As we manage the complexities of airside operations at Toronto Pearson, we’re constantly measuring our progress against a fundamental strategic objective: maintaining the safe, consistent flow of passengers, baggage, aircraft and cargo. Over the past two years, we’ve taken another important step forward. Working alongside a few key partners, we've become the first airport in North America to begin implementing Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM). By creating links between what were previously standalone systems, we’re able to share relevant data in real time and work together to ensure that passengers get on their way more reliably, comfortably and efficiently than ever.
Our common goal was clear: find better ways of sharing information and expertise to help Toronto Pearson operate as smoothly as possible while maximizing efficiency.
Pearson’s evolution to A-CDM began in 2016, through a joint initiative launched with our two principal carriers, Air Canada and WestJet, as well as NAV Canada, which is responsible for air traffic control nationwide. Key providers of other airside services, such as ramp handling and cargo logistics, also joined the process, as did GTAA teams responsible for everything from aircraft deicing to terminal services. Our common goal was clear: find better ways of sharing information and expertise to help Toronto Pearson operate as smoothly as possible while maximizing efficiency. Two areas of special focus were reducing aircraft turnaround times and improving the response to extreme weather events such as winter storms.
Our fleet of snow clearing machines use a plowing blade, high-speed broom
and powerful air blower to blast away snow, keeping our runways operating through snow events.
A platform for the future
The new A-CDM technology, which we began implementing in 2018, brings together data on all relevant aspects of airside operations, carrier activities and air traffic management in a single platform designed to support safe, effective decision making. Having a common source of up-to-the-minute information makes it easier to respond quickly to changing conditions – and even anticipate them – while better coordinating everyone’s actions. When data insights from various sources are overlaid, they can point to solutions that are counterintuitive: for example, the evidence may show that if a departing aircraft waits an extra three minutes before pushing back from the gate, it will actually reach the runway sooner.
While the A-CDM model adopted by many European airports is aimed at optimizing the use of airspace (a regional priority), our approach focuses on improving the efficiency of ground operations as we better coordinate our teams and deploy resources more effectively – while maintaining rigorous safety standards and helping to reduce our collective carbon footprint (see sidebar). We’re taking an incremental approach, testing solutions and reviewing results to ensure we achieve the best outcomes for all partners. Moving forward, we’ll continue working together to explore the advantages of A-CDM and its potential to improve current ways of working between – and within – our respective organizations.
As we work with our key carriers and other partners to implement Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM), we’re seeing tangible benefits in terms of Toronto Pearson’s environmental impact. By better coordinating various aspects of ground operations, we can, for example, shorten aircraft taxi times and eliminate unnecessary idling as aircraft wait to access gates or the deicing facility. This translates into lower fuel consumption and reduced greenhouse gas emissions, helping all partners make tangible progress toward our shared sustainability goals.
The growing importance of cargo
Cargo services at Toronto Pearson, which have been steadily expanding in recent years, play a key role in the pandemic response as carriers and logistics companies work tirelessly to deliver personal protective equipment and other critical supplies to health-care workers on the front lines. We expect that cargo will remain crucially important during the economic recovery to come, as globally connected enterprises rethink supply chains and ship more products by air to reach markets faster and avoid potential disruptions.
We’ve been working with cargo carriers on new solutions to move goods more efficiently. For example, when Air Canada began converting some passenger aircraft to carry more commercial goods, the GTAA’s baggage-systems team helped out by providing equipment that can be adapted for loading freight. We’re also looking at building an additional, temporary cargo-processing facility to handle the increased traffic more efficiently.
In April 2020, the GTAA and the Ontario Chamber of Commerce convened a roundtable of businesses and organizations that contribute to the air cargo supply chain. In discussions with Victor Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade for the Province of Ontario, leaders shared insights that will help to coordinate efforts and ensure cargo flows more smoothly through the crucial months ahead – and up the longer curve of economic recovery.