Aviation Special Report
Our annual report on aviation trends. Written by Burns & McDonnell experts, these publications focus on issues impacting the industry.
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The innovations of a century of commercial airports are a testament to the hold it has over business executives, engineers and the traveling public alike. The 2011 Aviation Special Report pays tribute to the spirit of invention that has made the commercial aviation industry grow and change over the past 100 years — and will drive it onward into the next.
Articles In This Issue
Nearly 100 years ago, commercial aviation began springing up around the world. Upper-class Americans, Europeans and businessmen began to sign on for the 12- and 17-passenger short and uncomfortable flights. This newfound mode of transportation brought them to their destination more quickly
than rail service could promise.
Flying captures — and holds — the imagination of people young and old like few other concepts. It has for centuries, long before anyone successfully lifted off the ground. From Greek mythology to Leonardo da Vinci to Howard Hughes, the idea of flight fascinates and propels us.
When commercial flights began to take off, convenience of passengers wasn't much of a concern. Simply getting them from point A to point B was a feat in and of itself.
The commercial airport was still a novelty in the 1940s. It wasn’t until later in the century, when commercial flights became more economically feasible for more passengers, that the airport concessions industry became a viable business.
Successful commercial airport operations depend on many parts of the system coming together to best serve the flying public. Hangars are seldom mentioned as a part of those airport operations, but safe and reliable aircraft form the nucleus of the entire air transportation network.
In the beginning of flight, airfields were quite simple — nothing but large fields that allowed pilots to take off and land into the wind, no matter its direction. Like everything else in the aviation industry, though, airfields have evolved.
When federal airport funding was established after World War II, the funding was supported by the general fund of the U.S. Treasury. Funding requirements have changed significantly over the years.
Natural Disaster Vulnerability
Natural disasters have always affected air travel and airport infrastructure. Designing and constructing facilities to minimize damage risk is the key.
U.S. airspace is a complex network of imaginary 3D surfaces. Explaining the configuration of airspace in public meetings requires patience and skill. The Kansas Department of Transportation and Burns & McDonnell have created an online tool to make it easier.
We know what the first 100 years of commercial aviation have wrought, and it falls to me to speculate on the next 100. There are numerous conceivable possibilities — some realistic and some not.
Timeline of Commercial Aviation
A look at the events and milestones that shaped a century of commercial airport development.