Washington Dulles International airport will use $237m from the sale of unused land on its western periphery to further lower airline costs. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) board approved the sale of 424 acres, acquired for the fourth runway that opened in 2008, to Digital Realty Trust for a new data centre at a meeting today. "The only thing the airport can do with the funds is re-invest them in airport activity – it's not roads or trains, it has to go to the benefit of airline operations," says Jack Potter, president of the airport operator, at the board meeting. That benefit will be further reducing the cost per enplanement, or the amount an airline pays to board a passenger on a flight, at Dulles, and not for capital improvements, MWAA confirms. Airline costs at Dulles are forecast to fall 6% to $17.82 per passenger this year, benefitting from $35m in revenues transferred from MWAA's other airport Ronald Reagan Washington National and a $25m grant from the Commonwealth of Virginia. The drop continues the trend that began in 2014, when CPE peaked at $26.55 per passenger. MWAA has not estimated the impact of the land sale yet but, based on the amount alone, the deal could have a more significant impact than either the revenue transfer or grant. Lower costs are likely music to United Airlines' ears. The largest carrier at Dulles, the airline is evaluating increasing the number of flights at the airport by half by creating two new connecting banks, or when a significant number of flights arrive and depart within a short time frame.<br/>
general
The FAA has extended existing operating limitations at New York’s LaGuardia (LGA) and JFK airports until 2020. In dual order extensions published Sept. 18 in the Federal Register, the agency said it will continue restrictions dating to its 1968 high-density rule that limited arrivals and departures at the two airports during peak demand periods to reduce congestion. With the phase-out of the HDR in 2007, the FAA ordered temporary limits at LGA in December 2006 and JFK in January 2008 that have been periodically extended—most recently in 2016 at both airports. The metropolitan New York City airports figure prominently in the FAA’s Northeast Corridor initiative to reduce congestion and deconflict air traffic in the region between Boston and Washington DC, which accounts for nearly half of all delays in the US national airspace system. The FAA plans to implement a new round of air traffic management improvements in the region from 2019-2021. Both new order extensions are effective until Oct. 24, 2020. <br/>
Narita International Airport was hit by a passenger check-in system glitch Tuesday, resulting in flight cancellations and delays, its operator said. According to Narita International Airport Corp., multiple airlines operating out of Terminal 2 were unable to use automated systems to process passengers and their baggage. Operations were partially restored at the JAL counter nearly five hours after the system trouble began around noon. The hiccup forced the airline to cancel one flight and delay two others. Airline employees used the phone to process passengers’ information and attached temporary tags to check-in luggage. The difficulties led long lines of passengers to form in front of service counters.<br/>
Birmingham airport may have to wait until 2020 to regain transatlantic services after Primera cancelled its flights to Newark, Boston and Toronto from the UK gateway this summer. Tom Screen, Birmingham’s acting aviation director, says there might be an "option" for an alternative airline to start a New York service in summer 2019. He says it is "more likely", however, that such connections will come in 2020 when JetBlue is likely to receive deliveries of Airbus A321LRs and WestJet is also expected to be in a position to start a Toronto-Birmingham service. Primera originally announced services from Birmingham to Newark, Boston and Toronto for May 2018, but subsequently cancelled its Boston plan before it was launched. Flights to Newark and Toronto were suspended in June. Screen says Birmingham’s passenger numbers for 2018 will be "slightly down" on those of 2017 as a result of the collapse of UK short-haul carrier Monarch Airlines in October 2017. The airport is forecasting it will handle 12.5m passengers this year compared with just under 13m in 2017.<br/>