Visionary approach to aviation management

BAVINA SOOKDEO

Hayden Newton, general manager of the Airports Authority of Trinidad and Tobago, brings a blend of academic and corporate expertise to the aviation industry.

In an interview with Business Day, Newton provided perspectives on his professional journey, the challenges encountered in supervising airport operations and the strategic vision he foresees for the authority.

Newton’s journey into the aviation sector is marked by a diverse background, encompassing academic achievements and corporate roles.

Armed with a degree in economics from UWI, he ventured into banking before doing law, earning an LLB at UWI, St Augustine and a legal education certificate at the Hugh Wooding Law School.

His career later led him to the corporate sector, notably at Lake Asphalt, where he ascended to acting general manager.

In 2005, he joined the Airports Authority as corporate secretary and legal advisor, eventually becoming deputy general manager, corporate services/legal adviser in 2010.

Newton was one of the first graduates of the master of science in aviation management programme at UWI, St Augustine.

As the general manager, he emphasises the importance of leadership in managing the complex and multifaceted operations of the authority.

He discussed the critical challenge of responding to various stakeholders – public, regulators, international aviation organisations and the government.

Newton underscored the delicate balance between safety and security, the core goals of the organisation and the commercial realities of the aviation business.

He acknowledges the necessity of compliance with international standards, particularly those of organisations like the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), while also dealing with ageing facilities and the need for capital renewal.

"Our focus is on becoming world-class in talent management, prioritising safety and security with a business-oriented approach," he said.

Asked about the challenges of his job, Newton said, "The challenge of this environment is one where you are answering to a number of voices at the same time and you are required to ensure that you're effective in terms of your answers to these various voices.

"We must respond to the voice of the customers who use the facilities, the voice of the government, the owners of the facilities, shareholders (so to speak), the voice of the regulator, because this is a highly regulated industry. Civil Aviation regulates us – they are the government representative under the ICAO, so they must comply with the standards and recommended practices that the ICAO has put in place – and we, as the airport operator, must also ensure we comply with that."

It does not stop there, however, as Newton explained: there are the voices of labour that must be answered as well.

"We have two employee associations here, but we have been able to develop a good relationship with them, especially during the covid19 pandemic, where we were able to work with them.

"Nobody went home and we were able to address some of the terms of the collective agreement during the period to ensure we were able to operate effectively."

Newton said the authority must also respond to the US Federal Aviation Authority and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), because most of its flights end up in the US.

Another challenge Newton pointed out was the ageing facilities in Piarco.

But he said, "When you look at Latin America and the Caribbean, the Airports Authority of TT, is in fact, top of the class and comparable to the best airports all around the world."

Newton’s vision

Newton's vision centres on achieving world-class status in the aviation industry. He emphasises the significance of human capital, championing training and growth initiatives.

To enhance financial resilience, Newton plans to diversify revenue streams, particularly focusing on non-aeronautical revenue.

This involves the commercialisation of lands, such as issuing expressions of interest (EOI) for leasing land on the Piarco Airport Estate.

Newton said the authority successfully navigated the challenges posed by the covid19 pandemic, particularly during the period from March 2020-July 2021.

While the airport remained operational, its activities were primarily driven by factors such as cargo traffic, vaccine distribution and repatriation of passengers to US and Canada, even though it wasn’t fully open for commercial traffic during that time.

In 2022, the authority closely monitored developments and engaged in scenario planning to anticipate future trends.

Taking a cautious approach, the authority was conservative in its projections and didn't foresee a robust recovery for 2023 but was still satisfied with its performance.

Future initiatives

Newton said exciting initiatives are on the horizon. This includes expanding facilities, technological advances in passenger processing and collaboration with airlines to accommodate increased traffic.

The revamping of Piarco International Airport and the development of the AeroPark are key projects for the future.

"Over the next few years, as my legacy to the organisation, I aim to build an even stronger and more resilient organisation both in terms of financial resilience and the capacity of our employees, which is our greatest strength. I look forward to the authority becoming more financially resilient through diversifying its revenue streams and becoming less dependent on aeronautical revenue, that is, revenue streams that are linked to the movement of passengers and aircraft.

"Covid19 clearly highlighted the importance of the diversified revenue stream, hence the need to increase our non-aeronautical revenue, that is, revenue streams that are not directly linked to the movement of passengers and aircraft," he said.

The key to increasing non-aeronautical revenue, Newton said, is commercialising lands on the airport estates under the approved Strategic Land Use Plan.

Newton anticipates enhancing the passenger experience by expanding facilities for connecting passengers and introducing technological tools to improve passenger-processing efficiency.

"In meetings with airlines, several have indicated plans to increase the frequency of flights to TT in 2024. The airlines have done their market research, and based on analysis, they are allocating increased capacity into TT, considering forecasts of increased demand for travel to our country."

He said the authority had already begun work on expanding facilities for processing an increased number of passengers using Piarco as a hub to connect to other destinations.

"The airport facilities at Piarco International Airport are now over 23 years old and as part of our Airport Master Plan and our Capital Development Plan, we intend to engage in extensive capital renewal of the facilities in the next few years.

"In addition, at ANR Robinson International Airport, the work being undertaken to develop a new domestic and international terminal is expected to be completed in 2025.

"All airport users should experience the steady, continuous improvements as a consequence of the developments," he said.

Additionally, in the first quarter of this year, the authority will commission a solar park at Piarco International Airport.

"The 0.5MW Solar Park is projected to generate 767,034 kWh annually, resulting in the avoidance of approximately 500 metric tonnes of CO2 emissions. It will make a substantial contribution to the authority’s electrical consumption at the airport, with room for future expansion. It also makes a notable contribution to the country’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent by December 31, 2030," said Newton.

Recognition and achievements

Under Newton's leadership, the Airports Authority achieved notable recognition for passenger satisfaction.

It was recognised for excellence in passenger-satisfaction levels between 2018 and 2023. In that period, the Piarco International Airport was recognised by Skytrax (Skytrax World Airline Rating is the only global airline quality ranking programme applied through direct and professional analysis of product and service quality standards) as the best Caribbean airport in 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Other notable achievements include the creation of an environment of continuous learning.

"Evidence of this is that the authority has the highest per capita number of airport managers who attained International Airport Professional (IAP) certification. The IAP designation recognises an individual’s excellence in airport management and proficiency in applying best practices of the Airports Council International and the Standards and Recommended Practices of the ICAO. This is an amazing achievement for a small country to produce such a high number of airport professionals," he said.

A significant accomplishment has been effective financial management, showcased by successfully navigating the authority through the challenges of the covid19 pandemic. During that period, with the country's borders closed, the authority saw a decline of over 95 per cent in monthly revenue.

But, said Newton, "Not only was our management team able to continue airport operations in that period with high levels of compliance, but we navigated that period without resorting to cutting staff salaries or furloughing staff. Through prudent cost management and revenue-generating initiatives, the authority successfully ended fiscal 2022/2023 with an EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) surplus of $2.8 million, which was even higher than the EBITDA surplus in 2019. This is the robust recovery after EBITDA deficits in the three prior fiscal years that were affected negatively because of restrictions on travel at the height of the covid19 (pandemic)."

Community engagement and social responsibility

The Airports Authority actively engages with the local community through various corporate social responsibility initiatives.

These include school tours, career fairs, educational drives, and partnerships with local organisations, aimed at demonstrating a commitment to fostering education and community well-being.

As for broadening the tourism sector, Newton said the authority remains actively engaged with tourism partners to advance industry development.