ACRP Impacts on Practice – Contingency Planning for Unexpected Passenger Delays

The latest issue of TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Impact on Practice describes how Fort Wayne International Airport (FWA) and Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BNIA) have developed and implemented IROPS plans based on ACRP Report 65: Guidebook for Airport Irregular Operations (IROPS) Contingency Planning (2012).

Daniel Rak, terminal services supervisor for FWA, noted that the value of ACRP Report 65 is that it enables diverse airport stakeholders to document their individual plans and develop a cohesive, comprehensive plan for the airport that would allow for a quick response when an event occurs. According to Tom Dames, airfield superintendent at BNIA, “before the plan, many of our associates were not well prepared for irregular operations. The contingency plan has eliminated the fear of having to support an IROP activity alone and with little experience." 

ACRP Report 65: Guidebook for Airport Irregular Operations (IROPS) Contingency Planning is a resource to assist airports in the development of irregular operations contingency plans in close collaboration with all service providers. ACRP Report 65 features numerous resources that can be customized to the user’s specific airport.