Data-Driven Evaluation of Ground Operations for Enhancing Turnaround Efficiency

In the context of airport logistics, "turnaround time" refers to the interval between an aircraft's landing and its subsequent takeoff.Unfortunately, inefficiencies within these turnaround operations are a major factor behind flight delays.To achieve optimal profitability, airlines must strive to minimize the duration an aircraft remains grounded.Nevertheless, this objective is hindered by the necessity to comply with manufacturer-mandated maintenance procedures, which are vital to ensuring aircraft safety.These activities, outlined in detailed checklists and scheduled by the manufacturer, owner, or operator-under the oversight of certified airworthiness authorities-create significant constraints in reducing on-ground time.Consequently, streamlining turnaround procedures remains the only controllable aspect through which airlines can improve efficiency and profitability.As air travel serves as a cornerstone of global connectivity, maintaining strict standards for safety and security is indispensable.However, the COVID-19 pandemic has deeply impacted ground handling protocols, prompting the urgent need to revise traditional practices to align with enhanced hygiene and health regulations.One prominent challenge lies in the passenger embarkation process, which now requires strict physical distancing and thorough disinfection of the cabin after each flight.In response, this study explores potential revisions to in-cabin procedures by comparing them to pre-pandemic turnaround operations.Through a detailed, process-level examination, we identify individual touchpoints and suggest strategic adjustments aimed at improving operational efficiency.Our findings indicate that boarding durations have increased significantly-more than twice the usual time-due to social distancing mandates.Despite introducing various procedural changes, sustaining previous turnaround benchmarks while maintaining full passenger capacity remains problematic.Nevertheless, adopting alternative strategies-such as maintaining vacant middle seats (reducing capacity to approximately 67%) and boarding from apron stands using both front and rear doors-can help mitigate delays and support smoother aircraft turnaround operations.