Aviation operations and climate change impacts: the airport energy technologies network response

This paper examines methods for integrating the physical, operational and planning process effects of climate change on airport activities into a viable climate change management program. It examines approaches and findings from United Kingdom based airport operations research projects, and the linked Airport Energy Technologies Network (AETN) project. All of the seven projects plan to tackle the long-term climate change energy challenge, by reducing the environmental footprint of airports. The research projects are varied in focus, concerning energy use in terminal buildings; integration and automation of airport operations; an environmental investment toolkit; surface access journeys; the implementation of wind baffles on the airfield; and energy recovery from landing aircraft. The AETN links the research effort together, providing network support both virtually and through specific events and workshops. The approaches taken by the research projects, together with the findings to date presented in the paper, show technical development of the science, methodologies and tools, together with the collaboration processes that best meet the needs of the system operators, regulators, users, and public stakeholders. The paper provides useful lessons from a United Kingdom context in terms of developing airport operations across are range of areas and applying them to climate change effects, including some of the pertinent, topical challenges and issues