HEL To Become A Silent Airport

lucce · Tue Jun 02, 2015 5:33 pm

Flight information and passenger announcements made throughout the terminal will be discontinued from the beginning of June. Announcements at the departure gate and its surroundings, as well as public emergency announcements, will remain unchanged.

http://www.finavia.fi/en/news-room/n...er-of-announcements-to-be-reduced/

I see this as a good thing. Especially during peak times the announcements are continuous which is quite annoying. Which other airports are quiet? I can only think of LCY off the top of my head.

B8887 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 5:51 pm

Silent airports are one of the best recent inventions in airports.

From the top of my head, KLIA2 is not silent, NRT is not silent, ICN is not silent.

DXB is partially silent. Announcements are made only for selected flights.

Regards.

B8887

migair54 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 5:58 pm

MAD if i´m not mistaken is silent, actually the only announcement you can hear is the one saying, no announcement on the speakers of this airport, check the screens.

AMS also, very quiet.

Someone83 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 6:09 pm

OSL is quiet as well

macsog6 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 6:58 pm

Quoting lucce (Thread starter):
I see this as a good thing. Especially during peak times the announcements are continuous which is quite annoying. Which other airports are quiet?

I can only hope and pray that someone in the US reads this and thinks it is a good idea. The number of announcements at almost any domestic airport in the US are overwhelming with the TSA, no smoking, don't park here or there, don't put your bag down and so forth going on over and over.

JOYA380B747 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 7:05 pm

Also DEL had gone silent a year or two back... and that was a really welcome move!

I believe every airport should go silent, and let the pax deal with themselves reaching gates on time.

[Edited 2015-06-02 12:06:15]

OB1504 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 7:27 pm

AA at MIA adopted a "quiet terminal" policy several months ago, but not everyone seems to abide by it. Unfortunately, the airline has no control over the prerecorded announcements played by the county or announcements made by other airlines.

Mir · Tue Jun 02, 2015 7:33 pm

Quoting macsog6 (Reply 4):
I can only hope and pray that someone in the US reads this and thinks it is a good idea.

The irony is that it actually might work well in the US, since you know well ahead of time what gate your flight is leaving from.

In the instances that I've seen of silent terminals (UK and Spain), you don't find out the gate until there's not much time left before boarding, so you end up having to park yourself somewhere near a screen rather than spend time in the shops or restaurants (or, in the likely event that there aren't enough chairs near a screen, you have to keep going back to the screens to check every few minutes or so). It's a horribly designed user experience, and even a single announcement "passengers on flight X to Y, your flight will depart from gate Z" would make it a lot better. Or they can put the gate information on the screens earlier - that would work also. But hiding the information and then not letting people know when the information has been posted is ridiculous.

Quoting migair54 (Reply 2):
AMS also, very quiet.

AMS has a lot of announcements, actually. Which just goes to show how well-designed announcements can be quite unobtrusive.

-Mir

CrimsonNL · Tue Jun 02, 2015 7:52 pm

Quoting migair54 (Reply 2):
AMS also, very quiet.

Quoting Mir (Reply 7):
AMS has a lot of announcements, actually. Which just goes to show how well-designed announcements can be quite unobtrusive.

Wow really? I think it's horrible here. On busy times the missing pax are announced almost nonstop. Makes for a very noisy terminal (obviously), and people just stop listening causing them to miss actual important announcements.

So I'd say thumbs up for HEL

Martijn

tomcat · Tue Jun 02, 2015 7:55 pm

I was wondering how HEL had managed to make the aircraft silent. I'm disappointed to read that it's just about to make the terminal silent. This is not a novelty at all but it's always welcome.

My worst experience of a noisy terminal is with no contest the AUH "doughnut" terminal. I was waiting for my connection in the middle of the night and there were announcements without discontinuing. The previous announcement was still echoing on the walls of the terminal when the following announcement was starting. That was unbelievable ! I finally took refuge in a paying lounge.

AWACSooner · Tue Jun 02, 2015 8:03 pm

Quoting macsog6 (Reply 4):
I can only hope and pray that someone in the US reads this and thinks it is a good idea.

The current local time is...

Sevensixtyseven · Tue Jun 02, 2015 8:56 pm

Quoting AWACSooner (Reply 10):

This is a gate change announcement for US Airways Express flight 2765 to Flagstaff, the new gate is B20.

