New Air Service Development Department At AvPorts Meets Challenges For Small And Medium-Sized Airport Owners
Dulles VA — In December of 2011, AvPORTS unveiled a specialized Air Service Development (ASD) Department. AvPORTS owns, leases and manages airports and related airport infrastructure. The company’s portfolio currently consists of sixteen airports. The main purpose of the department is to provide its airport customers with assistance in attracting new air carriers in addition to securing expanded service from their existing carriers. Prior to forming the internal ASD department, AvPORTS engaged the services of third party consultants to fulfill this segment of its Airport Management Services responsibilities.
“As airlines deal with new economic pressures in an uncertain economic climate, air service development has become an ongoing process for airports that maintain scheduled flights, conveyed ASD Manager Tom Reich from his office at AVPORTS in Dulles, VA. “We now have the ability to enhance the quality of the service we provide our customers, while lowering costs normally associated with this service.” The comprehensive range of services comprises market analysis support, advanced research capabilities and professional business proposal services. Reich’s assistant, market analyst Brian D’Amico, supports the department’s efforts.
Traditionally in the US, the air service development consultant has worked directly with the airport director and the airport’s senior marketing staff. So too have Airport Management Services contractors such as AvPORTS. For many years, AvPORTS — as part of its Airport Management Services capabilities — accepted responsibility for the procurement of Air Service Development services on behalf of some of its key clients. Combining these services in itself suggested that, contractors were able to effectively provide both Airport Management Services and ASD services, whereby significant cost-efficiencies could be realized especially for the small/medium airport owner, who, in recent times, were becoming more and more financially stressed. “For us to assert our industry leadership position by including proprietary, ASD offering within our core menu of services was the natural and timely thing to do,” added AvPORTS’ President/CEO Oswin E. Moore. “And in response to it, our airport clients have reacted far more favorably than ever expected, raising the bar for cost-efficient delivery of high-quality ASD and Airport Management Services — with full single-point-accountability for both.”