Tech takes the turbulence out of flying
Published: 04 Apr 2007 13:21 BST
In 2006 the airline industry carried two billion passengers. With fares dropping and newly industrialised countries such as India embracing air travel, the need for IT to facilitate the passenger experience through the airport has never been greater.
Passengers yearn for a flawless, simplified journey, while airlines are contending with tighter turnaround times, increased security measures and growing demand. The aviation industry has always been pushing the technology envelope, but now passengers are starting to benefit directly from advances in check-in, baggage management, security processes and network infrastructure.
Today's airports manage more airlines, handling agents, freight forwarders and airport "tenants" than ever before. The key to delivering an efficient passenger journey is collaboration between parties, the adoption of internet protocol (IP)-based technologies and a move away from legacy networks. This allows all groups to communicate easily; for example, IP has generated a growing use of open standard-based systems.
A good example is the increasing use of just one application to deal with both dedicated and shared airport environments. Traditionally, airports could be dealing with up to 10 different applications to handle passenger check-in and boarding, increasing the likelihood of confusion and mistakes. Certain airports are now delivering this functionality through a single workstation called "Common Use Terminal Equipment" (CUTE). This is now an industry standard that increases the efficiency of passenger processing by 25 percent, by integrating access to all airport and airline IT systems for staff.
CUTE platforms play a central part in the behind-the-scenes operation of self-service check-in. Fifty-three percent of passengers will have interacted with the airline online when purchasing their tickets. On arrival, nearly a third of all passengers will check in using self-service kiosks, rising to 60 percent if they have booked tickets online. Self-service allows airlines and airports to improve the use of space in terminals, cut administrative overheads and reduce queuing time for passengers.
Taking this a stage further, "Common Use Self-Service" (CUSS) systems at check-in reduce queuing time even more, as travellers can check in for any flight at any kiosk. CUSS provides automated tracking of passengers and their baggage from check-in through to boarding. This results in improved security and enhanced customer service, as passengers can be given flight information and destination details instantly. Around 75 percent of airports expect to deploy CUSS kiosks in the next two years, while 52 percent will install dedicated airline kiosks.
Web-based check-in takes passenger control to the next level. It allows passengers to check in away from the airport, choose or change their seat, self-print their bar-coded boarding passes, as well as collecting APIS (Advance Passenger Information System) information for countries that require or request it. Passengers can then go straight to the gate or bag-drop. Seventy-two percent of travellers say that in the future they would like to use web-based check-in.
Baggage tracking is a critical customer-service and security element of check-in for passengers, airlines and airports. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) require tight security when it comes to matching bags to passengers. To provide this, airports are moving away from manual matching and using automated systems. Today's solutions can enhance collective airport security by integrating with flight information displays and departure controls. This means immediate notification can be given if a bag is not cleared for carriage or the passenger fails to board the aircraft. Using Unix-based servers and wireless handheld scanning devices, systems can track a passenger's baggage so it is easy to locate, or remove, if necessary. Solutions can also link with explosive detection systems and other X-ray equipment to quicken security procedures and reduce delays.
Last year 30 million bags were lost, costing the airlines $2.5bn (SITA Baggage Report 2006). To improve baggage services, new systems are being developed in partnership with IATA, to provide a single source of information for lost baggage, which tracks luggage for up to 100 days. This system uses developments in SMS, WAP, RFID and CUSS to trace baggage and reconcile passengers with their luggage, while letting airlines manage the process and investigate any claims.
But baggage tracking can be improved further. Widespread RFID implementation is the next step. Hong Kong International Airport installed RFID tags and read-points to track and manage baggage. This is expected to deliver long-term savings of over HK$85m (£5.5m) a year, as bags do not need to be dealt with manually. During the trial, bag-tag misreading rates fell from 10-15 percent to under 5 percent. However, for RFID to deliver benefits to passengers, wide-scale adoption is needed by the world's leading airlines and airports.
A common approach and global standards are also required when it comes to security, either to incorporate it into the self-service check-in process or reducing queuing time before going airside. The US allocated $5bn in its 2007 security budget for homeland aviation security, illustrating how security and technology are integrated into the passenger journey.
New developments include CUSS kiosks that deal with biometric data, such as fingerprint, iris and facial scans that work with fully biometric-enabled travel documents. Heathrow airport has recently initiated a trial of biometric technologies called "miSense", which invites frequent flyers on certain flights to have their passport and fingerprint scanned at self-service kiosks. Other possible developments include passive millimetre wave systems that can be used to detect concealed weapons under clothing or explosive detection systems in doorways. Indeed, future airports are likely to have security systems built into physical surroundings.
Handling passenger biographic data (passport, flight and booking information) at check-in is also a key area — not just gathering data, but analysing and sending it to the relevant authority if required, for example sending passenger name records for US flights crossing the Atlantic before the flight lands.
Technology has been driving air travel since the industry began. As passenger demand increases, the need to develop technology to improve passenger processing, safety and customer service will continue. For airports, integration is the crucial element — simplifying the behind-the-scenes systems, so that the passenger has a straightforward journey through the airport. The industry is working towards a world where new IT implementations mean improved efficiency and fewer delays, without the passenger realising the IT is even there.
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