Line Operation

“Line Operation refers to the set of

activities necessary to provide support
to passengers, shippers, consignees
and the flight so that the most
convenient, the safest and most
secured service could be extended to
them” (Zapanta)
•support services provided by airline companies to meet the
needs, wants and expectations of their customers in order to
create customer loyalty

•Happens during Pre-Flight, In-Flight and Post-flight

•begins once the passenger or cargo is booked and the

contract of carriage has been issued

•Line operators’ jobs begin as the passenger or cargo enters

the terminal, continues as the passenger or cargo is being
transferred from the point of origin to the final destination and
ends when the passenger or cargo has left the premises of
the terminal

•distinguishes airline companies from each other because

they have and offer varying services, style of services and
quality of services
AIRPORT
SERVICES
 Airport Services

• for extrovert, outgoing and

accommodating
 Passenger Handling
• check-in:
• for international passengers - 3 hours before
• for domestic passengers - 2 hours before
• technology improved the check-in process
• ticketless travel
 Baggage

• Free Baggage Allowance

• International passengers - 30 kilograms
• Domestic passengers - 20 kilograms
 Hand-carried Items

• only one hand-carried item not

exceeding seven kilograms is allowed
 Denied Boarding
• Denied boarding is when a passenger is
not allowed to board a flight due to
insufficient or improper travel documents
or problems on the list of passengers.
 Amenities
• departure lounge
• VIP lounge
• special services
• stretcher with oxygen tanks
• wheel chair
• ambulance
• passenger lifters
 Disembarkation

• Domestic
• passengers are led to the arrival hall
• retrieve baggage from the carousel
• end of journey
• International
• passengers are led to the arrival hall
• Immigration for clearance
• retrieve baggage from the carousel
• Customs for clearance
• end of journey
 Transit

• passengers are led to the transit lounge

• revalidated for the subsequent flight
• same check-in routine
Ground Handling
 What is Ground Handling?
• Involves the activities that occur as the
aircraft is spotted at the assigned gate

*gassing up
*loading
cargoes baggage
catering in-flight provisions
load manifest cargo manifest
other required documents,
*boarding passengers
• spotted an hour before scheduled
departure time
• Pre-departure activities:
fueling maintenance check
catering
loading cargo, baggage, corresponding
documents
passenger check-in
weight and balance or load controlling.
Upon arrival is the other way
around, mostly about
unloading of what has been
formerly loaded.
 Ground Handling
and Airline Company Image

• a test of the airline’s and its people’s

competence
• one way of projecting a company image so it has
to be very systematic and very desirably fully
mechanized and automated.

• (Note that not all airports are apt to handle fully

automated and mechanized ground handling
services)
 Aiming for Ground Handling
Efficiency
• systematic blending of labor and equipment
• a need for skilled, quality labor
• can optimize the use of systems and hard wares
of fleet of ground service equipments (anything
on the ramp that has no wings),
• effecting easy and quickly completing tasks
• important that GSEs are properly and efficiently
used
• Most ground-handlers band together for inter-
utilization and cost efficiency.
 PERT/CPM
• PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique)
*is a networking system
*developed in the 1950s
*useful for planning and controlling projects

• While CPM (Critical Path Method)

*is a networking method developed in 1957
*adds the concept of cost to PERT

PERT/CPM
*a quantitative model
*a diagram that ensures optimized delivery of quality service at
the shortest possible time
*Trick: identify activities that should logically come first and
those that could be done simultaneously.
The PERT/CPM as a plan
needs supervisory skills
upon execution
because of human failures and oversights
that may bring in problems.
Such skills are demonstrated
on the command of people,
systems and procedures.
 LCC Ground handling
SYSTEM: simple and easy
saving up more in terms of ground handling

A 20 minute turnaround of LCC: an hour in legacy

Observance of commonality
saves up on labor, employing the same skills of the same
staff (technical, industrial and commercial) throughout the
operations

Narrow-body crafts
easier to handle that big ones that need a number of support
equipments and systems

