Ten students from the ‘Alternative Tourism’ Bachelor’s programme at the Faculty of Society and Economics at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences visited Weeze Airport as part of a field trip.
Kleve/Kamp-Lintfort, 30 June 2015: As part of a field trip, ten students from the Bachelor’s degree programme in ‘Alternative Tourism’, led by Prof. Dr Dirk Reiser, Professor of Sustainable Tourism Management, and Eva Neis, Research Assistant in the Department of Tourism Management at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, visited Weeze Airport. During the visit, the students were given a behind-the-scenes look at a major airport and gained an insight into its operations from a completely different perspective.
During their visit to the airport, the tourism students gained an in-depth insight into how an airport operates. They were able to follow the entire handling process both in front of and behind the scenes at the airport and discover the interplay between the various stakeholders at the airport, such as the airline, the control tower, air traffic control, refuelling, traffic management and ground handling agents, as well as the authorities, including the Federal Police, Customs and the District Government.
After registering at the start of the excursion, Holger Terhorst, Marketing Manager at Weeze Airport, guided the students through the airport’s security check. A shuttle bus took the students across the airfield, where they were able to watch passenger aircraft taking off and landing at close quarters. The group then visited the fire station, which is on duty round the clock. The demonstration of a fire engine was particularly impressive.
Another highlight of the airport tour was the visit to the control tower. There, the students had the opportunity to gain first-hand insight into the profession of an air traffic controller, whilst also having the chance to ask the experts on site questions relating to their careers. “A visit to the control tower is particularly rare on guided tours, so I was delighted that the students were able to gain this rare insight,” explains Prof. Dr Dirk Reiser.
The tour was rounded off with a presentation on the development of Weeze Airport.
