Estimating runway capacities of German airports

This paper deals with two problem areas: How to make forecasts of demand for air transport services compatible with those for airport capacity, when estimating capacity surpluses or deficits; and second, an empirical method for estimating functions of runway capacities for German airports. The first part of the paper describes the demand and capacity characteristics of the German air transport system and methodological questions of estimating capacity reserves are also discussed, regarding the definition of capacity, the selection of the time unit of volume and capacity for comparison purposes, and the estimation of comparable volume and capacity values. The second part deals with empirically derived functions of take‐off, landing and mixed mode runway capacity. It has been found that the hourly movement rate is mainly determined by the sequence pattern and the size and mix of aircraft in the landing and take‐off process.