Refuses cargo and interline traffic

incremental profit from these < incremental costs.
 Issues and Other Concerns
Boarding passengers
• Various requests: the wheelchairs
Legitimate: for the aged balikbayans
Spurious: for saving from lugging heavy baggage
full of “pasalubong”
US: supported by a law  no airline can refuse a request of
wheelchairs

• Special cases:MEDICAL
-eat up ground time
-add up to airline costs
providing ambulatory, stretchers, oxygen tanks,
and accessories.
there are usually six seats for stretchers
 Issues and Other Concerns
• Missing passengers
-the most annoying
-have to be called and recalled over and over again
not found adjust the passenger manifest
 redo the load manifest
(if load distribution change)
offload his/her baggage from the belly
of the craft (it takes time)

If you leave ahead of published time, he/ she may sue you for breach
of contract so better try calling him/her over and over again despite
the annoyance and delay.
 CARGO

• All freight, except baggage, carried by an

airplane
• Electronic goods, machinery parts
• Mail, documents of banks & financial firms
• Flowers, fruits, vegetables
Small airports: handle cargo w/ passenger
baggage

Large airports: one or more separate terminals for

cargo processing

• Cargo is sorted at the airport for various flights

• Carts are towed by tugs to carry cargo to the
apron
• Cargo relies on the “known shipper
principle”
• Check and verify weight, contents,
consignor, consignee
• Increased security requirements for
checking hazardous elements

– Ex: Siemens Handling Systems

» Devices for x-raying pre-packed ULDs
» Low-pressure chambers for simulating flight
conditions
 Security starts when cargo is delivered on the
ground as bulk freight or pre-packed ULDs

1. Truck on-loading and off-loading

2. Bulk handling
3. Build-up and break-down
o Cargo is picked and consolidated by destination,
time zone, flight number, etc
4. Internal transport
o Fulfills specific flight requirements: cold rooms,
deep freeze chambers, transit zones for perishables
5. ULD storage
6. Transfer by air
 CLASSIFICATION OF CARGO
1. General cargo
 without hazardous or dangerous properties
2. Express cargo
 those that need to reach the destination to meet a
certain time
3. Perishable goods
 items that will deteriorate over a given period of
time, or if exposed to adverse temperature, humidity
or other environmental conditions
4. Valuable cargo
 gold, platinum, legal banknotes, share coupons,
traveler’s cheques, precious stones, jewelry, and
any other article having a declared value for
carriage of $1,000 or more per gross kilogram
 CLASSIFICATION OF CARGO

5. Dangerous goods
 commodities that, when transported, pose some
form of danger to people, animals, the environment,
or the carrier
6. Live animals
 Pets, animals for study and other purposes
7. Outsized cargo
 items that exceeds the dimensions of oversized
cargo and requires the use of a C-5 or C-17 aircraft
or surface transportation
8. Mini-shipment
 loads consisting of three pieces or fewer, and less
than 75 kilograms in total
 REGULATIONS FOR CARGO
1. Dangerous goods

 IATA’s Dangerous Goods Program: to

ensure that undeclared dangerous goods do
not get on board
 Standards for documentation, handling &
training, promoting the adoption of the use
of these standards
 REGULATIONS FOR CARGO
2. Live Animals

 IATA Live Animals Regulations: to ensure

that all animals are transported safely and
humanely by air
 pets: dogs, cats
 exotic pets Different
 animals for zoological requirements
& agri purposes
 health certificate for any animal to be
transported
 REGULATIONS FOR CARGO
3. Interline ULD

 IATA ULD Control Centre: to ensure that a

unit is speedily returned to its owner

Also an accounting system

o whenever a unit is interchanged, a control
receipt is made out
o carriers concerned will be charged demurrage
• The shipper either brings the
shipment to a city or airport cargo
office of the closest freight
forwarder or the airline.

