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Welcome to a new monthly magazine, Terminal, by Václav Havel Airport Prague.
Every month, we will offer a peek behind the scenes of the the airport's operations
and review the most recent events at the airport, to ensure we please travellers and aviation enthusiasts alike.
This issue covers: New Security checks,
Check-in options at the airport
and the largest aircraft arriving in Prague
Effective the end of January, all European airports have introduced the mandatory detection screening of
selected liquids approved for transport aboard aircraft.
Petr Hlousek, Prague Airport Director of Security: Baby food, medicine and the so called STEBs (Security Tamper-evident Bags) - a name used for all purchases at airport Duty Free shops sealed
in special on-time-use bags with a tag of the airport of purchase.
If you are departing from Terminal 1 whlile trasporting approved liquids aboard your flight, please report to the security screening personnel.
At Terminal 2, use special tracks marked: "Baby Food, Liquids, Medicine"
where general security screening is performed and, at Václav Havel Airport Prague, this is enhanced by the use of a new device called EMA,
with the sole purpose of screening transported liquids.
The screening process is very simple. The container with liquids is inserted into the device,
the operator waits for about 10 - 12 seconds for the device to evluate whether or not the contained liquid is classed as a dangerous substance banned from transport aboard aircraft.
If the substance is approved for transprt, the device show a green light and passenger may take the liquid onto the flight.
Using microwave technology, the device is able to assess the liquid content within seconds and report back to the security screening personnel wheather it is safe for transport aboard an aircraft or not.
If the device determines that the liquid is not safe for transport, it still does not mean that the liquid is dangerous.
This report only triggers a secondary screening process, performed using a different technology (the Raman spectometer).
A more precise detection device is used next.
In some cases, this device is able to detect the assessed liquid through its container
but, should the container prevent the device from performing the chceck, a sample is taken from the container and assessed.
But by no means should you believe that, thanks to these checks, you can now transport any liquid in any amount. To believe so would be a mistake.
Transporting liquids in excess of 100 ml is strictly limited to baby food, medicine, water for patients with diabetes and liquids purchased at airport duty free shops.
Transport regulations for other liquids thus remain in place.
Passengers can only transport gels, liquids and aerosols in containers with a maximum capacity of 100 ml, placed in a re-sealable transparent plastic bag with a maximum content of 1 litre.
Travellers departing from, or arriving at, Terminal 2 can now enjoy a new cultural act at the airport a piano installed at Gate D1 for public use.
Interested parties may spend their time before departure playing a tune or listening to the music played by other courageous travellers.
This unusual musical enlivenment of the airport premises is part of an event titled "Pianos on the Streets", started in the Czech Republic by café owner Ondrej Kobza.
Long queues in front of check-in desks and mandatory arrival at the airport several hours before the scheduled departure? Not any more.
Thanks to new technologies offered by airlines, check-in has become significantly faster and more comfortable.
What types of check-in are offered at Václav Havel Airport Prague?
Daniel Sabik, CSA Czech Airlines Spokesperson: The firs option is the most common one, known to us all - checking-in at a check-in desk.
Then there is a more modern option of using a self-chcek-in kiosk and finally, the option of remote check-in, performed in the comfort of your home via the airline's website or by using a mobile phone application.
All these options are offered by Czech Airlines, and, put quite frankly, offer many additional advantages.
The greatest advantage common to all these modern check-in methods is the time factor,
followed by comfort, as you can check-in practically any time.
Online check-in may be used as early as 30 hours prior to departure and as late as one hour prior to departure.
And that is still not all of it - there are many more advantages to online check-in.
The greatest advantage of any modern check-in method is the possibility of securing your favourite seat and printing a boarding pass agead of time.
If you travel without any checked baggage, i.e. with just cabin baggage, you proceed directly to security screening and onward to your gate after arrival at the airport.
If you travel with larger than cabin baggage, using one of the modern check-in methods, you still do not have to wait in line in front of a check-in desk.
Passengers holding boarding passes printed at home or stored on their mobile phones proceed to the assigned desk reserved for baggage drop-off,
where the weight of their baggage is checked and a transport tag printed. Passengers receive their portion of the tag and proceed onwards. This process also shortens the time spent at the airport prior to departure.
Many airlines offer modern check-in options. Their list can be checked at Václav Havel Airport Prague's website (www.prg.aero).
The ever-growing popularity of modern check-in options is confirmed by statistics.
Nowadays, 70% of travellers use self-check-in kiosks, airline's web or mobile phone applications.
A misplaced boarding pass, the inability to print a boarding pass at home or even a power failure? Never mind.
One of the many advantages offered by these modern check-in technologies is the option of having your boarding pass repeatedly forwarded to your mobile phone or picking it up directly at the airport.
You need only prove your identity by presenting an ID card or passport. There is no need to repeat the check-in process as you have already been checked-in at that point. You merely print your boarding pass and proceed onward.
Next time, think about the many check-in options before automatically heading to the end of the line in front of your assigned check-in desk.
In this chapter, we discuss airport operations.
Today, we are going to show you the types of aircraft that you can see regularly here at the airport.
Czech Airlines, the national carrier, is proud to introduce the largest long-haul aircraft of its fleet,
the Airbus A330-300 with the matriculation OK-YBA, most frequently used on the Prague - Seoul route.
Korean Air services its regular scheduled flights from Seoul to Prague with an Airbus type of aircraft, too - the A330-200 to be precise.
Both A330s can be seen at Václav Havel Airport Prague daily, based on current schedules.
Another large-capacity, long-haul aircraft, servicing Prague is the Boeing 777-300. This aircraft touches down upon its arrival from Dubai every day at 12:30 p.m.
It takes off agin at around 4 p.m., heading back East.
The last type of aircraft to be introduced today is China Airlines Cargo's Boeing 747-400,
with its four engines roaring at the airport on Tuesday and Sunday afternoons.
Produced by RB, Ltd., Production Company, for Prague Airport. © 2014