Embracing Globalization through Adaptation
By Benjamin DeCosta Aviation General Manager Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport	Georgia Minority Business Awards Conference Atlanta, Georgia February 17, 2005

Good afternoon,

Thank you Mr. Parnell for that kind introduction…

I am pleased to be here for the Georgia Minority Business Awards Conference. Mr. Parnell and members of the organizing committee, thank you for this valuable contribution to our community. I appreciate you inviting me to be a part of your program today.

The theme for today’s conference is “embracing globalization through adaptation.”

As General Manager of the busiest airport on Earth, I meet a lot of people from all over the world.

Though as individuals we are different and have our own perspectives of the global community, people in general desire similar things. Respect, comfort, safety, access, opportunity…

At Hartsfield-Jackson we have been a catalyst for globalization by ushering it in and embracing it. By harnessing it and highlighting the opportunities it provides.

We see ourselves as a global connector. At Hartsfield-Jackson we connect people to people; people to resources; people to places; and people to opportunity.

In providing global connectivity, we expand the possibilities of inter-cultural and economic development.

Connecting People to People and Places
We connect people to people and people to places.

At Hartsfield-Jackson, we now have non-stop passenger flights to 202 cities in 36 countries around the world.

In fact, during the last eight years we have seen a tremendous increase in our international passenger traffic, and it continues to grow by leaps and bounds.

In 1997, the year after Atlanta hosted the summer Olympic Games, Hartsfield-Jackson Airport served almost 3.5 million international passengers.

Well, just yesterday we released our official numbers for passenger activity in 2004, and the highest increase was in international travel.

At 6.2 million travelers, our international passenger traffic is up 12.7 percent from 2003.

And since the 1996 Summer Olympic Games our international passenger traffic has doubled! In just 8 years, that is phenomenal growth.

We continually work to develop new routes so residents and visitors will have even further global access.

Members of my staff have traveled all over the world from South America to Asia to build relationships with carriers who can help us carry the mantle of international business forward.

Our Protocol Office and others in the Department of Aviation work closely with the State of Georgia Economic Development Agency, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, and other organizations to position Atlanta as a viable location for the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Secretariat headquarters.

If we are successful in our bid to serve as home of the FTAA, our international relations will be enhanced and there will be an estimated $500 million annual economic impact.

We have made progress with our international partners…

Recent additions to our direct international passenger routes include Delta’s flights to Belize, Argentina, Turks & Caicos and St. Lucia. Delta has also expanded its service to Costa Rica and Brazil.

Additional direct service includes, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines’ return to our roster with 7 flights per week to Amsterdam.

As for potential service, Delta is vying for routes to Beijing and Moscow.

Not only do our international routes connect people to one another, and places around the world, but our international routes also connect people to global resources.

Connecting People to Resources
Boeing and the International Air Transport Association have forecasted, on a percentage basis, more growth in air cargo traffic than passenger traffic during the next 20 years.

That puts Hartsfield-Jackson—and businesses that align with us—in a highly favorable position. We already have record-breaking passenger traffic, which economists and demographers expect to grow continuously.

But a recent exciting development is our record-breaking international air cargo growth. The record international air cargo tonnage transported through Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in 2004 was 349,000 metric tons. That is as heavy as a herd of 63,000 African elephants!

Our record growth makes Hartsfield-Jackson one of only three major U.S. airports that are in the top 10 for both passengers and air cargo.

Hartsfield-Jackson’s success has opened the Southeast United States for international business.

Our lifestyles are more comfortable, and our palettes more sophisticated as a result of the products imported internationally by air.

Our local supermarkets sell Jamaican star fruit, and other products like fresh berries from Chile, and flowers from Ecuador. We can even buy fresh spices from places as far away as Thailand because of the global connectivity provided by Hartsfield-Jackson.

Though we are able to indulge in the comfort of products like the ones I have mentioned, when it comes to connecting people to global resources, we believe the best news is yet to come.

Cathay Pacific Airways, a premier Hong Kong based carrier, has announced that it will operate three air cargo flights per week from Atlanta to Hong Kong beginning in August 2005, just a few months away.

Doug Wahl, one of the airline’s air cargo managers has said “this new service is going to create a direct link between the world’s two fastest-growing regions.”

In all that we do—from developing passenger routes so that people can visit one another around the world, to creating more distribution outlets for businesses to sale goods all over the world—perhaps the most important question we can ask is: how are we enriching peoples lives?

We embrace globalization and enrich peoples’ lives by connecting people to opportunity.

Connecting People to Opportunity
Today at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport there is a $6 billion capital expansion program in full swing; it is known as the Hartsfield-Jackson Development Program: Focus on the Future, or H-JDP.

Hundreds of people have served as contractors and consultants on various aspects of the H-JDP. And many of the businesses that have competitively and successfully bid to contract or sub-contract for major work, have been minority and female owned companies.

We are proud of the fact that at Hartsfield-Jackson we have fair and open business practices with opportunities for qualified people of diverse backgrounds.

To date, the Hartsfield-Jackson Development Program has achieved 35.71 percent female and minority business participation.

From the inception of the expansion program through 2004, we have paid out more than $342 million to female and minority owned firms.

These firms represent multi-cultural and global diversity.

For example:

Michael Thrasher, president of Thrasher Contracting, is a major partner in a joint venture with 5R Constructors. That joint venture team is building the embankment for our fifth runway.

Dwayne Cheatom, is a principal with Corporate Environmental Risk Management, LLC. His firm is managing the quality control process for the construction of our fifth runway.

Cecil Chan, president of Cecil Chan & Associates is working with the Hartsfield-Jackson Planning Collaborative Team on the planning and development processes for various H-JDP projects.

And the list goes on.

Some of our partners I mentioned are here with us today. Would you all please stand so that we can recognize you?

We want to contribute to even more success stories like these. That is why we publicly communicate contracting and bid opportunities on a regular basis.

And at least twice per year we conduct workshops on how to do business with the airport.

We believe partnering is a valuable approach to the overall success of the airport.

Even with what I have shared with you today, we look forward to doing more. And my team will tell you, that at the City of Atlanta Department of Aviation at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, we are people of action.

We are here to serve our customers. And we are here to provide increased connectivity for the global village and market place.

From Atlanta, Georgia to more than 200 cities across the globe, Hartsfield-Jackson will continue to catalyze global economics and inter-cultural cooperation, by connecting people and resources around the world!

Thank you.

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