• The cargo is weighed, airway bill

is cut and charges are paid.
• The shipment is x-rayed but not all
airport cargo offices have the device;
otherwise visually inspected,
reweighed, first upon acceptance and
second after the air cargo is built with
some other shipments in a unit
loading device (ULD).
• The airlines automated cargo
system, Cargonauts in the case
of PAL, would automatically
include the shipment in cargo
manifest of the outgoing flight
indicated.
• The serial number of the particular ULD in
which it was built is also indicated. Later
upon uploading, the exact location of the
ULD in the belly of the aircraft is also
captured in the DCS, which makes the
search for the cargo easy in case it has to
be off-loaded at the last minute for
whatever reason.
• The first stop of the flight would be the
destination for many and just a transit
point for some of the shipments carried
in the flight.

• Terminating air shipments are then

properly stowed in designated storage
bins and duly indicated in the cargo
system for quick retrieval at time of
release.
• Only after an international shipment
is cleared by Customs that it is
released to the consignee or his agent,
and only after payment of storage
charges in case the shipment stayed
in the warehouse beyond the free
period of storage, normally three days
within arrival.
PAL, particularly in its domestic cargo
operation, offers other special cargo
services.
● v-cargo service

- allows the sending of valuables

like cash, jewelries, payroll, and
documents
- the traffic of cash shipments and
payroll
PAL also offers the Shipper's COD service
where shippers can ship commercial goods
to a consignee from whom the airline would
collect the COD charges and remit to the
shippers. Then, there is the RHUSH or Rapid
Handling of Urgent Shipments, which is a
money-back guarantee on airport-to-airport
basis within 48 hours.
RAMP HANDLING
 Starts when…
• everything is all set in both the passenger
and cargo terminals and flight has been
closed and the computer has downloaded
the load manifest
 Ramp Agent
• responsible for ramp handl ing
• ensures the safe operati on of the
flight
• hal f of the maj or chor es is the
arrival of aircraft
 Duties/Responsibilities:
• A. Pre-flight Preparations
• B. Ground Handling
• C. Prior to Flight/Aircraft Operations
• D. Ramp Activities
• E. Aircraft Arrival
 A. Pre-flight Preparations
• Monitors expected passenger ,
baggage and cargo l oad of the
flight
• Carries out tentat ive weight
di str ibuti ons that may have to be
done
 B. Ground Handling
• Prepares ground handl ing equi pm ent which
includes FMD loading truck, the jeep conveyors- in
case of remote parking, tow tractors, towing tags,
pallet and container dollies
• Makes sure that he has dul y tr ai ned and
licensed equipment operators

*** In provincial stations, they have to prepare

umbrel las, boot s and rai ncoats particularly
during the rainy season.
 C. Prior to Flight/Aircraft
Operations
• Check if the aircraft is loaded only w it h pass enger s,
baggage and car go

• Ensures that the aircraft is manned by pilots and cabin

attendants duly designated for the flight at hand

• See to it that wei ghts of passenger, baggage and cargo are

pr operly distri but ed within the cabin and belly
compartments of the aircraft.

• Makes sure that baggage and cargo are properl y built

up in their ULDs

• Check if the ULDs are secur el y sto wed and bolte d in

the belly compartments.
 D. Ramp Activities

• Ensures that the maintenance men and the pilots do

the maintenance inspections.
• Check if the aircraft is sufficiently fueled by the
fuel and lubricants people
• See to it that all the provisions needed in the flight
from catering, in-flight sales are loaded
• Makes sure that he has the proper load signed and
accepted by the pilot, passengers manifested by the
cabin crew and all flight documents are all on board

*** Unmanifested items and unregistered weights

must never be allowed.
 E. Aircraft Arrival
• Park the aircraft, di sembark
passengers, unload the baggage and
cargo, tow the ULDs to the baggage
and cargo terminal
• Execute predetermi ned
acti vi ties for the turn around of the
aircraft
 Note…
• Unloading phase is critical.
• Important: Pre-flight planning and briefing
of his ramp crew before departure and arrival of
an assigned flight
• In case of missing passenger, time has to
be expanded looking for and unloading the
ULD containing the passenger’s baggage.
• Offloading and reweighing of certain
shipments occasionally happen. (suspected to
be dangerous or underweighed)