Landside operations manager outlines 24/7 dispatch, parking expansion and new reservation plans

Eric Baer, landside operations manager for the Oklahoma City Airport Trust, gave an overview March 27 of landside operations responsibilities, saying the division oversees public-side airport operations that affect passenger movement, tenants and public safety.

"Landside operations is responsible for overseeing public side airport operations and the security affecting the movement of passengers to the general public and airport tenants," Baer said, introducing his team and explaining the divisions work.

Baer said the Airport Operations Center (AOC) and the Fire Operations Center (FOC) are both staffed around the clock: the AOC is staffed 24/7 by a dispatcher who receives calls for maintenance and operational issues and dispatches appropriate staff; the FOC receives medical and fire emergency calls and dispatches airport rescue and firefighting staff. Baer said the AOC and FOC dispatchers are cross-trained to improve operational efficiency.

Baer described the airports ground-transportation oversight, which covers taxis, shuttles, limousines and executive cars, the consolidated rental car facility shuttle, hotel courtesy shuttles, transportation network companies (Uber and Lyft) and peer-to-peer vehicle sharing (Turo). He said the division also manages airport parking and customer experience improvements.

Baer noted the airport opened a new canopy-covered surface lot in November 2024 adding 614 parking spaces. "We also introduced mobile pay option recently, allowing passengers to make payments via their phone for faster more convenient exit," he said. Baer said the airport plans to implement a new reservation system in 2025 but has not yet published the reservation tool or any reservation-change policies on the website.

During a short Q&A the chairman asked about reservation flexibility; Baer said the reservation system rollout is in the early stages and will allow customers to change or cancel reservations when it is implemented.

Baer closed by thanking his staff for maintaining continuous service across airport operations and safety functions. No formal action was taken on the presentation; it was presented under the directors report.

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