Dominique Thillaud, a railway and general transport specialist who has taken the helm of France’s second-largest airport company, held his first conference alongside his closest collaborators. A look at the first semester results, which are record-breaking, and a more interested eye on the upcoming winter with a view on future strategy.
Dominique Thillaud, for whom territorial anchorage is an asset, perfectly understands the issues related to the territory. “Sharing the same logic of co-development, the airport, in conjunction with local authorities, strongly contributes to the dynamism of the region,” he claims.
“We need to build attractiveness by working on the off-peak season as well as the extra-airport area,” he concludes.
Focus on the airport of tomorrow
An issue strongly resonating with the existing strategic plan that outlines the airport of tomorrow: a multimodal hub that, thanks to the tramway and the future high-speed rail line (LGV), will ease congestion on the Azurean coast and serve the entire Eco-Valley territory.
A comprehensive strategy to, in summary, make Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur, beyond a national platform, a true European platform with international ambitions in both commercial and business aviation.
The airport’s activity is closely linked to the attractiveness of the region, of which it is one of the actors. Moreover, the airport is often the first image passengers have of the territory, setting the tone.
A decisive responsibility for Dominique Thillaud: “We are entrusted with the first 15 minutes of a person’s arrival on the territory and the last 45 minutes when they leave. Thus, we are one of the essential links in the region’s attractiveness.”
An economic impact study for an objective measure of economic benefits
The Nice Côte d’Azur Airport provides over 5,000 direct jobs and hosts a hundred businesses, representing a pool of economic impact amounting to 7 billion euros in the Alpes-Maritimes.
Summer traffic review and trends
Summer 2012 marks a historic summer, highlighted by a record of 49,000 passengers in a single day in July, a record of 303,900 passengers in a week, and a monthly record with nearly 1,326,000 passengers.
The cumulative passenger traffic as of September 30 is 8,833,499 (+7.4% compared to the same period in 2011), including 3,339,499 domestic (+4%) and 5,494,000 international (+9.5%) passengers.
Focus on winter 2012-2013
In terms of destinations and airlines, winter 2012-2013 is similar to the previous year.
The number of direct destinations served from Nice is maintained, notably thanks to the opening of Air France and EasyJet bases: 28 countries connected to Nice this winter, compared to 25 in winter 2011/2012.
The Airport, a space of conviviality in the digital age
For a faster and smoother passage, new services facilitate the passenger journey:
Customizable parking options in parking lots via Webmobile and Click&Park.
The concept of pop-up shops: the Promenade Nice Airport Shopping continues to explore offers of ever more “trendy” products and brands for passengers, as well as for those accompanying them who stroll through the terminals while waiting.
The Air France Express Path: emphasizing autonomy and fluidity with the Air France Express Path allowing customers to save even more time by checking in luggage via self-service kiosks and easily identifiable “Express” signage.
The “PowerKiss” allows for phone charging simply by placing it on a table…
