In February this year London Southend Airport, in Essex in England, opened a centralised, purpose-built aircraft de-icing pad – not long before some unseasonably late snowfalls hit the UK
London Southend’s purpose-built de-icing facility allows an aircraft to be de-iced away from the stand, instead receiving its precautionary de-icing treatment at the centralised pad while its engines remain running. Once it is fully de-iced, it will then taxi for take-off. The process is expected to save time and ensure that aircraft are away within their scheduled turnaround times.
The de-icing fluid used on the pad is also collected in the pad’s drainage system, from where it is transported away for specialist treatment and subsequent disposal. Thus, the pad offers a significant environmental benefit too.
Glyn Jones, CEO of airport owner Stobart Aviation, enthused at the time of the pad’s opening: “This new de-icing facility is another example of London Southend leading the way within the aviation industry, using innovative, brand new technology to provide a much better airport experience for our partners and passengers.
“For both travellers and airlines there is nothing more frustrating than bad weather leading to delays, so we’ve – quite literally – invented a solution to try and minimise that.”
Graeme Buchanan, managing director of regional airline Stobart Air, added: “Stobart Air is dedicated to providing a convenient and seamless service to passengers and partners and this facility strengthens our position. In a UK first, the new de-icing facility is a demonstration of cutting-edge technology and we will continue to push the boundaries of innovation.”
Southend Airport is primarily a short-haul gateway, although a total of more than a million passengers pass through its facilities each year. Its two key airline partners are low-cost carriers (LCCs) easyJet and Flybe, which together operate more than 30 domestic and European routes from the airport. Captain Chris Foster, flight operations performance manager at easyJet, commented: “We welcome the installation of the new de-icing facility as part of a UK first at London Southend Airport.
“The innovative new technology will assist us in delivering even greater efficiencies which ultimately mean we can improve our passengers’ experience when flying with us,” Foster added.
Smooth operations
Construction on the de-icing pad started last year, in October 2017. It was tested and received the approval of both easyJet and Stobart Air, before going into operation earlier this year. Jon Home, chief operating officer of Stobart Aviation, talked to Airside about the thinking behind the investment required for the new facility: “This brand new technology will help in terms of providing a much better airport experience for the airport’s partners and passengers.
“For both travellers and airlines, bad weather can be very frustrating in terms of leading to delays. We thought we needed to invest a solution to try and minimise that. The new de-icing facility will help us deliver even greater efficiencies, which ultimately means that we can improve our passengers’ experience.”
London Southend is expanding, another reason for the change. “Given our current rate of growth (+25% more passengers during 2017) and the projected figure of handling up to a further million passengers in 2018 [the airport is expecting more than 2 million passengers this year], this is a facility we expect will be more heavily used in the coming years.
“We have a growing fleet of London Southend-based aircraft which will often be scheduled to depart within a short time window. Similarly this [2017-18] winter season has demonstrated why such weather resilience investment is worthwhile.”
Collaboration with the gateway’s airline partners was a key part of the process of developing and commissioning the new facility, Home recalls. “The de-icing facility was fully set up by the Stobart Group but it was tested and approved by London Southend Airport’s airline partners, easyJet and Stobart Air.”
Stobart Air describes the new facility as a ‘first’ for the UK. Home explains why: “All ground handling at London Southend Airport is run in-house by the Stobart Group and that includes the de-icing operations. This makes London Southend Airport the first airport in Britain to deliver a purpose-built aircraft de-icing facility.”
Although difficult to say exactly how much time will be saved by the new pad, it definitely saves “considerable time”, Home observes. “Compared to the way things were done previously, the facility allows for greater efficiency when bad weather hits. Now, instead of de-icing when the plane is on its stand – fully loaded with passengers keen to depart – an aircraft can simply push back and taxi to the Centralised De-icing Facility. Here, the plane will be efficiently de-iced with the engines running before taxiing for take-off. The new Centralised De-icing Facility complements traditional on-stand de-icing and helps reduce the risk of departure delays.”
