BUS 473
Case Study Analysis
Logan Airport
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Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY …………………………………………………………………………….. 2
INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………….………………………………. 3
CAUSES OF DELAYS ………………………………………………………………………………….. 4
ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS ………………………………………………………………………………… 4
PECULIAR MIX OF AIRPLANES ……………………………………………………………………………………… 4
OVERSCHEDULING ………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 4
PROBLEM ANALYSIS …………………………………………………………………………………. 5
THE IMPACT OF WEATHER CONDITIONS ON THE ARRIVAL AND SERVICE RATES ………………. 5
PEAK–PERIOD PRICING ……………………………………………………….……………………………………… 8
PEAK–PERIOD PRICING’S IMPACT ON DELAY TIMES AND COSTS ……………………………………….. 8
IMPACT OF PEAK–PERIOD LANDING FEE ……………………………………………………………………… 10
IMPACT OF PEAK–PERIOD PRICING ON MAGNITUDE FOR AIRCRAFT MIX ……………………….. 12
RECOMMENDATIONS ……………………………………………………………………………… 13
APPENDIX ………………………………………………………………………………………………. 13
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Executive Summary
The purpose of this report is to deep analyze the existing proposed solutions of serious
delays at Logan airport and then decide whether to keep them or not.
The report begins with the brief introduction of Logan airport’s history and the current
situation. Next, three main causes of weather are explained simply.
Due to the bitter against the solutions of building a new runway and demand
management, we analyze them from four aspects:
• Impact of waiting time by adding a new runway under different weather
conditions: Adding a new runway will decrease the waiting time and the number
of waiting airplanes effectively, especially under severe weather.
• Peak-period pricing’s impact on delay times and costs:
• Impact of Peak-period Landing Fee:
• Impact of Peak-period Pricing on Magnitude for Aircraft Mix:
Finally,
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Introduction
Logan Airport was completed in 1923 and ran its first commercial flight, between
Boston and New York, in 1927. By the late 1950’s, Logan became the 10th busiest
airport in the nation. In 1956, an international terminal was completed. To
accommodate the rapidly growing use of Logan, additional terminals, control towers,
and runway extensions were completed over the years.
In 2000, however, more than one in four flights (27%) was delayed, canceled or diverted,
affecting approximately 163 million passengers. Consumer complaints with delays and
missed connections comprise 40% of all complaints. With an average of 47.5 delays
per 1,000 flights, Boston’s Logan Airport was ranked in 2001 as the fifth most
significantly delays airport in the country.
Therefore, in response to Logan’s growth, Massport (Massachusetts Port Authority) had
planned a $1 billion Modernization Program. They come up with several methods
proposed to solve delays problems and improve the efficiency of airport operations,
which involved three parts: regional solution, a new runway and demand management.
Regional solution had already been mitigated delays at Logan effectively. From 1996
to 1999, only 27% of region’s passenger growth occurred at Logan Airport and 73%
occurred at the regional airports.
However, the other two solutions have a lot of opponents, so they need deep analysis
in order to decide whether to keep them or not.
Causes of Delays
Adverse Weather Conditions
The primary cause of delays at Logan was adverse weather conditions. Around 70% to
75% of delays nationally were weather-related. In adverse weather conditions, the
amount of aircraft delayed at Logan increases around 5% to 12%. When winds are from
southwest and Logon airport is under normal situation, three runways are used in
operation which could accommodate 118-126 operations an hour. Only two runways
could remain in operation when northwest winds are moderately strong. In this situation,
the capacity of Logan airport dropped down to 78-88 operations per hour. In the severe
weather conditions, total operational capacity dropped down to only 40-60 operations
per hour, because only one runway remains in operation when strong winds are from
northwest. What’s more, poor weather requires increased separation distance between
