NP-SP-04 · Slot Coordination & Management

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Process Flow Diagram (BPMN)

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L4 Process Steps

Step	Step Name	Role / Swim Lane	System	Input	Output	KPI	Dec?	Exc?
Phase 1 1.1	Analyse network demand vs slot inventory	Slot Coordinator	Amadeus SkyCAST	O&D demand forecast for target IATA season	Airport-level demand vs slot-capacity gap list	Slot coverage ratio ≥95% of planned frequencies	Y	N
1.2	Prioritise slot request list by route value	Network Planning Analyst	Amadeus SkyWORKS	Demand-gap list; route P&L rankings from prior season	Ranked slot request list with commercial priority scores	Top-20 revenue routes have slot requests filed within 5 days of season open	N	N
Phase 2 2.1	Extract historical slot series from IATA CRS	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Equivalent season data: previous two years of operated series	Historical series report with utilisation rate per slot	Historical utilisation validated for 100% of held series within 3 business days	N	N
2.2	Assess 80/20 grandfather rights eligibility	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Historical series utilisation report	Eligibility status per series: protected, at-risk, or lost	≥98% of held series retain grandfather status; at-risk flag raised ≥10 weeks before conference	Y	Y
2.3	File force majeure exemption for at-risk series	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	At-risk series list; documented operational disruption evidence	Exemption submission with supporting evidence package	Exemption accepted by coordinator within 10 business days for 90% of filings	N	Y
Phase 3 3.1	Generate SSIM slot request messages in SkyWORKS	Schedule Planning Analyst	Amadeus SkyWORKS	Ranked slot request list; confirmed fleet plan	SSIM-format Initial Slot Request (ISR) file per coordinated airport	Zero SSIM format errors on submission; ISR filed ≥8 weeks before IATA slot conference	N	N
3.2	Submit Initial Slot Requests to coordinators	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Validated SSIM ISR files	Submission receipt and coordinator acknowledgement	100% of ISRs acknowledged within 48 h of IATA deadline; no late submissions	N	N
3.3	Review coordinator initial allocation returns	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Coordinator allocation response file (SSIM)	Gap analysis: requested vs allocated slots per airport	Gap analysis completed within 48 h of receiving allocation returns	Y	N
Phase 4 4.1	Prepare slot negotiation brief for conference	Network Planning Manager	Amadeus SkySYM	Gap analysis; competitor schedule data from OAG	Negotiation brief: priority gaps, swap targets, walk-away positions	Brief approved by VP Network Planning ≥5 days before conference	N	N
4.2	Attend IATA slot conference and negotiate gaps	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Negotiation brief; conference room bilateral schedule	Agreed slot swaps and bilateral exchange confirmations	≥75% of priority gap slots resolved at conference; average delta from preferred time ≤15 min	Y	Y
4.3	Escalate unresolved gaps to coordinator appeal panel	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Unresolved gap list; documented justification	Appeal submission; coordinator ruling	Appeals filed within 24 h of conference close; ruling received within 5 business days	N	Y
Phase 5 5.1	Import confirmed slots into SkyWORKS schedule	Schedule Planning Analyst	Amadeus SkyWORKS	Final confirmed allocation SSIM file	Updated master schedule with slot-locked departure/arrival times	100% of confirmed slots imported without timing conflict within 2 business days of final allocation	Y	Y
5.2	Publish confirmed SSIM to GDS and PSS	Schedule Distribution Analyst	Amadeus SkyWORKS	Slot-locked master schedule	SSIM message distributed to Sabre GDS, Amadeus GDS, Travelport GDS, and Amadeus Altéa PSS	SSIM published within 5 business days of slot confirmation; GDS pick-up error rate <0.5%	N	N
Phase 6 6.1	Monitor weekly slot utilisation against 80% rule	Slot Compliance Analyst	Amadeus Altéa PSS	Operated flight departure reports; slot series holdings	Weekly utilisation dashboard: series compliance status	Utilisation ≥80% maintained for all series; alerts triggered if any series falls below 85% buffer	Y	N
6.2	Return or swap underutilised slots to coordinator	Slot Coordinator	IATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)	Underutilised series flagged below 85% buffer	Slot return notification or swap offer filed with coordinator	Returns filed ≥6 weeks before operated date; 100% of below-threshold series actioned within 48 h of flag	N	Y
6.3	Archive season compliance evidence for grandfather rights	Slot Compliance Analyst	AWS S3 / Redshift	Full-season utilisation records; exemption filings; coordinator correspondence	Compliance evidence archive; grandfather rights assertion package for next equivalent season	Archive complete within 10 business days of season end; 100% of series have supporting evidence on record	N	N

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Process Attributes

Identification

Process IDNP-SP-04

L1 DomainNetwork Planning & Scheduling

L2 ProcessSchedule Planning

L3 NameSlot Coordination & Management

L4 Steps16 across 6 phases

Decision Gates6 (all with iteration loops)

Exceptions6 documented

Swim Lanes (Roles)

Slot Coordinator

Network Planning Analyst

Schedule Planning Analyst

Network Planning Manager

Schedule Distribution Analyst

Slot Compliance Analyst

Systems & Tools

Amadeus SkyCASTAmadeus SkyWORKSIATA Slot Clearinghouse (SCR)Amadeus SkySYMAmadeus Altéa PSSAWS S3 / Redshift

Key Performance Indicators

Analyse network demand vs slot inventorySlot coverage ratio ≥95% of planned frequencies

Prioritise slot request list by route valueTop-20 revenue routes have slot requests filed within 5 days of season open

Extract historical slot series from IATA CRSHistorical utilisation validated for 100% of held series within 3 business days

Assess 80/20 grandfather rights eligibility≥98% of held series retain grandfather status; at-risk flag raised ≥10 weeks before conference

File force majeure exemption for at-risk seriesExemption accepted by coordinator within 10 business days for 90% of filings

Generate SSIM slot request messages in SkyWORKSZero SSIM format errors on submission; ISR filed ≥8 weeks before IATA slot conference

Submit Initial Slot Requests to coordinators100% of ISRs acknowledged within 48 h of IATA deadline; no late submissions

Review coordinator initial allocation returnsGap analysis completed within 48 h of receiving allocation returns

Airline-Specific Risks & Pain Points

SkyCAST demand signals do not automatically map to coordinator-level slot granularity; manual crosswalk required for Level 3 airports

SkyWORKS priority ranking may conflict with network-level schedule symmetry goals, requiring manual override

IATA CRS data latency of up to 48 h means late-returned competitor slots are invisible during initial analysis, skewing capacity view

Force majeure waiver criteria (e.g. COVID-era precedents) are interpreted inconsistently by airport coordinators, creating approval uncertainty

Coordinator acceptance rates vary by airport authority; no standardised SLA exists under IATA WSG, exposing series to arbitrary rejection

SkyWORKS SSIM export does not auto-validate against airport coordinator's declared coordination parameters (declared capacity), requiring manual cross-check

Inputs / Outputs

Primary InputO&D demand forecast for target IATA season

Primary OutputCompliance evidence archive; grandfather rights assertion package for next equivalent season

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