The AIRTRANS system now under construction at the new Dallas/Fort Worth Airport is truly a complete intra-airport transportation system. It is designed to carry passengers and employees (in separate cars), transport all interline baggage and mail, remove all trash from the terminals to a central dump, and deliver commissary supplies from a common warehouse to the terminals.
It is a fully automatic system with guarantees on trip times and mechanical performance. The system contains some 13 miles of guideway within the airport, 68 vehicles plus service vehicles, and a central control point to provide surveillance over the automatic operation. Automatic container handling equipment is also included in the airlines operations area to ease the task of the airlines.
The system has been under design and fabrication since spring 1971. Two years later, most of the vehicles will be fabricated, a high percentage of the guideway and mechanical equipment will be installed, and the system will be undergoing extensive checkout and testing.