IV. Airport Planning and Design
Introduction - classification of airports - Factors influencing the selection of new airport site
and ICAO stipulations - layout characteristics, socio-economic characteristics of the
Catchment area - components of Airport Runway Orientation: Wind Rose Diagram -
Problem on Basic and Actual runway length - Aircraft Parking system - Drainage - Airport
Zoning - Runway and Taxiway Markings and lighting - Design standards and planning of
Airport as per Indian condition.
INTRODUCTION
The planning of an airport is such a difficult process that the analysis of one activity without
regard to the effect on other activities will not provide acceptable solutions. An airport
includes a wide range of activities which have different and often contradictory requirements.
Yet they are co-dependent so that a single activity may limit the capacity of the whole
complex. In the past airport master plans were developed on the basis of local aviation needs.
In more recent times these plans have been integrated into an airport system plan which
assessed not only the needs at a specific airport site but also the overall needs of the system of
airports which service an area, region, state, or country. If future airport planning efforts are
to be successful, they must be founded on guidelines established on the basis of
comprehensive airport system and master plans.
Role of Air transportation
➢ Improves accessibility to otherwise inaccessible areas
➢ Provides continuous connectivity over land and water (no change of equipment)
➢ Saves productive time, spent on journey
➢ Increase the demand of specialized technical skill workforce
➢ Adds to the foreign reserve through tourism
➢ Speed: Modern jet can travel at 1000 km/h
➢ Promotion of trade and commerce
➢ Military use
➢ Relief and rescue operations
➢ Aerial photography
➢ Agricultural spraying
➢ Safety - safe mode of transport.
Disadvantages of air transport
➢ Heavy funds are required, not only initially but also during operation
➢ Operations are highly dependent up on weather conditions
➢ It needs highly sophisticated machinery
➢ Adds to the outward flow of foreign reserve
➢ Noise pollution
➢ Safety provisions are not adequate
➢ Specific demarcation of flight paths and territories is essential.
➢ High energy consumption
2
,CLASSIFICATION OF AIRPORTS
The airports are classified by various agencies, the most popular one being by
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The airport classification aims at
achieving the uniformity in the design standards. The classification by ICAO is based in the
following two ways
➢ Based on runway length, width of runway pavement and maximum longitudinal
grade.
➢ Based on single isolated wheel load and tyre pressure.
Classification of Airport in India
1. International Airports in India
The following airports link the major Indian cities to the international cities:
a. Amritsar International Airport
b. Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi
c. Lokpriya Gopinath Bordolio International Airport, Guwahati
d. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad
e. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata
f. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai
g. Hyderabad Airport
h. Goa Airport
i. Bangalore International Airport
j. Cochin International Airport
k. Chennai International Airport
l. Trivandrum International Airport
2. Domestic Airports in India
All the Indian airports come under this category.
3
,3. Custom Airports in India
Custom Airports provide immigration and customs facilities for the international tourists.
They also operate cargo charter flights. The custom airports in India are located at:
a. Bangalore
b. Hyderabad
c. Ahmedabad
d. Calicut
e. Cochin
f. Goa
g. Varanasi
h. Patna
i. Agra
j. Jaipur
k. Amritsar
l. Tiruchirapally
4. Model Airports in India
Indian Model Airports are the domestic airports with following features:
➢ Minimum 7500 feet length of runway
➢ Sufficient terminal capacity for handling aircraft of Airbus 320 type If required,
can also handle limited international traffic
The model airports in India are located in:
a. Lucknow
b. Bhubaneshwar
c. Guwahati
d. Nagpur
e. Vadodara
f. Coimbatore
g. Imphal
h. Indore
5. Civil Enclaves in Indian Defense Airports
28 civil enclaves are included in the Defense airfields of India.
FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SELECTION OF NEW AIRPORT SITE AND ICAO
STIPULATIONS
The factors listed below are for the selection of a suitable site for a major airport installation
1. Regional Plan
2. Airport Use
3. Proximity to Other Airport
4. Ground Accessibility
5. Topography
6. Obstructions
7. Visibility
8. Wind
4
, 9. Noise Nuisance
10. Grading, Drainage and Soil Characteristics
11. Future Development
12. Availability of Utilities from Town
13. Economic Consideration
Regional plan: The site selected should fit well into the regional plan there by forming it an
integral part of the national network of airport.
