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master plan airport should be placed in an area predicated on maximum utilization consistent with the geographic distribution of air transportation users, the availability of adequate real estate, and minimum environmental problems. These factors are discussed in Chapter 6. a. Airfield Capacity. Airfield capacity is the rate of aircraft movements on the runway/taxiway system which results in a given level of delay. Cur- rent methodology employed by the FAA considers that capacity is reached when delays to departures average four minutes during the two adjacent normal peak hours of the week for large transport type aircraft operations. For general aviation type operations with small aircraft, the average delay level is two minutes for the peak hour of the week. The methods presented in Advisory Circular 150/5060-3A, "Airport Capacity Criteria Used in Long -Range Planning," should normally provide ade- quate approximate intermediate and long-range ca- pacities for the development of an airport master plan. Advisory Circular 150/5060-1A, "Airport Capacity Criteria Used in Preparing the National Airport Plan," and the "Airport Capacity Handbook —Second Edition" provide more exacting methods for determining air- field capacities and their use will be necessary for short-range analysis (less than five years) and where highly complex analyses are required. For example, where a decision of whether to build a new airport or expand an existing one is not clear cut, the more pre- cise methodology should be used. b. Terminal Area Capacity. After prelimi- nary calculations of the airfield capacity requirements have been made, it is necessary to determine the capacity requirements of the terminal area. Within the terminal area, individual elements should also be analyzed to keep the terminal area system in balance. In comparing the terminal area capacity to the airfield capacity, it is necessary to use common demand terminology. Thus, the airfield capacity must be translated into numbers of passengers, tons of cargo, etc., in order to express the capacities in equivalent terms. Terminal elements to be included in the analysis are: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) 16 Airline gate positions. Airline apron areas. Cargo apron areas. General aviation apron areas. Airline passenger terminals. General aviation terminals. (7) Cargo buildings. (8) Auto parking. (9) Aircraft maintenance facilities. An example of determining the relationship of terminal area requirements to demand levels is con- tained in the FAA publication "Aviation Demand and Airport Facility Requirement Forecasts for Medium Air Transportation Hubs Through 1980." Addition- ally, the advice of industry organizations should be sought in determining acceptable current relationships between activity levels and terminal requirements. It should be noted that requirements will also depend upon the terminal concept employed. For example, suburban or downtown passenger collection points will substantially lower the on -airport passenger terminal building requirements and convenient mass transit systems will alter auto parking needs. Consid- eration of the various terminal concepts and surface access systems should take place when developing and evaluating alternative terminal area concepts. See Chapters 9 and 10. c. Airspace Capacity. The proximity of air- ports to one another, the relationship of runway align- ments, and the nature of operations (IFR and VFR) are the principal interairport considerations which will affect the capacity of the master plan airport. For example, it is not uncommon in a large metropolitan area to have major or secondary airports spaced so closely that they share one discrete parcel of airspace. In such cases, there is a reduction in the IFR capacity for the airports involved due to the intermixing of traffic within the common parcel of airspace. When this occurs, aircraft, regardless of destination, must be sequenced with the proper separation standards, thus reducing the IFR capacity for a specific airport. The FAA Order 7480.1, "Guidelines for Airport Spacing and Traffic Pattern Airspace Areas," gives the planner general guidance in determining areas of likely airspace interaction. Additional information on interairport relations for airspace capacity purposes may be obtained from the document "Capacity of Air- port Systems in Metropolitan Areas —Methodology of Analysis"—FAA/BRD 403. At this point, assistance should be asked of the FAA office having jurisdiction for FAA matters in the area to be served by the master plan airport. Re- sponsibility for planning and design of the controlled airspace structure rests with the FAA which can give guidance on existing and available airspace capacity. d. Airport Access Capacity. The establish- ment of capacity requirements for the master plan •