Non-Subscriber Extract
Airlines voice doubts over LAX A380 passenger arrangements
By Norman Sklarewitz
18 December 2007
Airlines have continued to voice concerns over passenger-handling aspects of A380 operations at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
An A380 visited LAX in late November 2007 to draw attention to and test airport operations before Qantas begins a regular passenger service between Sydney and Los Angeles in October 2008.
There were no traffic control problems on the inbound flight from Toulouse, which included an intermediate stop at St Paul-Minneapolis International. The aircraft made a perfect landing on LAX's Runway 25 Left - which had been moved and widened earlier in 2007 - and traversed a new taxiway built mainly to accommodate the A380.
But the A380 visit left some uncertainty over how well LAX was prepared to accommodate daily arrivals and departures of multiple very large aircraft (VLAs). This has concerned airlines for some time; for instance, in January 2006 Jane's reported the following comment from Frank Clark, executive director of LAXTEC (a consortium of 44 airlines using Tom Bradley International Terminal [TBIT] at LAX): "The remote gates do not provide anywhere near the same level of service as do terminal gates. This is of deep concern to the carriers. They have grave concern about the regular operations off the remote gates with the A380."
A USD9 million modification of Gate 101 at the southern end of TBIT, completed in June 2006, will accommodate the A380. At the northern end, two gates (123 A and 123 B) are being consolidated at a cost of USD30 million, with work scheduled for completion early in 2008.
LAX operator Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) acknowledged the concerns of A380 operators regarding the use of remote gates. "Los Angeles World Airports absolutely understands and agrees with the airline preference for contact gates," said Executive Director Gina Marie Lindsey. "We are moving swiftly to complete upgrades to Tom Bradley International Terminal and build a new Midfield Satellite Concourse. These two projects will provide necessary contact gates for new large aircraft and upgraded customer service for passengers."