SEAPLANE

Sustainable and Efficient Air Transport - Platform for Linked Analysis of the North Sea Air Transport Environment

What is SEAPLANE?

SEAPLANE is an international project funded within the European Commission's INTERREG III B North Sea programme. The aim of the SEAPLANE Project is to support the sustainable spatial development of the participating regions by strengthening the air transport network and its airports. This will contribute to economic and social cohesion in the North Sea Region and increased accessibility of peripheral regions. The project has regional partners in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

Included in the project are more than 20 airports (from the largest, Hannover with 4.5m PAX, to small remote airports with very little traffic (e.g. Wick or Sumburgh airport in the north of Scotland). Another category are former military airports which have yet to develop commercial traffic (e.g., Jade airport).

SEAPLANE objectives

• Identify the North Sea Region's air transport development potential to improve social cohesion and to stimulate the socio-economic development of rural and remote areas
• Increase airports' efficiency, security and inter-modality so they can maintain and improve their essential role as nodes in the overall transport system
• Improve the accessibility of regions in order to serve business as well as private mobility needs especially in peripheral parts of the North Sea Region
• Propose airport development strategies specifically tailored to local circumstances and opportunities, in order to sustain the airport's social and economic function for the region
• Improve trans-national co-operation to facilitate cross-sectoral information exchange and mutual learning among regional spatial planners and airline/ airport representatives

SEAPLANE activities

SEAPLANE falls into several interrelated activities:

• Status Analysis of the North Sea Air Transport Network will collect and analyse airport and regional socio-economic data to generate basic information for the following activities (read summary);
• The Airport Quality Improvement and Development Strategy concerns the efficiency of participating airports, which will be analysed based on relevant indicators (read summary);
• The Airport Passenger Market Potential Analysis aims to achieve better air transport networks and improved access to peripheral regions of the North Sea Region
• The Airport safety and security activity will look at improvements in internal and external airport security and safety
• The North Sea Aviation Co-operation Network involves the exchange of know-how and experiences.

Read more about SEAPLANE activities.

SEAPLANE results

The SEAPLANE project has shown the North Sea Region’s air transport development potential. SEAPLANE has provided advice to airports to help them improve efficiency, quality and economic sustainability needed to maintain their vital role as transport nodes, especially in remote and peripheral areas and on islands.

An analysis of 10 airports (based on a model incorporating multi-modal transport network data and passenger transport demand forecasts derived from on econometric data) has identified about 90 new routes that have sufficient market potential to be operated commercially. If inaugurated, these routes would improve the accessibility of regions within SEAPLANE by up to 10%. For the 10 airports, action plans have been developed that can be used by regions and their airports to convince airlines to operate the new routes identified.

Other SEAPLANE results pertain to the identification of particular airport development strategies that capitalize on airports and regions' assets to improve non-aeronautical revenues. For two airports, detailed development strategies have been worked out.

Still other SEAPLANE outcomes include the development of transnational concepts for the most appropriate implementation of airport safety and security requirements.

For a more detailed summary, read the SEAPLANE results summary page.