Daan joined Twente Airport on 1 January 2021 as interim harbour master (Airport Manager). Daan: ‘When I joined Twente Airport, I found the same kind of field as years ago at Lelystad. I started at Lelystad in 1995 and back then we also had to do everything ourselves with a small team. From mowing the grass to manning the tower. It was the same at Twente Airport in 2021, with the big difference that the employees were not even employed, but hired through Teuge. There were no real opening hours yet; we were open the moment a plane arrived. Nor did we have the fire brigade in-house. During the week, these were usually colleagues from Technology Base and in the evenings and weekends, someone from the Flying Club was used.’

Professionalising organisation

So the first thing Daan picked up was to professionalise the organisation. Daan: ‘I thought the most important thing was that the team, precisely because it is so small, should be employed by Twente Airport. You have to do it with a limited number of people, but then you have to ensure commitment and that's not possible if people are hired from another airport. The varying opening hours were also an eyesore, so that had to change too. By working in shifts, we can be open seven days a week at fixed times. In winter from 9am to 5pm (Sunday from 10am) and in summer weekdays even from 8am to 8pm (Saturday from 9am and Sunday from 10am). We have also arranged the fire service (people and proper vehicles) within the team now, so we no longer depend on third parties and the responsibility lies with the airport itself, as it should. Of course, we remain a small team, so we still do as much as possible ourselves, but by arranging the working conditions properly, everyone is also willing to do that and we really do it all together.’

Perseverance more important than training

When Laurens is asked what education he did and how he ended up at Twente Airport, a special story follows. Laurens: ‘My father is a helideck manager at Medisch Spectrum Twente (MST) and therefore aviation was always a topic of conversation with us. In 2013, partly thanks to my father's work, I experienced the developments around Twente Airport up close. I have always been a supporter of an operational airport in the region, and not so much for holiday flights, but I just wanted to see it flown again. I contacted the airport several times to find out how developments were progressing and also followed everything around the airport, including meetings in the town hall and the residents' meetings. Everywhere Twente Airport was on the agenda, I was present. In the meantime, I was also doing advanced training. First I wanted to become a helicopter pilot officer with the Ministry of Defence, but the examination is strict and after a number of selection rounds, that was unfortunately a dead end. I then studied Law for a blue Monday, but I didn't like that, far too theoretical. All those years of contact with the airport did have an effect, because in 2017 I was invited by the then director to the official opening of Twente Airport. In the meantime, I spent another two years working full-time at a butcher's shop, so I still regularly visited Twente Airport to deliver sandwiches and stew buffets.’ 

From butchery to Twente Airport

‘In 2017, there was a vacancy for Assistant Harbour Master and of course I applied for it then. They asked for several years of work experience, so I was rejected. In 2019, another vacancy came online for the position Assistant Harbour Master and Aeronautical Station Operator (ASO) for 20 hours a week, where work experience was no longer a hard requirement. I applied again, after which I was allowed to come for an interview. I was first given the opportunity to do a three-month internship so that we could see from both sides whether this position suited me. This was immediately for 40 hours instead of the stated 20 hours. During that period, there was also a big one-week Defence exercise and then I knew for sure: this is where I want to work. Fortunately, they thought the same at Twente Airport and I was able to start working full-time. In the past few years, I have learned a lot from my colleagues, attended the small aviation firefighting training course, read everything available in terms of laws, regulations and manuals and, in addition to a Safety course in Berlin, followed the internal training course to become an Aeronautical Station Operator and Harbour Master.’

Laurens proves that even without relevant training and a lot of perseverance, you can go a long way. With the crowning glory of his hard work and dedication, from 1 April he became the airport manager. His dream was for Twente Airport to remain an operational airport and now, a few years later, he is at the helm himself to further his dream. 

Future of Twente Airport

When asked how Laurens sees Twente Airport's future, he replied, ‘I don't have a crystal ball, but we are on the right track with the current developments, both as the test airport and the further development of business aviation, which is expected to be largely electric in time. The airport is an important piece of infrastructure and, due to its strategic location, of added value for the Twente region. In the whole transition to sustainable aviation, we can play an important role anyway. Not only in testing and further developing the possibilities with sustainable fuels such as electricity and hydrogen, but also in the field of unmanned aviation. Innovations only come about when there is enough space to experiment and test as much as possible. As harbour master, I and the team will use that space and our facilities for this as much as possible. I also see here, for example, a nice cooperation between Twente Airport, Space53 and the Medisch Spectrum Twente (MST) when it comes to medical transports, such as organs and blood with drones. Like us, Space53 is located at Technology Base and the line to MST is also already there through my father's work, of course. We have a very nice team at the port service at Twente Airport, we are ready for each other and we work well together. So whatever the future holds, as far as that's concerned it's definitely going to work out.’

Flying in all weather conditions

The continued success of Twente Airport depends on several factors, but only being able to land and take off under good visibility conditions (VFR) is the main limiting factor. Laurens: ‘Currently, we are too dependent on weather conditions, while business traffic and other users want to be able to land and take off in any weather condition. With low-hanging clouds, planes have to divert to another airport and besides losing revenue, it's also just very inconvenient and costs a lot of extra arranging if someone can't land in Twente. We can solve this with a PBN procedure. For this, unlike classical navigation sources such as an Instrument Landing System (ILS), you do not need equipment on the ground, but use satellite signals. Such a procedure allows safe landing and take-off even in reduced visibility conditions. PBN procedure will therefore be one of the most important things we want to have arranged in the short term.’

 Safety highest priority

Daan will stay at Twente Airport for another three months, but he wants to give Laurens a valuable lesson: ‘Above all, use your common sense and make sure that in everything that happens at and around Twente Airport, safety always has the highest priority for you and that everything must comply with international and national legislation. You do find yourself in a political playing field that is not always under your control. You are the one who has to monitor safety and sound the alarm if it is compromised. In addition, your team is the most important, so take good care of them and then I am sure that together you can make Twente Airport an airport where a lot is happening and where there is plenty of room and a lot of potential to test, experiment and develop further.’