Speaker Biograghy: Since 1996 Nandita has worked on various Indian airport projects as an Architect for Airports Authority of India. In 2015 she shifted her focus to airport management training. She is now an ICAO qualified Instructor and Course Developer with the ICAO TRAINAIR PLUS programme, and delivers training at the Indian Aviation Academy. As an IAP she was class instructor for the ATS course of the ACI/ICAO global AMPAP. She was a speaker at Passenger Terminal EXPO Amsterdam (March 2017) and at Customer Experience Management for Airports Summit Singapore.


Day 1 - 20 March
Session: Management & Operations

12:00 - 12:30 - Operation from small, old terminal building and limited bays
Synopsis: In the last decade, passenger traffic has grown way beyond the expectations of airport operators. Operators such as Patna Airport in India are having great difficulty handling the growing traffic with the old infrastructure in parking bays and the terminal building. Considering the land acquisition, environmental clearances and the development of terminal building/parking bays/runway etc. to cater for traffic growth for at least 20 years, construction would take at least five years. Therefore, catering for the existing traffic growth requires the art of management and operation with the present limited infrastructure available until the new development comes up.

Audience will learn:

• How to manage limited parking bays with growing traffic
• Bay management in crises and special cases (VIP movement)
• Management of security hold area (queuing vis-a-vis security checks)
• Management of XBIS machines with growing airline operators
• Management of CUTE and CUSS

Day 2 - 21 March
Session: Airport Design, Planning & Development - Middle East & Asia

12:25 - 12:55 - Design thinking and innovation for the customer-centric intelligent airport
Synopsis: Airports are seeking to make their facilities feel more like destinations, like the hospitality industry, and their design has to ensure it has what the customer desires while travelling, with the underlying objective or purpose stated, unstated or perhaps not even fully recognised by them. The latest goal is transforming preconceived notions about airport experiences to create emotions that ease travel anxiety and lure travellers by providing comfortable, exceptional experiences through the theory and elements of design, keeping in mind ease, comfort and speed – creating airports as destinations.

Audience will learn:

• A comprehensive approach to terminal design can help airports and airlines adjust to tech-savvy passengers and encourage customer loyalty
• Develop terminals that are flexible to adjust as technology evolves
• The emergence of real-time data technology enables designers to enhance the travel experience and help airports prepare for crowds
• Opportunity to repurpose over/under-utilised space within terminals with the potential of technology
• Sustainable design strategies