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Essay of 7 pages for the course Unit 20 - Ramp Handling at PEARSON (Distinction Essay)
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P1 Identify the organisations involved in aircraft turnroundP2 Describe the roles and operational procedures used by organisations during the aircraft turnaround
Some of the organisations involved in the aircraft turnaround include the airport operator. This is the airport which
the aircraft will be departing from, this can be an airport like London City Airport. Another organisation is the airline,
which can be BA City flyer. This the flight carrier which will operate the flight. The airport operators' responsibilities
include providing a stand. This stand is allocated depending on the aircraft type/size as aircrafts such as ATR’s will
not need as much space as a B777. Other factors include the flight type as international and domestic flights are
allocated separate terminals in some countries and the maximisation of on-pier operations. Other responsibilities
include ensuring that marshalling is provided when needed which can be either manual, automated systems and the
“Follow Me” vehicle. This is the process of guiding an aircraft to a particular location in an airport. Other
responsibilities include authorising a stand clearance which is clearance to the ground handler or flight carrier to
approach a stand or depart from the stand. Another responsibility is to oversee the security; this includes ensuring
that passengers do not cross into restricted areas and are following the rules in the airport. Another organisation is
the ground handler who will provide the handling services needed for the flight. BA City flyer's ground handler is
Menzies. Some of the responsibilities include the chocking the aircraft which is like placing a physical
brake/obstruction on the ground around the aircraft’s tyres to prevent it moving from their location. Their
responsibilities also include handling the aircraft’s turnaround. This includes servicing, refuelling, offloading, and
loading passengers/goods and ensuring it departs safely and on time. Air bridge operations are amongst their
responsibilities and this includes providing an airbridge or stairs to the aircraft’s door whilst also adhering to the no
touch policy. Passenger embarkation/disembarkation also takes places and is managed by the ground handling team.
Technical inspections are also carried out on the equipment used including GSE’s and will require
rectifications/repairs when needed as mentioned on the tech log; repairs may be made on major defects and carried
forward defects. The ground handling team provides ground power for the aircraft which comes from either a
portable ground power unit or power unit connected to the terminal’s infrastructure which is commonly found in
more advanced airports such as LHR. There are also aircraft servicing responsibilities which involve cleaning and
redressing the cabin for the next flight; and toilet waste disposal and water replenishment for the next flight. They’re
also responsible for baggage security by following procedures related to unaccompanied baggage, AAA, baggage
manifests and rush bags which are bags which have arrived in a short period of time. Anti-Icing solution is sprayed on
the aircraft prior to flight and de-icing is sprayed after arrival. The duration of effectiveness of the solution also
comes into play and the flight crew will have to decide how much solution will be needed and if it’s safe to continue
the flight. Following this, the ground handling team will then proceed with the pushback with the use of the
pushback tug. Another organisation is the UK Border force. This is an organisation present at all airports and are
involved in the turnaround by protecting the UK’s borders. They also have a number of responsibilities including the
immigration and customs control. This includes reviewing passports and the relevant documentation and inspecting
passengers' baggage and cargo (commercial goods, crew belongings to ensure that no prohibited items are brought
into the country. And when there is a need for their deportation services this will also be utilised to remove
unwanted passengers from the country. Police intervention is also present when needed, some examples of these
situations are terrorists or potential incidents which will involve the anti-terrorist branch and the special branch.
Another organisation involved in the turnaround is the UK CAA who is responsible for UK’s aviation activities and are
involved by legislating certain practices which are conducted during the turnaround. Another organisation which is
involved is port health, this is the country’s health organisation which are deployed during times of illnesses such as
covid-19 and protect the UK’s borders from unwanted diseases. Another organisation involved is the emergency
services which are on standby in the event of an emergency and provide services when needed. Port health’s
responsibilities include the control of passenger transmitted diseases from infected countries and control of
suspected infectious diseases. This can be achieved through quarantining and imposing entry restrictions such as
testing negative for diseases prior to the arrival into the country as well as not showing symptoms of the illness.
