Airport master planning in Turkey; planning and development problems and proposals

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to draw attention to the problems experienced during the enlargement and development of existing airport facilities in Turkey, where air transport has been undergoing rapid growth over the past decade, and to provide recommendations to overcome these problems. In this study, civil air transport developments, bottlenecks, trends, and expectations worldwide and in Turkey are investigated. The earliest and latest master plan studies related to Ankara Esenboga, Antalya, Istanbul Ataturk and Sabiha Gokcen, and Izmir Adnan Menderes airports are examined and evaluated and proposals are made regarding the recurring planning problems. The analysis of earlier master plans, which were not brought into effect, indicated that some of the existing applications, such as the co-ordination, planning, and implementation procedures regarding the airport operators/state-regional planning authorities, need to be changed to clear the way for the development of airports. Otherwise, the latest master plans also will not be fully applicable and existing problems will continue to hinder airport development. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.