Airport use: the selection of site depends upon the use of an airport that is whether for
civilian or for military operations. However during the emergency civilian airports are taken
over by the defense. Therefore the airport site selected should be such that it provides natural
protection to the area from air roads. This consideration is of prime importance for the
airfields to be located in combat zones
Proximity to other airport: the site should be selected at a considerable distance from the
existing airports so that the aircraft landing in one airport does not interfere with the
movement of aircraft at other airport. The required separation between the airports mainly
depends upon the volume of air traffic.
Ground accessibility: the site should be so selected that it is readily accessible to the users.
The airline passenger is more concerned with his door to door time rather than the actual time
in air travel. The time to reach the airport is therefore an important consideration especially
for short haul operations.
Topography: this includes natural features like ground contours trees streams etc. A raised
ground a hill top is usually considered to be an ideal site for an airport.
Obstructions: when aircraft is landing or taking off it loses or gains altitude very slowly as
compared to the forward speed. For this reason long clearance areas are provided on either
side of runway known as approach areas over which the aircraft can safely gain or loss
altitude.
Visibility: poor visibility lowers the traffic capacity of the airport. The site selected should
therefore be free from visibility reducing conditions such as fog smoke and haze. Fog
generally settles in the area where wind blows minimum in a valley.
Wind: runway is so oriented that landing and takeoff is done by heading into the wind should
be collected over a minimum period of about five years.
Noise nuisance: the extent of noise nuisance depends upon the climb out path of aircraft type
of engine propulsion and the gross weight of aircraft. The problem becomes more acute with
jet engine aircrafts. Therefore the site should be so selected that the landing and takeoff paths
of the aircrafts pass over the land which is free from residential or industrial developments.
Grading, drainage and soil characteristics: grading and drainage play an important role in
the construction and maintenance of airport which in turn influences the site selection. The
original ground profile of a site together with any grading operations determines the shape of
an airport area and the general pattern of the drainage system. The possibility of floods at the
valley sites should be investigated. Sites with high water tables which may require costly
subsoil drainage should be avoided.
Future development: considering that the air traffic volume will continue to increase in
future more member of runways may have to be provided for an increased traffic.
5
Introduction - classification of airports - Factors influencing the selection of new airport site
and ICAO stipulations - layout characteristics, socio-economic characteristics of the
Catchment area - components of Airport Runway Orientation: Wind Rose Diagram -
Problem on Basic and Actual runway length - Aircraft Parking system - Drainage - Airport
Zoning - Runway and Taxiway Markings and lighting - Design standards and planning of
Airport as per Indian condition.
INTRODUCTION
The planning of an airport is such a difficult process that the analysis of one activity without
regard to the effect on other activities will not provide acceptable solutions. An airport
includes a wide range of activities which have different and often contradictory requirements.
Yet they are co-dependent so that a single activity may limit the capacity of the whole
complex. In the past airport master plans were developed on the basis of local aviation needs.
In more recent times these plans have been integrated into an airport system plan which
assessed not only the needs at a specific airport site but also the overall needs of the system of
airports which service an area, region, state, or country. If future airport planning efforts are
to be successful, they must be founded on guidelines established on the basis of
comprehensive airport system and master plans.
Role of Air transportation
➢ Improves accessibility to otherwise inaccessible areas
➢ Provides continuous connectivity over land and water (no change of equipment)
➢ Saves productive time, spent on journey
➢ Increase the demand of specialized technical skill workforce
➢ Adds to the foreign reserve through tourism
➢ Speed: Modern jet can travel at 1000 km/h
➢ Promotion of trade and commerce
➢ Military use
➢ Relief and rescue operations
➢ Aerial photography
➢ Agricultural spraying
➢ Safety - safe mode of transport.
Disadvantages of air transport
➢ Heavy funds are required, not only initially but also during operation
➢ Operations are highly dependent up on weather conditions
➢ It needs highly sophisticated machinery
➢ Adds to the outward flow of foreign reserve
➢ Noise pollution
➢ Safety provisions are not adequate
➢ Specific demarcation of flight paths and territories is essential.
➢ High energy consumption
2
,CLASSIFICATION OF AIRPORTS
The airports are classified by various agencies, the most popular one being by
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The airport classification aims at
achieving the uniformity in the design standards. The classification by ICAO is based in the
following two ways
➢ Based on runway length, width of runway pavement and maximum longitudinal
grade.
