Airport alliances ready for take-off

Date: 04/09/1997

By Chris Johnstone

WHEN the Belgian government said it would shake up the administration of Brussels airport and Amsterdam's Schipol offered to help, rumours immediately took off about complicated share and passenger swaps between the two neighbours.

Schipol airport's press office spent a frantic day playing down the speculation as premature and exaggerated. However, the fact that it flew at all is a testament to the new environment in which airports find themselves.

With the European Commission clamping down on some sources of income, and cash-strapped governments across Europe loosening the reins on what would at one time have been closely managed assets, airports are taking up a variety of aggressive and defensive positions to suit the changed situation.

Schipol's possible interest in Brussels appeared plausible given the fact that the Dutch government is due to outline plans for privatising Europe's fourth busiest airport at the end of the year, giving its go-ahead management even more room to pursue fresh money-making ventures.

Schipol already runs Rotterdam airport, manages others as far away as Australia and recently clinched a 1.75-billion-ecu contract to construct and operate a new passenger terminal at JFK New York.

Tougher Commission rules on airport charges and the prospect of expensive rental income from duty-free retailers drying up - about 40&percent; of Schipol's retail income comes from duty free shops - have provided added incentives for airports to broaden their business.

There are many within and outside the industry who are already talking about Europe's biggest airports following the lead set by airlines and swallowing up or forming alliances with their neighbours to form a handful of large groups.

“In ten to 15 years we may well see five or six very large airport companies each owning ten or more airports in several countries. These multinationals will dominate the European airport industry,” said Rigas Doganis, former head of Olympic Airways and now a professor of air transport at the UK's Cranfield University.

The UK's BAA, Aéroports de Paris, and the American Airports Group International are most often mentioned as front runners in the process.

“There is a clear trend taking place,” added Yevgeny Pogorelov, of the Airports Council International (ACI), European Region. “Airports are relying less and less on public money and have no choice but to look around for new sources of income. Many are being privatised and feel more comfortable that way.”

Pogorelov endorsed the idea of around a dozen monolithic companies dominating Europe's runways.

Airports are also becoming a lot more vocal. In the ongoing discussions with the Commission about reform of the rules for allocating scarce take-off and landing slots, they are making a forceful pitch to have a bigger say in managing their own slots.

That bid, however, is likely to be brushed off when the issue comes to a head at the Commission this autumn. The institution's proposals are heading in the opposite direction to reinforce the independence of coordinators who are responsible for handing out slots at overcrowded airports.

BAA, the privatised British concern which manages and runs all of London's main airports (apart from the City Airport) as well as a string of regional ones, has already taken large strides to realise the guru's predictions. It has acquired stakes in airports in the United States and Australia, and moved into Europe via a holding in Naples airport, using its know-how to boost traffic there.

BAA's success - like success anywhere - is producing its imitators. Frankfurt, continental Europe's busiest airport, is now suggesting an alliance of Germany's international airports in a company modelled on BAA. It admits the strategy has been prompted by increased competition from Amsterdam and even BAA's London airports. Schipol shuttles in passengers by bus from German towns as far away as Hannover to fill its waiting planes. British Airways can use its German subsidiary Deutsche BA to feed in passengers from German regional airports to London. “In this way it can be cheaper to fly to London and change there for a Caribbean holiday than fly from Dusseldorf to Frankfurt for a similar voyage,” said a spokesman for Frankfurt airport.

The first step in Frankfurt's new strategy should be tested this month when the regional government of Nordhrein Westfalen votes on whether to sell its 50&percent; stake in Dusseldorf airport.

But talks with Berlin, Hamburg and Munich airports over whether some sort of BAA formula would offer German airports a united front against the competition are not expected to produce any results until late September or even October.

“At the moment most German airports think the competition is the next airport within 100 kilometres,” said the Frankfurt spokesman, who denied the strategy amounted to a defensive alliance.

Commission competition officials are conscious of the consolidation trend, but have not declared themselves either for or against it as yet. They see no reason to challenge Frankfurt's move unless it appears more likely to stifle competition than promote it.

The trend for airports to buy up their smaller neighbours or move them into marketing alliances is seen as a logical step, even though many airports already enjoy effective monopolies which are not going to disappear overnight.