharp canter through bridle-paths and shady lanes, after
crossing the river by the old Marnūn bridge, would bring one to the
little shrine, through the power of whose “Pir,” or saint, there interred,
the miracle of the Shaking Minarets is daily on view. As one
approached the village where the shrine is, the labourers in the field
would begin to run towards it, each eager to be the holder of a
European’s horse, and their shouts would bring a crowd to the
scene.
There is nothing particularly wonderful about the shrine; it is under
a lofty arch of modern construction, and is the usual rectangular
chest, under which reposes the body of the saint. On the whole lies
an open Koran and reading-stand. The chest is covered by a ragged
pall of cotton cloth; and a few strings of copper “kendils,” or votive
offerings, in the shape of small copper cylinders constricted in the
middle, attest the popularity of the saint with the villagers. The
guardian, also the village schoolmaster, is a Syud, or holy man; no
information can be obtained from him, save that the dead saint has
great power, and that the shaking is a miracle. Proceeding to the top
of the shrine, a good view of the Ispahan valley is obtained, and here
one sees the celebrated Shaking Minarets. A lusty villager ascends
each, and by dint of strong shaking, both vibrate considerably. The
“hereditary functionary” used to do this himself with great gusto, but,
having visited England, has become too important for the personal
exercise of his “functions.” When one man ceases to shake the
vibration continues in both, and a peculiar sensation of insecurity is
felt when one is inside the minaret.
The minarets are some twelve or fourteen feet high above the
roof. They are of brick; and the fact is, that being continuous with a
long thin wall which connects the two at the base, the vibration
caused in one is communicated to the other. This is the miracle,
which will probably some day cease by the vibrator being propelled
into space, and then the office of the “hereditary functionary” will be
really a sinecure. The place, however, has been repaired, and the
minarets rebuilt, within the last thirty years, so the guardian says. I