➢ Based on single isolated wheel load and tyre pressure.
Classification of Airport in India
1. International Airports in India
The following airports link the major Indian cities to the international cities:
a. Amritsar International Airport
b. Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi
c. Lokpriya Gopinath Bordolio International Airport, Guwahati
d. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad
e. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata
f. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai
g. Hyderabad Airport
h. Goa Airport
i. Bangalore International Airport
j. Cochin International Airport
k. Chennai International Airport
l. Trivandrum International Airport
2. Domestic Airports in India
All the Indian airports come under this category.
3
,3. Custom Airports in India
Custom Airports provide immigration and customs facilities for the international tourists.
They also operate cargo charter flights. The custom airports in India are located at:
a. Bangalore
b. Hyderabad
c. Ahmedabad
d. Calicut
e. Cochin
f. Goa
g. Varanasi
h. Patna
i. Agra
j. Jaipur
k. Amritsar
l. Tiruchirapally
4. Model Airports in India
Indian Model Airports are the domestic airports with following features:
➢ Minimum 7500 feet length of runway
➢ Sufficient terminal capacity for handling aircraft of Airbus 320 type If required,
can also handle limited international traffic
The model airports in India are located in:
a. Lucknow
b. Bhubaneshwar
c. Guwahati
d. Nagpur
e. Vadodara
f. Coimbatore
g. Imphal
h. Indore
5. Civil Enclaves in Indian Defense Airports
28 civil enclaves are included in the Defense airfields of India.
FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SELECTION OF NEW AIRPORT SITE AND ICAO
STIPULATIONS
The factors listed below are for the selection of a suitable site for a major airport installation
1. Regional Plan
2. Airport Use
3. Proximity to Other Airport
4. Ground Accessibility
5. Topography
6. Obstructions
7. Visibility
8. Wind
4
, 9. Noise Nuisance
10. Grading, Drainage and Soil Characteristics
11. Future Development
12. Availability of Utilities from Town
13. Economic Consideration
Regional plan: The site selected should fit well into the regional plan there by forming it an
integral part of the national network of airport.
Airport use: the selection of site depends upon the use of an airport that is whether for
civilian or for military operations. However during the emergency civilian airports are taken
over by the defense. Therefore the airport site selected should be such that it provides natural
protection to the area from air roads. This consideration is of prime importance for the
airfields to be located in combat zones
Proximity to other airport: the site should be selected at a considerable distance from the
existing airports so that the aircraft landing in one airport does not interfere with the
movement of aircraft at other airport. The required separation between the airports mainly
depends upon the volume of air traffic.
Ground accessibility: the site should be so selected that it is readily accessible to the users.
The airline passenger is more concerned with his door to door time rather than the actual time
in air travel. The time to reach the airport is therefore an important consideration especially
for short haul operations.
Topography: this includes natural features like ground contours trees streams etc. A raised
ground a hill top is usually considered to be an ideal site for an airport.
Obstructions: when aircraft is landing or taking off it loses or gains altitude very slowly as
compared to the forward speed. For this reason long clearance areas are provided on either
side of runway known as approach areas over which the aircraft can safely gain or loss
altitude.
Visibility: poor visibility lowers the traffic capacity of the airport. The site selected should
therefore be free from visibility reducing conditions such as fog smoke and haze. Fog
generally settles in the area where wind blows minimum in a valley.
Wind: runway is so oriented that landing and takeoff is done by heading into the wind should
be collected over a minimum period of about five years.
Noise nuisance: the extent of noise nuisance depends upon the climb out path of aircraft type
of engine propulsion and the gross weight of aircraft. The problem becomes more acute with
jet engine aircrafts. Therefore the site should be so selected that the landing and takeoff paths
of the aircrafts pass over the land which is free from residential or industrial developments.
Grading, drainage and soil characteristics: grading and drainage play an important role in
the construction and maintenance of airport which in turn influences the site selection. The
original ground profile of a site together with any grading operations determines the shape of
an airport area and the general pattern of the drainage system. The possibility of floods at the
valley sites should be investigated. Sites with high water tables which may require costly
subsoil drainage should be avoided.
Future development: considering that the air traffic volume will continue to increase in
future more member of runways may have to be provided for an increased traffic.
5
