First, let me say what a great honour it is to be asked to take part in one of the Society's symposia, and particularly one on as wide and important a subject as this. Before I start to consider the particular aspects of this subject I must make three points clear.

The first is that, since airports range from primitive landing strips to multi-runway complexes covering ten or more square miles (26 x 106 m2), I should be foolish if I made sweeping statements that might be taken to apply to any one of them. So let me narrow the field to major international airports and dismiss the rest with the generality that transport aircraft today demand airport facilities that are expensive to provide and operate and that if an airport is not supported by a strong and growing demand for air services it is irrelevant and will eventually be put to other uses. I realise that in the USA large airports may handle little international traffic, but my concern is with Europe.