Q and A with Houston Airports’ Molly Waits

Construction update pictures April 2024

How is your recovery going?
We have finally exceeded our pre-COVID-19 peak level, of 59.8 million passengers between the two airports. We’ve seen a bit of a difference in the international markets. We’ve had a lot of strength in our regional international markets, specifically in Mexico, which saw a boom of traffic. Mexico actually recovered for us in 2021, which was very early post-COVID-19 and actually exceeded the levels it had before. A lot of that was due to how Mexico handled travel restrictions.

We’ve seen the carriers add in some markets that are more leisure-based than previously. It’s just a slightly different mix, but the volume is back up, which has been a good thing for us. Hobby Airport is a regional international airport, so it only serves near regional international markets. Our primary carrier, Southwest Airlines, carry the majority of traffic there, so it is a pretty solid mix of both business and leisure. At Intercontinental, the airport serves as a global international connecting gateway. Our largest carrier there is United Airlines, but we’ve got service by 20 other carriers serving the market. IAH focuses much more on the long-haul international market, so we’re really excited to see a lot of that come back.

We’re still lacking a little bit on our international travel. Prior to the pandemic we were one of the few airports in the world that had service to all six inhabited continents – but we’re working to get our Africa service back. At IAH, it’s also been a much heavier business push than it is for Hobby, and we can see evidence of that on the international long-haul markets because our premium cabins sell out very heavily.

Frontier Airlines launched new routes to various U.S. destinations, while United announced a new non-stop service flying Houston to Guyana. What picture does this paint of Houston Airport’s route development strategy overall?

Frontier has come in very aggressively with their growth for the summer peak season, and they’ve added quite a few markets for us such as Chicago Midway, Charlotte, Raleigh, Durham, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. They’re also bringing Cancun back, which is great.

Then with United on the international side, in March this year they started Tulum in Mexico, which is a new market for us. They also just announced Medellín for Colombia. Medellín is one that we’ve been working on because we see a lot of demand for that market.

This is a reflection of the work that our air service development team does; they maintain strong relationships with all of the carriers so that they can explore and evaluate opportunities for growth. These new routes are basically a fruition of their efforts.

Guyana, which will start in April 2024 is another one that was a very targeted approach because we have a large oil and gas industry based in Houston, and that has a huge tie with Guyana. We worked very closely with our corporate partners in Houston to convince United that the market would make sense.

Will the strategy change in 2024?

For 2024, the strategy for air service development is that we will ask, what are those underserved or unserved markets that need attention for traffic? What do our corporations and our economy need in the Houston market?

We’re going to be focused on markets like Africa because we need to get back to serving the African continent. We’ll also be focusing on targets like India. The traffic for that market is very strong and having a non‑stop service to India is a huge opportunity for everyone. The strategy remains very focused on those key markets where we can see those opportunities come to fruition.

What kind of work goes into your discussions with airlines in creating new routes and what has the impact been of these new United and Frontier Airline routes, for example?

The good thing is that every new route we get has an economic impact on the local market. It helps our job growth and it’s just a positive for all of us.

We’re facing some constraints at IAH, and so those relationships have enabled us to work with them to make sure we can accommodate that growth.

As far as what goes into those discussions, a lot of it is not just the traffic. The airlines know more about that than we do. It’s what’s going on in the Houston market. It’s what businesses are there, what’s the industry, what’s leading right now? What are those key trends in Houston that we’re seeing? And it’s sharing that type of information and sometimes even making those connections. For instance, for the Guyana route, we made specific connections with the corporations that would potentially be using the service United announced.

What are some key features of your airport’s passenger experience that see passengers come back and retain positive memories?
We focus very much on the passenger experience in Houston at both airports. We’re proud to be able to say that we have a 4-star Skytrax rated airport with IAH and a 5-Star Skytrax rated airport with Hobby. Some of that comes down to the things we offer in the airports which are all part of conscious efforts to focus on the passenger experience and what they need.

At Hobby Airport, as an example, we’ve recently opened restaurants that give you that local Houston flavour. They’re very famous restaurants in Houston that if you hear the name, and you’re from Houston, you know of them. We’ve got Fat Cat Creamery, Killen’s Barbecue, we’ve got The Spot, and Velvet Taco. So as a Houstonian, when you travel through those airports, you have that sense of home and as a visitor coming through, you get that sense of what is Houston about.

We’re also proud of the art programme that we have. We have both visual and performing arts that operate at both airports and also an artist in residence at both airports. As you’re travelling through, you can watch an artist creating artwork inspired by travellers coming through and what they’re seeing in the airport. As such, you’re part of the creation of that art. We’ve got our Harmony in the Air programme, which is concert-like performances by Houston’s top artists. If you have an hour layover, you don’t always expect a lot at an airport, but you get to experience a concert-type environment and enjoy one of these top-notch musicians. Last year, our art programme was named by Skytrax as the world’s best art programme at an airport.

We’ve been able to do some really fun things with our passengers over the last couple of years. A gentleman reached out to tell us that he and his (future!) wife travel all the time. They would always come through Hobby and meet there and as such the airport has been a big element of their relationship. He asked us if we could help him propose at the airport. We got to be a part of that, which was a lot of fun. One of our concessionaires made a cake and we had Harmony in the Air playing music for it.