Yes, if it was quieter, that would be good, however, I think gate change announcements should be made clear so John and Jane Smith who are going to FLG from Charlotte don't end up in the wrong concourse because their boarding passes said B1A as opposed to B20, which is in an entirely different concourse in PHX. Just an example.

jsnww81 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 9:22 pm

Quoting macsog6 (Reply 4):
The number of announcements at almost any domestic airport in the US are overwhelming with the TSA, no smoking, don't park here or there, don't put your bag down and so forth going on over and over.

But how would we function without these gems:

"The TSA has limited the items which may be carried through security screening. Passengers should check with their air carrier for more information."

"Effective immediately by order of the Transportation Security Administration, all liquids, gels and aerosols must be less than three ounces and packed in a single plastic bag. Remember, 3-1-1 to speed your security screening."

"CITY NAME is in the Eastern time zone. Local time is..."

Interestingly, almost no airport in the US precedes announcements with a chime, which is common practice just about everywhere else in the world. We'd be hearing chimes nonstop if they did.

[Edited 2015-06-02 14:23:30]

s5daw · Tue Jun 02, 2015 9:27 pm

LJU is not silent, but given the traffic they have that's not a problem... actually with only 13 gates announcements kinda work.

rwsea · Tue Jun 02, 2015 10:04 pm

Quoting migair54 (Reply 2):
AMS also, very quiet.

Quoting CrimsonNL (Reply 8):
Wow really? I think it's horrible here. On busy times the missing pax are announced almost nonstop. Makes for a very noisy terminal (obviously), and people just stop listening causing them to miss actual important announcements.

So I'd say thumbs up for HEL

Exactly. AMS is one of the noisiest airports around. There are constant security announcements about liquids and sealed duty free bags. And there's also the nonstop "you are delaying the flight, immediate bording at gate XX" announcements as well, even in places where the "offender" couldn't possibly even be... for example, why do passengers in the holding pen for a KLM flight to JFK need to hear that "Mr. X is delaying the easyjet flight to Gatwick" a mile away in another terminal?

aerorobnz · Tue Jun 02, 2015 10:36 pm

Passengers invariably don't listen to the announcements anyway, and with phone apps and the rest of it there is little excuse for getting it wrong. I hope it standardises at all the top 100 airports.

UALWN · Tue Jun 02, 2015 10:41 pm

Quoting migair54 (Reply 2):
MAD if i´m not mistaken is silent, actually the only announcement you can hear is the one saying, no announcement on the speakers of this airport, check the screens.

BCN is the same. And it works just fine.

ramprat74 · Tue Jun 02, 2015 11:50 pm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0CYtHnkhXg

ozglobal · Wed Jun 03, 2015 12:07 am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ2EPeq1TK0

anonms · Wed Jun 03, 2015 12:20 am

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 12):

"CITY NAME is in the Eastern time zone. Local time is..."

To be fair, though, that was really useful the first time I went to Michigan. For some reason, I kept thinking that Michigan was Central time and that my phone was being its usual buggy self (seriously).

[Edited 2015-06-02 17:21:29]

KELPkid · Wed Jun 03, 2015 12:28 am

I hope it's not totally silent...I've been overhead paged more than once at an airport (luggage that beats me home when it gets loaded on an earlier flight, etc.).

vikkyvik · Wed Jun 03, 2015 12:37 am

If certain airports in the US improve the accuracy of the screens (or more importantly, improve how quickly - er, slowly - information gets updated on the screens) then I wouldn't have a problem with it.

I've been frustrated many many times by screens that don't display pertinent information until well after it's been announced.

Viscount724 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 1:29 am

Quoting migair54 (Reply 2):
AMS also, very quiet.

Totally disagree. AMS has more announements than almost any other airport I've used. I connect at AMS frequently and while I consider it by far the best connecting hub in Europe, I wish they would cut the many announcements, especially the very frequent announcements paging passengers who haven't shown up at gates. If they don't show up, leave without them. The many AMS announcements are my only complaint about the airport.

crazyguineapig · Wed Jun 03, 2015 2:19 am

I always had the impression that MUC was very quiet, although I've only been there in morning hours. Anyone else have an experience there?

bohica · Wed Jun 03, 2015 2:25 am

Quoting ozglobal (Reply 18):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ2EPeq1TK0

This is exactly what I was thinking while reading this thread.

liftsifter · Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:00 am

ORD T5 has recently become silent. Departure gates remain unchanged.

cxb744 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:06 am

LIM is silent and it's a beautiful thing!

kevin · Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:18 am

DOH is not so silent. Constant announcements throughout the terminal even at check in areas

YLWbased · Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:23 am

HKG only broadcast gate change annoucement since 2 years ago.