Other services include catering and refuellers who provide the meals for passengers and fuel for the flight. The bus
service providers in and around the airport provide the coach services for crew and airside passengers which
transports them from the terminal to the aircraft at a stand. Aircraft refuelling services are present at the refuelling
and can be done by earthing which is a connection from the terminal to the aircraft through the ground. Other
services include refuelling through ground refuelling points which are ground vehicles which provide the refuelling
, for the aircraft which can be either underwing or overwing depending on the aircraft size and type. This is because in
turbofan powered aircrafts such as the 787 there is only an underwing option however a turboprop such as a
helicopter is refuelled overwing. Catering companies such as DO&CO provide the catering services for the airline so
that it may provide meals to it’s customers. Cleaning teams also regularly clean the terminal to ensure that it’s clean
and do so through fumigations. They also clean the cabin after every flight.
P3 Explain the co-ordination required to ensure safe and efficient aircraft turnround
Co-ordination is required to ensure safe and an efficient aircraft turnaround. This is because failing to do so could
result in delays to operations at the airport of departure and the arrival airports. Both of these consequences will
also incur a financial penalty for the flight carrier. And in the worst-case human life can be threatened which will
most certainly result in legal action. A safe and efficient aircraft turnaround can be achieved by ensuring that all
organisations involved follow procedures set by the airport and their companies and complying with DfT and CAA
legislation. This can also be achieved by correct and efficient communication by communicating through systems
such as the radio and signalling equipment in aviation standard English. Organisations such as the airline, ground
handling, refuelling, catering work together to co-ordinate the process of the turnaround. Refuellers communicate
with the flight deck to understand when to refuel the aircraft and the amount which is needed for the flight, they
communicate via radio/headset/hand signals. Catering operations are co-ordinated by the flight dispatcher and
following approval are allowed to load the meals onto the plane. They also communicate via radio. Ground handlers
are responsible for the majority of the turnaround including the pushback and ensuring that passenger luggage's are
loaded correctly in the correct layout and section. Flight dispatchers are involved in the operation by authorising
certain activities at times such as the refuelling where they also calculate the amount needed and liaise with the
organisations involved for a safe, efficient, and on-time turnaround. Some of the activities that they co-ordinate are
refuelling, baggage loading and embarkation. As part of the co-ordination there is also pre-arrival communication
from all organisations which is done through control centres using IT systems such as emails, and texts. There are
radio systems where organisations can communicate using aviation English. There are also verbal and written
briefings which are usually sent via email and will include important information including the events and the
timings. The allocation of equipment and personnel also takes place, in this the ground handling team and flight
operator will communicate the need for equipment and number/type of personnel as well as the timing and
positioning of these. This is so that the team effort involved can efficiently turn the aircraft around. There are also
interactions between the organisations in which liaisons take place which are essential in ensuring the turn around
takes place and in an efficient manner. This includes the liaison between cargo warehouse and loaders who load
baggage, cargo, and meals. There is also liaison between the flight crew, cabin crew and the ground crew to ensure
that the passenger side of the turnaround is handled correctly. During the turnaround there are a number of events
which take place and must be done in chronological order to prevent disruption and health/safety concerns. These
activities are to off-load passengers and the cargo/baggage before proceeding to loading baggage/cargo. Following
this the cabin must be cleaned and prepared for the next set of passengers and this may be done simultaneously. An
example of this would be to prepare the business class cabin and board the passengers into this cabin whilst the
economy class cabin is being prepared and cleaned. The offloading of baggage may also be done sequentially by
removing baggage from both ends whilst having one entry point in which baggage is being loaded in. Once the doors
are closed the de-icing process will take place if needed which will involve using chemicals which require PPE to be
worn by those working around the aircraft. As part of the co-ordination process equipment's involved in the
turnaround will need to be available and in the correct places. Examples of this include the ground power which will
be positioned and ready prior to the arrival of the aircraft to ensure the operating cost is as low as possible and the
aircraft is able to carry out the activities needed in the turnaround quickly. Steps are positioned once the aircraft has
docked at the gate/stand and is handled through the ground handling team. This is used to allow the safe
disembarkation of passengers. Loading equipment and cargo delivery vehicles will arrive at the gate/stand once the
ground handler has permitted to do so and so does the flight deck. This is what will be used to offload and load
baggage onto the aircraft and transport goods to and from the terminal. Catering vehicles are also present and are
usually positioned towards the rear end of the aircraft and load meals and food for the aircraft's passengers. Toilet
Service units are also present and carry out their services using the servicing point which is towards the rear of the
aircraft. This is needed to ensure that the aircraft can hold the waste that they will anticipate in the next flight.
Pushback coordination involves organisations such as ground handlers, flight dispatchers, flight deck crew, pushback
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