I have myself found no references, not meaning that there is none. If you find any. please post to this thread, I would be highly interested.
However following to your question:
a) Someone has to be responsibel and acknowledge the design criteria. Normally this would be the owner, builder or end user.. the juridical person that ultimately will end up with the responsibillity of possibel malfunction of the total installation.
b) Criteria for design to be selected on basis also of total concequences, Bursting or collapsing of a line will have larger consquences in a city than in a desert. More safety devices if critical.
c) Air out. Corresponding to max planned or actual filling rate.
d) The difficult one is air in by pipe bursting conditions.
This would correspond to max water out. This again to physical properties of the pipeline, layout, buried or open etc, and the presence and placement of bursting valves (valves closing by bursting pipe). The value has to be calculated/estimated.
f) On basis of above, suppliers will offer air valves with suitable capacities. To compare offers : ask for actual areas of the valves and at what air speed the air inlet and air otlet is calculated. Some suppliers tend to give high speeds, leaving little reserve capacity. Calculating speeds for estimates: 80-120meter/s.
g) Distance between? Normal would be all high points where air could give problems. At long flat streches..???