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Why a remote-stand for 787-8?

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Old Jun 22, 2015, 9:12 am
  #1  
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Why a remote-stand for 787-8?

On the multiple occasions I've flown through HIA this year, the Dreamliners have all been parked on remote stands - namely stands which are only accessible by bus.

Last week, I flew through HIA en route from BRU, on a 787-8. Unsurprisingly, we parked up at a remote stand, and then had to take a bus to the terminal.

My question, is why, having just built a new airport, don't the 787-8's park on stands that are linked directly to the terminal? I appreciate there are unopened gates at the airport, and that the 787-8's may park there in the future, but why doesn't it happen now?

Has anyone ever travelled on a 787-8 that has parked with direct access to the terminal at HIA?
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Old Jun 22, 2015, 9:51 am
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Yes I have but it was a BRU-DOH-DXB and we used the same aircraft for the DXB leg. We had a remote stand on return but the DOH-BRU 787 was parked at the gate so we didn't need a bus to get out to it.

I suspect that this problem will go away as the new gates come online.
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Old Jun 22, 2015, 5:06 pm
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It's got nothing to do with 787s. Plenty of occasions where 787s park on contact stands. Equally plenty of occasions where 787s park on remote stands. Just like with any other widebody aircraft of QR's.
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Old Jun 22, 2015, 9:52 pm
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Originally Posted by msm2000uk
Has anyone ever travelled on a 787-8 that has parked with direct access to the terminal at HIA?
Several times. A few weeks ago, I flew in on a B787-8 from KWI which parked at gate A6, and then out on the same plane to SIN, from the same gate. It does seem a bit hit and miss, however as others have said above once E and F concourses open fully, I would imagine this will happen with far less frequency. I have to say, when arriving into DOH in J, I far prefer a remote stand than one of the far C gates or gates 5-10 on A and B concourse, as it avoids the need to walk miles, and means I am in the lounge far quicker!

Last edited by JP1981; Jun 23, 2015 at 12:17 am
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Old Jun 22, 2015, 10:49 pm
  #5  
R2
 
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I have also had the remote stands for the 787 flights on several occasions. I fly mostly to OSL and ARN.

I understand the need to use stands if the terminal building is not yet complete. What I find the most annoying though is that the boarding gate is at the far end of the terminal i.e. one has to walk a mile to get there only to catch a bus for the last couple of hundred meters!
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Old Jun 23, 2015, 7:38 am
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Originally Posted by R2
I understand the need to use stands if the terminal building is not yet complete.
This is one of the things that I don't understand about DOH (and by extension QR since I'm sure they had input into the design). I'm sure DOH knew about QR strategy of targeting transit passengers and therefore would require lots of gates and yet currently it only has approx. 40 gates which is clearly not sufficient as it requires many planes (during peak transfer time) to still use remote stands ... just like in the old airport.

I know they have expansion plan but does anyone know why DOH doesn't have more gates right from the start? I mean they had 5 extra years from the original opening schedule to add more gates.
And if I recall correctly the old airport had approx. 40 gates as well (which was clearly not enough) so why does the new airport have approx. the same number of gates?
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Old Jun 23, 2015, 11:17 am
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The old airport had 0 gates, all passengers were bussed
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Old Jun 23, 2015, 11:34 am
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As the other FTers mentioned, the 787s do depart from the contact gates and are not relegated only to the remote gates.

Roughly 70% of flights depart from a contact gate, with 30% departing from a remote gate. This is with 33 contact gates and 20 remote gates at the airport currently. The number of contact gates will increase 41 shortly and ultimately to 65 contact gates, with the number of remote gates remaining the same. A second terminal is in the master plan.

The ratio of remote gates to contact gates works well with the traffic patterns at Hamad International Airport, as there is very little traffic outside of the main banks as opposed to Dubai for example which sees a more steady level of traffic in between the EK banks. In terms of departures the remote gates tend to be most used between 0000 and 0200 and then again 0700-0900, if they were to build enough gates so as to not need remote stands you will probably need roughly an additional 150,000 sqm of built up area that will be used for about 2 hours per day but would need power, maintenance and air conditioning for 24 hours a day.
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Old Jun 23, 2015, 11:43 am
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Originally Posted by N1Rotate
As the other FTers mentioned, the 787s do depart from the contact gates and are not relegated only to the remote gates.

Roughly 70% of flights depart from a contact gate, with 30% departing from a remote gate. This is with 33 contact gates and 20 remote gates at the airport currently. The number of contact gates will increase 41 shortly and ultimately to 65 contact gates, with the number of remote gates remaining the same. A second terminal is in the master plan.

The ratio of remote gates to contact gates works well with the traffic patterns at Hamad International Airport, as there is very little traffic outside of the main banks as opposed to Dubai for example which sees a more steady level of traffic in between the EK banks. In terms of departures the remote gates tend to be most used between 0000 and 0200 and then again 0700-0900, if they were to build enough gates so as to not need remote stands you will probably need roughly an additional 150,000 sqm of built up area that will be used for about 2 hours per day but would need power, maintenance and air conditioning for 24 hours a day.
Using this ratio, if the number of contact gates increases to 41, that margin would decrease the number of remote gates usage drastically. They need approximately 43 contact gates minimum to operate a 100% contact gate operation. Remote gates will still be used. DOH can be a bit more efficient in using contact gates--as sometimes, the gates are empty and people still use remote gates. They can utilize a fast rotation with the gates, and perhaps offer incentives for airlines to save money using remote gates as opposed to contact gates.
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Old Jun 23, 2015, 11:54 am
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QatarA340,

That will be true if QR remain the same size, but they are constantly growing so 43 gates is not enough and neither is 65 if they are to go 100% contacts gates all the time.

You are right that sometimes remote gates are used even when contact gates are available, also there is a lot of maintenance work ongoing around the airport. For example the airport NOTAM is currently showing gates C3 and C5 closed until mid August.
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Old Jun 23, 2015, 12:27 pm
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Originally Posted by N1Rotate
QatarA340,

That will be true if QR remain the same size, but they are constantly growing so 43 gates is not enough and neither is 65 if they are to go 100% contacts gates all the time.

You are right that sometimes remote gates are used even when contact gates are available, also there is a lot of maintenance work ongoing around the airport. For example the airport NOTAM is currently showing gates C3 and C5 closed until mid August.
Its true, I missed that point. QR is on an expansion spree, especially with those peak midnights flight that it loves. I wonder what is the delay in opening the North Node. It has been completed for ages now; but still doesn't appear to open.
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