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Issue link: http://airportbusiness.epubxp.com/i/532707
STATE OFTHE INDUSTRY June/July 2015 airportbusiness 17 workforce with few newcomers to replace them. Technology is also changing how FBOs do busi- ness and many hope to add more innovations in the year to come. And finally, airport/municipal/ FBO relationships run the gamut from the good to the bad to the ugly indeed. The following is a snapshot of Airport Business' findings. AIRPORTS GREATEST CHALLENGES Vice President Joe Biden created a big stir when he likened LaGuardia Airport to a third world country. But the airport, notorious for crowded terminals and other constraints that contrib- ute to horrid flight delays, is moving forward on a $4 billion overhaul of its Central Terminal building. Like LaGuardia, airports across the country are seeing an explosion in infrastruc- ture renovations. And it's safe to say that trend will continue. Airport Capital Development Needs: 2015-2019, released by Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) in April, finds airports need $75.7 billion to fund projects to handle passenger and cargo growth and reha- bilitate existing facilities by 2019. Trey Bohn, executive director for Travelers' Voice recently said, "We agree with the New York Times that addressing our aging air system should be a top priority. The state of our U.S. airports' infrastructure and our air travel system is in rapid decline and getting worse. Airport modernization lies at the heart of improving the American traveling experience." The survey findings reflect this sentiment: Improving aging facilities ranks high among avi- ation's worries, another big worry is how these projects will be funded. At the heart of the mat- ter is PFCs. Airports are allowed to levy a PFC of up to $4.50 per ticket to help pay for projects like new or expanded terminals and runways that have been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration. However, the fee hasn't kept pace with inflation. The last increase was in 2000—more than 15 years ago! Survey respondents told us they're pleased to see the proposal to raise PFCs to $8 and say it will go a long way toward funding needed projects. When asked if it should be even high- er than the proposed $8, 77 percent of Airport Business readers reported they felt $8 was high enough. FBOs also point to a need to improve their facilities to keep pace with customer demand for better services and a high standard of passenger amenities. SCRUTINY OF SECURITY News flash: The Transportation Security Administration—the very organization creat- ed to keep our airports safe—flunked its own security test recently. It was revealed that audi- tors from the Homeland Security Department's inspector general were able to sneak mock explosives, weapons and other items through TSA security checkpoints 67 out of 70 tries. Another report released earlier this month dis- closed that 73 airport workers with unspecified ties to terrorism were allowed to work in secure areas. Both reports raised questions about the agency's ability to protect the country's airports and airlines. This set off a flurry of governmental activity, which to date has included reassigning Acting TSA Administrator Melvin Carraway to a new post and approving Coast Guard Vice Admiral Peter Neffenger for the post. And while the traveling public reports they are quite content with today's airport secu- rity—in fact, 88.4 percent indicated they are satisfied with or neutral about today's security measures in a recent survey by Travel Leaders Group, airport leaders do not feel the same way. On the security front, Hartsfield-Jackson International plans to screen nearly all employ- ees who enter secured areas by the end of this year, and it is building a new three-lane screen- ing checkpoint for employees in the domestic terminal to do this. The move came after a gun smuggling operation involving a baggage han- dler at Hartsfield-Jackson was uncovered late last year. Among the changes announced by Hartsfield-Jackson International: 1. Fingerprint-based criminal history checks every two years for all airport employee SIDA badge holders. 2. Airport and airline employees must be screened. 3. Reduce the number of access points to secured areas to the minimum needed to operate. 4. Increase aviation employee screening including random screening during the work day. 5. Do a new push of the Department of Homeland Security's "If You See Something, Say Something" initiative.