El Dorado Airport gets an efficiency boost with SITA solutions

To drive operational improvements while reducing emissions, El Dorado International Airport (BOG) will become the first airport in Latin America to adopt Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM), leveraging SITA’s Collaborative Decision Making (CDM) modules. The technology will minimize disruptions and improve runway and air traffic flow management through increased stakeholder collaboration.

Airports, like BOG, are under increasing strain to keep up with capacity demands as travel returns to pre-pandemic levels. The late arrival or departure of a flight in one airport often has a ripple effect on the operations of airlines and other airports, negatively impacting the passenger experience.

Optimizing airside operations and greater collaboration among the different stakeholders in the travel value chain – airports, ground handlers, air traffic control, and airlines operating from the airport – are key to managing disruptions and the environmental impacts of airport-based operations.

The findings of a 2016 evaluation of 17 European airports using A-CDM reveal annual total savings of 102,700 tons of CO₂, over 2.2 million minutes of taxiing time, and €26.6 million in fuel. Waypoint’s 2050 report identifies the acceleration of the full implementation of A-CDM to improve airport-based operations as one of the practical emission reduction opportunities possible this decade, supporting the aviation sector’s goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

BOG will utilize a Pre-Departure Sequencing (PDS) tool from SITA’s CDM solution to maximize the throughput of aircraft arriving at the runway before departure. By optimally sequencing flights and reducing aircraft ground movements, it prevents unnecessary wait times with running engines, which in turn, reduces fuel burn, carbon emissions, and noise pollution, and minimizes negative impacts on air quality.

Operadora Aeroportuaria Internacional (OPAIN), the operator of BOG airport, has signed a six-year contract to deploy modules of SITA CDM after completing another project to upgrade its airport management system. The upgraded SITA Airport Management solution will optimize operations at landside and is expected to be fully implemented at BOG by the end of 2022. After which, SITA CDM will be deployed to optimize airside operations in time for the airport’s busy summer travel season in 2023. The combination of landside and airside optimization moves the airport towards a more end-to-end approach for greater efficiencies.

Tomás Aragón, COO, OPAIN, said, “El Dorado International Airport is a busy airport serving as the main gateway to Colombia. With traffic levels almost back to our pre-pandemic levels, we’ve selected SITA’s airport technologies to improve the efficiency of our operations and step up our emission reduction efforts. Minimizing operational disruptions helps ensure we deliver the best possible airport customer experience.”

Matthys Serfontein, SITA President, Americas, said: “We’re proud to be supporting the introduction of Airport Collaborative Decision Making into Latin America. It’s a win-win situation for El Dorado International Airport and its partners because increased collaboration will deliver substantial cost and carbon savings. And, improved punctuality is great news for passengers too.”