To assist with its operations and sustainability efforts, El Dorado International Airport (BOG) in Colombia will implement SITA’s Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) tool.
The technology is expected to minimize disruptions and improve runway and air traffic flow management through increased stakeholder collaboration. The airport will use a pre-departure sequencing (PDS) tool from SITA’s CDM solution to maximize the throughput of aircraft arriving at the runway before departure. By optimally sequencing flights and reducing aircraft ground movements, the system has been designed to prevent unnecessary wait times with running engines, thereby reducing fuel burn, carbon emissions and noise pollution, and minimizing negative impacts on air quality.
The operator of BOG airport, Operadora Aeroportuaria Internacional (OPAIN), has signed a six-year contract to deploy modules of SITA CDM after completing another project to upgrade its airport management system. The upgraded airport management solution is expected to be fully implemented at BOG by the end of 2022. SITA CDM will then be deployed to improve airside operations in time for the airport’s busy summer travel season in 2023. The combination of landside and airside optimization moves the airport toward a more end-to-end approach for greater efficiencies.
SITA highlighted that, in the context of rising capacity demands since the decline of the Covid-19 pandemic, more airports are looking to reduce the ripple effect that one late flight can have on operations. By improving collaboration among the different stakeholders in the travel value chain – airports, ground handlers, air traffic control and airlines operating from the airport – the company expects this solution to improve the management of disruptions and the environmental impacts of airport-based operations. According to SITA, the findings of a 2016 evaluation of 17 European airports using A-CDM revealed annual total savings of 102,700 tons of CO2, over 2.2 million minutes of taxiing time and €26.6m (US$25.9m) in fuel.
Tomás Aragón, chief operating officer of OPAIN, said, “El Dorado International Airport is a busy airport serving as the main gateway to Colombia. With traffic levels almost back to our pre-pandemic levels, we’ve selected SITA’s airport technologies to improve the efficiency of our operations and step up our emission reduction efforts. Minimizing operational disruptions helps ensure we deliver the best-possible airport customer experience.”
Matthys Serfontein, president of SITA Americas, said, “We’re proud to be supporting the introduction of Airport Collaborative Decision Making into Latin America. It’s a win-win situation for El Dorado International Airport and its partners because increased collaboration will deliver substantial cost and carbon savings. Improved punctuality is great news for passengers too.”