YLWbased

A332DTW · Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:27 am

I guess I'm in the minority here, as I've never been bothered by announcements. Maybe it's because I work at an airport and have become used to it, but it is an airport not a library.

baldwin471 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 4:09 am

HEL was already fairly quiet to be honest, certainly better than ARN from my experience. Welcome news nonetheless.

Navigator · Wed Jun 03, 2015 6:37 am

Quoting Viscount724 (Reply 22):
If they don't show up, leave without them.

Its not that easy. You may have to offload bagage and it could give the flight a 20 minute delay.

B8887 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 6:55 am

Quoting migair54 (Reply 2):
MAD if i´m not mistaken is silent, actually the only announcement you can hear is the one saying, no announcement on the speakers of this airport, check the screens.

Correct, MAD was the first silent terminal I walked into (T4), and it was like stepping into a new dimension.

Quoting rwsea (Reply 14):
Exactly. AMS is one of the noisiest airports around

I second this. It's horrible.

Quoting Mir (Reply 7):
It's a horribly designed user experience,

Yep, this layout is really annoying.

Regards.

B8887

migair54 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 6:58 am

Now i´m comfuse, I though AMS was quiet, and I pass by there quite often, maybe it´s because the kind of announcements are done in a very soft voice tone, or I am just in my own world and I don´t stop to listen them.

I think many of them are useless, nobody listen announcements because 99% of them are irrelevant for most pax.

New Doha is quiet also, but they have QR staff screaming asking people Delhi?? Mumbai?? Madrid?? fast please gate number +++ that way to the right.

steman · Wed Jun 03, 2015 7:31 am

I never understood why at some airports you can hear announcment of boardings and gate changes for all the terminals, regardless of the one you´re in.
For example in FCO, when you´re in Terminal2, you can hear announcments of flights boarding from T3, which you cannot reach from T2 that easily.
And this happens in other airports too.
What´s the point?
Why can´t they make an announcement audible only in the interested Terminal/Concourse/Gate area?

Ciao
Stefano

flynhi808 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:02 am

Quoting CrimsonNL (Reply 8):
On busy times the missing pax are announced almost nonstop.

That is literally the only thing I remember about AMS

Quoting rwsea (Reply 14):
"you are delaying the flight, immediate bording at gate XX"

"...your bags will be offloaded..."

ZaphodHarkonnen · Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:31 am

Pretty sure all NZ airports are quiet in the main areas except for the occasional "Paging person X. Get your ass on the plane!"

I know that the main body of WLG is quiet and flight calls are only done near the gates. They've got signs up to point this out to people.

ABQopsHP · Wed Jun 03, 2015 1:28 pm

When I left ABQ in 2006 it was a partially silent airport. The Airport Authority made delayed flight announcements or gate changes only after the airline called and asked them to do so. Of course there was the constant TSA announcements that are ubiquitous at all USA airports that are quite annoying. I did notice the past few times I went to ABQ that airlines were making announcements for customers to report to gate ........... for final boarding, and delayed flight announcements. But I think the airport still asks for that to be kept to a minimum since I didnt hear constant pages. Most of those were done in the lobby area only, they way it was when I worked there. Here in CRP we can make terminal wide announcements, but the airport asks we keep that down too. I just wish that darn repetitive TSA announcement would be made less. At HOU and other airports I timed it at 15 mins when it was repeated. Here in CRP its done every 7 mins. For crying out loud, I know some people have short attention spans, but it doesnt bear repeating that often.

JD CRP

ckfred · Wed Jun 03, 2015 1:50 pm

Quoting CrimsonNL (Reply 8):
Wow really? I think it's horrible here. On busy times the missing pax are announced almost nonstop. Makes for a very noisy terminal (obviously), and people just stop listening causing them to miss actual important announcements.

Of course, if people wouldn't wander off from the gate, then gate agents wouldn't have to make those announcements.

Last July, I was at MCO. It was clear by looking out the windows that thunderstorms were building out to the west.

