Postgraduate Prospectus

Airport Planning and Management MSc

Airport Planning and Management

Suitable for those with a 1st or upper 2nd class UK Honours degree or equivalent in any discipline looking to become a specialist in airport planning and management.

Takes you on to employment destinations including airport authorities (business development, operations, design and planning), and those suppliers that offer services to airports (management and planning consultancies, IT companies etc).

You will be taught by members of Cranfield’s Department of Air Transport and recognised external specialists.

Course description

The MSc in Airport Planning and Management is designed to prepare students for careers in the airport industry, typically working either for an airport authority, planning consultancy or one of the many other suppliers that offer services to airports. The course covers a wide range of subjects while providing students with the opportunity to specialise in a particular field.

Many of the taught modules include case study project sessions and seminars may also be led by senior visitors from industry. Airport Planning and Management students receive a subscription to the online news service ‘Air Transport Intelligence’.

The course, which has been accredited by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (UK), has three elements: taught modules, a group project and a research thesis.

Group project

Students are divided into groups and asked to solve a current airport planning and management challenge. Each group submits a report of their findings and recommendations and delivers a presentation to staff, students, industry experts and invited potential employers. The following are some examples of previous group projects:

  • Evaluating the business case for extending the runway at Birmingham Airport
  • The preparation of development plans for two new airports in South-west England
  • Designing a new passenger terminal for Leeds-Bradford International Airport.
Individual research thesis

The thesis is an opportunity to study a problem in detail, and sponsoring organisations may co-operate in the choice of a suitable subject.

Research thesis topics vary widely. The following is a sample of recent theses that have been undertaken by airport planning and management students:

  • An analysis of the hubbing strategy of Air France/KLM at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.
  • The implications of secondary slot trading on airport revenues.

 

Accredited by
The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

 

The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

Modules:

  • Introduction to the Air Transport Industry
  • Regulatory Policy and Air Law
  • Statistical Analysis
  • Economics and Financial Management
  • Research Methods and Forecasting
  • Airport Strategic Planning
  • Airport Environmental Planning
  • Airport Operations
  • Airport Design
  • Airport Business Management

Course website - Click for further details

Entry requirements

1st or upper 2nd class UK Honours degree or equivalent in any discipline. A recognised professional qualification plus a number of years’ relevant working experience may be accepted as equivalent.

Duration

1 year full-time.

Start date

October.

Number of places

20

Assessment

Examinations, assignments, group projects and individual research thesis.

Further details & applications

Further information

Course website

Contact

SoE Admissions (APM)
T: +44 (0)1234 754236
E: soe_apm@cranfield.ac.uk

Application process

By completion of an application form for postgraduate study.

Online application

Airport Planning and Management

Teaching location

Cranfield campus, School of Engineering.