Expect the unexpected: Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for the future of airport leaders and managers

Airports are arguably the most well-prepared structures for crises and contingencies, and their staff undergo abundant training for these types of events; however, the COVID-19 pandemic events were largely unpredictable, thus creating a somewhat rare happening in the industry: a novel type of crisis. This study aims to realize the types of strategies and elements that made a difference in positive and negative critical incidents using semi-structured interviews and the critical incident technique to managers from Portuguese and Romanian airports focusing on the type of skills that the management required and developed in a crisis. In accordance with the competency-based education framework, leadership, communication, subject matter excellence, teamwork, ethics and integrity, and resilience and innovation were crucial soft skills in critical situations. The present study contributes with new insights on airport managers and leaders facing crisis situations, key issues, and strategies during the first wave of COVID-19.