An AA gate agent made an announcement that several flights would board early, so that the planes could be pushed back before the weather closed the ramp.

Yet, on one flight, that agent had to make a missing passenger announcement several times, before the passenger showed up with her boarding pass.

Guess what? As the agent was closing the door and retracting the jet bridge, there was a loud clap of thunder. The ramp closed, and the plane sat for almost 30 minutes (and sending my inbound flight from Chicago to JAX).

YVRFlyer · Wed Jun 03, 2015 2:37 pm

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 12):
But how would we function without these gems:

"The TSA has limited the items which may be carried through security screening. Passengers should check with their air carrier for more information."

"Effective immediately by order of the Transportation Security Administration, all liquids, gels and aerosols must be less than three ounces and packed in a single plastic bag. Remember, 3-1-1 to speed your security screening."

"CITY NAME is in the Eastern time zone. Local time is..."

After coming home from a long flight from HKG, I think the jet lag made me hallucinate. I started to hear...

Quote:

Female announcer: Oh really, Vernon? Why pretend, we both know perfectly well what this is about. You want me to have an abortion.

Male announcer: It's really the only sensible thing to do, if its done safely. Therapeutically there's no danger involved.

planecrazy20 · Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:17 pm

I think BHX is a silent airport. Its definitely a much better passenger experience.

okobjorn · Wed Jun 03, 2015 10:56 pm

CPH has been silent for many years...

OB1504 · Thu Jun 04, 2015 8:12 am

Quoting migair54 (Reply 33):
New Doha is quiet also, but they have QR staff screaming asking people Delhi?? Mumbai?? Madrid?? fast please gate number +++ that way to the right.

QR does the same at my station.

csavel · Thu Jun 04, 2015 11:32 am

I think that important and germaine announcements like gate changes, etc. are fine and I still get a kick at listening to announcements about flights to exotic locales in multiple languages.

The problem in US airports are

1) CONSTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS VERY LOUD FROM TSA ABOUT PARKED CARS AND LIQUIDS!!!!!!

I mean come on. Everyone pretty much knows that now, does it have to be blared constantly?? End. That. Now. Please.

2) Local time announcements, most smartphones adjust automatically, not necessary.

3) F***NG Airport network TVs that you can't turn off or escape *everywhere* you want to sit in an airport. Since US TV news is 99% celebrity gossip and 1% real news it is even worse.

4) people yakking nostop very loud on their cellphones although this is universal in every country, kind of the new normal.

Curiousflyer · Thu Jun 04, 2015 12:29 pm

CDG and ORY have been silent for over twenty years.

AirlineCritic · Thu Jun 04, 2015 12:40 pm

This is great. Nowadays I try to avoid airports with too much noise in them. Frankfurt is notorious. Moscow as well.

Those announcements are absolutely horrible _and_ pointless. Information overload, everybody's ears will shut down. And at the same time, the businessmen - who are perhaps the biggest user group of an airport - can not find a place to make that call or join a conference call.

SKAirbus · Thu Jun 04, 2015 12:44 pm

LHR T5 is awful... Announcements are made all the time for every flight all over T5A at least... People should be responsible for getting to the gate themselves as long as signage is good. Who actually listens to those announcements anyway?

EK413 · Thu Jun 04, 2015 12:47 pm

Quoting lucce (Thread starter):
Which other airports are quiet?

You can add BKK to the list of "Silent" airports...

EK413

XAM2175 · Thu Jun 04, 2015 1:28 pm

Quoting SKAirbus (Reply 46):
LHR T5 is awful... Announcements are made all the time for every flight all over T5A at least...

My memory of T5A from about three years ago was that only the final call for each flight was announced... although when you have it in English and then the destination language/s it does add up.

ckfred · Thu Jun 04, 2015 1:56 pm

To add insult to injury, a lot of airports architecture magnifies the issue. At ORD, a lot of the concourses have relatively low ceilings with acoustical tile. So, the sound from announcements for a concourse isn't bad (as opposed to gate announcements, which are sometimes very loud).

But, some of the concourses at TPA are regular echo chambers, and there is no place to get away. Once, on the AA/US concourse, I heard strange noise through the din of the announcements. It was my cell phone, which had gone to voice mail. And I usually have the ringer set for loud (but not annoyingly loud). I had to sit on the floor, behind a row of chairs, using the chairs as a muffler/deflector for the announcements, as well as the ambient noise.

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