Airside and Terminal Operations: Overall Management

Fraport ensures safety, security, cleanliness, and functionality with innovative processes and products.

Terminal Management covers the overall management of terminal facilities and passenger processes at Frankfurt Airport.

What we do in Terminal Management:

• We provide safe, secure, rule-compliant terminal facilities
• We are responsible for operational safety, operability, and cleanliness of the terminal facilities: in particular, we guarantee public safety
• The Terminal Duty Managers are responsible for operational management, and are available 24 hours a day as points of contact for all terminal management issues
• We provide our passengers with customary services such as information, a lost & found office, and a communication center
• We control passenger flow
• We supply departing and arriving passengers as well as meeters and greeters with current flight data at critical points of decision

Here are the General Terms and Conditions regarding provision of counters for passenger handling as well as sales and ticket counters

Safe, efficient, and customer-oriented: how Fraport organizes activities in the movement areas.

In the Aviation Airside area – beyond the security checks – we ensure safe, efficient, and customer-oriented control of traffic and operations in the movement areas.

• We handle aircraft taxiing operations on the apron.
• We tow, marshal, secure, and park aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft tugs.
• We plan and assign aircraft handling positions and gates.
• We gather and process all relevant flight schedule, flight operations and status data.
• We coordinate winter services.
• We coordinate and approve construction and maintenance work in the aircraft movement areas (e.g. runway repairs).
• We conduct and monitor airside operations to ensure safe and rule-compliant operations at Frankfurt Airport in line with Section 45 of the German Air Navigation Certification Order (LuftVZO).
• We perform aircraft accident investigations in compliance with Section 4 ($) Clause 2 of the German Aviation Accident Investigation Act (FIUUG) on behalf of the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU).

To handle aircraft taxiing operations, we work closely with the control tower of DFS German Air Navigation Services. This enables us to coordinate air traffic during the transitions between the respective control zones and to act rapidly and effectively in the event of emergencies.

Assistance from technology

An array of technical systems help staff to ensure that operations run smoothly:

• The FDPS (Flight Data Processing System) supplies the staff in Central Apron Control with all the flight plan data they need.
• The ACCS (Apron Control Communication System) provides radio connections. 
• The RMS (Resource Management System) is used to plan and assign aircraft parking positions and gates. Cameras help to monitor areas of the apron that are hard to see.
• The employees of Apron Control receive data on landings and aircraft towing operations via the FOGS system (Follow-Me Guidance Support).
• The FAST MS system helps air traffic controllers to handle taxiing and the high traffic volume efficiently.
  

A system for exchanging information and optimizing decisions

Airport Collaborative Decision-Making (Airport CDM) is a process initiated by the EU which aims to improve operational efficiency at airports and to connect them to the European air traffic management network. Its particular focus is on optimizing the aircraft turn-round process.

The Airport CDM process is based on the exchange of information between the partners involved, i.e. the airport operator, the airlines, the handling and air navigation companies, and the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation, Eurocontrol, as the network manager. Exchange of up-date, high-quality information by all partners gives them an improved and shared awareness of situations. As a result, they can optimize their decision-making. Consequently, in conjunction with other process elements, the system is intended to improve punctuality in the turn-round process and optimize the use of resources. Airport CDM also helps to reduce delays overall.

In April 2008, we reached a joint agreement with DFS German Air Navigation Services to carry out an Airport CDM project at Frankfurt Airport.

In place since 2011

The Airport CDM process has been applied in normal operations at Frankfurt Airport since February 2011. The following six Airport CDM process elements have been successfully implemented here:

• Information exchange
• Airport CDM milestones approach
• Pre-departure sequencing
• Variable taxi times
• Collaborative updating of flight information
• Airport CDM in adverse situations

They have improved stability of airside processes. In addition, slot adherence has increased. This in turn is reflected by an overall rise in outbound punctuality. In December 2011, Eurocontrol awarded Frankfurt Airport a certificate for successful implementation of Airport CDM.

Further information on Airport CDM.