The operational dynamics of end-around taxiways: Insights from Istanbul Airport

The rapid rise in global air traffic poses significant challenges for airports, particularly in maintaining operational safety and efficiency. One of the main issues is the risk of runway crossings during ground movements, which can lead to runway incursions. This is particularly problematic in airports with parallel runway operations, where managing multiple runways and ground movements is more complex. End-Around Taxiways (EATs) have been introduced as a strategic solution to mitigate these risks. However, their implementation also introduces new operational challenges and complexities. This study evaluates the impact of EATs on Istanbul Airport (LTFM), one of Europe’s busiest airports. Using Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) data, the research examines the use of EATs in taxi times, acceleration counts and durations, stop-and-go counts, level-off times, hot spots, gate and stand usages by developing new catchment algorithms. The findings show that EATs present operational challenges such as increased taxi times, number of acceleration movements, and level off times. The study emphasizes the need to consider local airport configurations when implementing EATs and suggests new constraints to optimize their usage.