About six months later, a different couple came with a similar story, and we were able to host a wedding at Hobby Airport. You know you’ve made an impact on those travellers at that point.
In 2023 we did our first Christmas event with a local radio station, Southwest Airlines as the lead partner, and our concessionaires. They brought in children that were from adoptive families or orphan families and they flew in Santa Claus. It was a magical experience. It was fantastic to be able to do something meaningful in the community and it celebrates the airport, but it also lets you know there’s more to this world than just being in an airport.

I think what this shows are human stories. So often, we hear airports ‘doing’ passenger experience, but these stories are proof that people love the airport and love coming.

It’s been so fulfilling to work with the different teams involved with it, building those relationships and being able to work with our partners. We take those opportunities when we can and celebrate them because it goes a long way both for the airport employees, for the partners throughout the airport, but also for the individuals whose lives we impact.

Construction update pictures April 2024

Houston Airports is redeveloping IAH Terminal, Mickey Leland International Terminal. Tell us how the project will enhance passenger experience.

It’s the International Terminal Redevelopment Programme (ITRP) and our largest capital redevelopment that we’ve had in the history of IAH. One part has already been completed; Terminal D for international travellers has already been totally re-lifed. It has new furniture, new flooring, new ceiling, new gate hold areas and a much more modern aesthetic to it. We also have those basic passenger amenities that we did not previously, like powered seating which allows you to charge your phone before getting on a long flight.

We’re also opening our D West-Pier, which is another element of the development programme. That will open later this year. It will offer six wide-body gates, which can be used as 10 narrow-body operations. We’re planning ahead to allow us that type of flexibility. The Mexico market has really boomed for us. Well, that’s all narrow-body operation, and so building the facility in a way that gives us that ability to expand both long-haul international, but also our regional international, makes sense.
One of the features we’re really excited about is the feature wall on the D West-Pier. In the summertime, the pier runs straight north, so you’re going to have the sun in the morning and sun in the evening. Heat and light becomes an issue. Our architectural team that we contracted to work on this facility have developed a wall that eliminates a lot of the heat.

What’s really unique about it is it doesn’t stop the daylight from coming in. It also has LED lighting in it and through this you can help passengers adjust to the time difference that they’re facing on long international flights and essentially help to reset their biological clock using light technology.
The other piece that we have is in the international central processor. It’s in the floor between two levels, an oval-shaped multimedia display called “the oculus”. It’s going to have images and video and components that give you a sense of place of Houston. It’s about taking elements like our art, our culture, what’s big in Houston, and what will people experience while they’re there, and using that at departure, because it’s visible from the upper level of departures, and for the arrivals. We’re working with the teams right now on its unique design and all of its architectural components. Needless to say, it’s a lot of fun.

The final piece, which will be completed towards the end of this year, is the International Central Processor. This entirely new facility will completely change the process that passengers use when they check in for international flights. It incorporates the importance of art throughout the entire facility.

The project will place custom leaf trusses at the International Arrivals Gate, which is an ode to Houston Airport’s innovation. It sounds sort of strange, but it’s the one piece that will go over the curb area as travellers are dropped off or picked up from their international flight. It changes the skyline of the entire airport. The entire terminal, as indeed everything that we’re working toward in Houston Airports, is focused on innovation. We’re constantly asking ourselves, how else can we wow our passengers?

What would you say is the biggest challenge facing route developers right now and what are the opportunities?
One of the biggest challenges that I’ve heard, and I know we experienced in Houston, is availability of capacity both in the airports and with the aircraft.
For Houston, we’ve got availability at Hobby Airport, but we’re a bit more limited at Intercontinental, which is what drove the International Terminal Redevelopment Programme. United Airlines has initiated a domestic redevelopment programme for their terminals. We are in the early stages of planning for a domestic redevelopment and expansion programme for our other domestic carriers at IAH.
That doesn’t move quickly, and I see that as a big challenge for the industry as airlines want to grow, but if they don’t have the capacity either through their aircraft or through airport facilities, that ability is limited.

Photos of Terminal D chairs/seating part of the terminal refresh.

What would you say the opportunities are?
I think some of the opportunities are the shift in travel since COVID-19. I believe there’s a lot of pent-up demand that is still out there.
A lot of the companies are still operating remote work policies, which changes the whole dynamic of what people can do. I know personally from talking with friends and relatives, that they’re more excited about travel than ever before. It’s a really good opportunity for everybody involved; if there’s more people who want to travel, let’s give them travel. Let’s give them the ability!

Credit: Houston Airport Systems

Molly Waits
Molly Waits is Chief Marketing, Air Service Development and Communications Officer for Houston Airports.
Molly Waits leads Houston Airports’ Marketing, Air Service Development and Communications (MAC) division. She’s a passionate aviation professional with 22 years in the industry, including 16 years with Houston Airports. With a track record of proven success, Waits brings a collaborative and cohesive management approach to her role in leading the division.

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