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Aviation History
1996
1996 - 1670.PDF
rJ?rl~JlA L A VJA fJ UJXJ KAREN WALKER/ATLANTA Integrating business aircraft with big airliners at Asian airports is a challenge Opening door; The opening of airports to business aircraft — and keeping them open — is not an easy task. NEWS THAT TOKYO'S Narita Inter national Airport is dedicating two slots a day to business aircraft is being hailed by the corporate-aviation industry as a major milestone. Starting in July, international business air craft will be allowed to use two dedicated slots a day at Narita out of 355 slots allocated to scheduled operations. Although the number seems small — and there are considerable restrictions attached to their use — the US National Business Aircraft Association (NBAA) has reason to celebrate. The organisation has been trying for some 20 years to gain access to this key Japanese air port. While international business-aircraft operations have increased among NBAA mem ber companies, particularly in the Pacific Rim, highly restrictive airport and airspace policies in Japan have made it difficult for business-air craft users to secure landing slots, so this new- policy represents a major turn-around. Although it has been a slow process, the NBAA, the US General Aviation Manufac turers Association and the US Federal Aviation Administration have finally persuaded Japan ese officials of the importance of business-avi ation access to Japan's economy — an important step in the right direction, the NBAA believes. "We are very pleased that the Japanese Government has made these slots available out of recognition of the important role that business aviation plays in the economies of Japan and its trading partners," says NBAA president Jack Olcott. SLOT CRITERIA Aircraft which are used in either of the two slots — a slot meaning either a landing or a take-off — must be lighter than 45,000kg maximum take-off weight and be operated between Japan and foreign countries. In addition, a potential user must submit a request to use a slot by the 15th day of the month before me month that he wishes to be at the airport, and he must abide by the airport's night-time curfew. Such limitations lead the NBAAs senior manager, international, Bill Stine, to sum up the overall feeling of members as being "happy, but not ecstatic", but he says that everybody in the industry recognises this as an important break through. Elsewhere in Asia, Stine is also seeing a gradual opening up of important airports. Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam are all reasonably amenable to international business aircraft, and even Hong Kong — where Chep Lap Kok will allow Stage 3 aircraft only — is making more slots available. Recently, China has agreed to allow foreign business aircraft to be flown between its major cities — previously they were only allowed to fly in or out of the country—but there are heavy fees, equivalent to a first-class commercial-air line ticket per passenger, associated with each 34 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 3 - 9 July 1996
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