ZeroAvia and Fortum partner to develop hydrogen production
This week, ZeroAvia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Fortum, one of Europe’s cleanest energy producers, focusing primarily on the Nordic region.
The Nordic countries consist of some of the most sustainable countries in the world including Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. These countries have ambitious goals with regards to reducing emissions. Last year, Denmark set 2030 as their target for dropping all fossil fuels from domestic aviation. Additionally, Finland set their sights on zero-emission domestic air travel by 2045.
ZeroAvia, a hydrogen-electric aircraft developer has a mission to see “a hydrogen-electric engine in every aircraft.” Only founded in 2017, the company already made history with a zero-emission flight back in January. This week, they announced a signed MoU with Fortum “to explore developing hydrogen production and refuelling infrastructure at airports in the region.”
“Scaling the renewable energy capacity and reducing costs pose clear, but fully surmountable, challenges to hydrogen as the fuel to power truly clean flights. Fortum is well positioned as a partner in this space, given the company’s clean energy focus and its emerging hydrogen leadership.”
According to the press release, the pair will look at removing emissions from flights and the wider airport ecosystem more broadly, exploring the potential development of on-the-ground hydrogen infrastructure at relevant airports.
The collaboration between ZeroAvia and Fortum creates a fertile ground for the challenges surrounding scalability to be worked through, hopefully producing advances in the hydrogen-electric space and pushing the industry closer to a sustainable future.
Efficient passport checks with Digital Travel Credentials (DTC). “The world’s first transatlantic DTC pilot.”
Last week, it was announced a Dutch consortium chose IDEMIA, an identity technology company, as the tech provider for the “world’s first transatlantic Digital Travel Credential (DTC) pilot.”
“A virtual credential derived from a state-issued passport and stored on the holder’s smartphone, being an exact representation of the electronic machine-readable travel document, which includes both the biographical data and facial image of the holder.”
DTC is designed to upkeep necessary, high levels of security while speeding up passengers’ journey through airport checks.
The pilot involves IDEMIA’s partnership with a Dutch Consortium consisting of the Ministry of Justice & Security, Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Defense/Royal Netherlands Marechaussee, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, co-funded by the European Commission.
Launched by the European Commission, the pilot will test the use of DTC-1 on KLM flights between Canada and the Netherlands for three months. Passengers involved in the trial can create a DTC on a dedicated mobile app in before of their journey. This will allow them to share relevant data in advance, making their movement through the airport faster and smoother.
The video linked below details the process.
The pilot will be trialled for three months before “most likely” being deployed at a broader European level.
Interview with Sumesh Patel, APAC President, SITA – Megatrends, collaboration, and Gen Z
Sumesh Patel is responsible for developing and driving the strategic direction of SITA in the Asia Pacific region.
In this five-minute interview, Sumesh highlights the ways the pandemic has transformed the industry for the better, how passenger needs are changing, and the evolving relationship between key industry stakeholders. SITA’s APAC President also discusses megatrends for the the next 2-3 years, picking out a few key shifts to be mindful of as the industry advances.
Questions asked:
What has been the most exciting development in the industry’s digital transformation journey so far?
How do you think the pandemic changed the relationship between various industry stakeholders?
As the APAC region resumes international travel, what is one key lesson learned from the last few years that we must take forward?
What are the megatrends that you expect to impact the industry in the next 2-3 years?
SITA and Lufthansa address the industry’s $2.2 billion pain point with the automation of reflighting of baggage
Mishandled baggage causes huge inconvenience for passengers, tainting their perception of the journey and causing unnecessary stress. It is also detrimental to the aviation industry more broadly, costing $2.2 billion in 2022 with over 4 million bags mishandled during transfer.
According to a recent press release, SITA estimates that widespread automation of reflighting baggage could save the industry $30 million a year. On 15th March, the IT provider and Lufthansa announced they are pairing up to address this industry pain point by automating bag reflight operations.
Sergio Colella, SITA President for Europe said:
“SITA’s automated baggage reflighting solution is built on the back of past successful co-innovations with Lufthansa and meets a critical industry baggage management requirement as we see the return to the skies. Our aim to make sure that when a bag is mishandled, it is reunited with its owner as soon and simply as possible.”
SITA’s WorldTracer Auto Reflight digitises the process of reflighting baggage, reducing the need for human intervention and minimizing cost on the operations side. It automatically suggests suitable flight routing for the bags and the original bag tag is used, updating the baggage system with the new bag routing. Also addressing the passenger experience aspect, the solution proactively notifies passengers of any delay with their baggage and collects delivery details allowing passengers to bypass the baggage hall entirely.
The solution uses automation to address operational costs as well as the passenger experience, transforming this costly industry pain point.
The future era of technology-driven smart airports
To keep pace with the ever-increasing needs and demands, airports worldwide are constantly evolving. With air travel on the rise again, airports are not just expected to facilitate passengers and cargo movement; they also need to expand their horizons to cover other crucial aspects, like:
Execution of seamless operations with low to minimal manual intervention,
Augmenting safety and health protocols,
Optimizing the use of facilities, preventing wastage, and becoming sustainable,
Scaling up scrutiny and security, and,
Boosting passenger experience.
At the same time, with the high scarcity of human resources in most of Europe and North America, the need to establish measures to utilize resources efficiently has never been as critical.
The challenges are not new; airports have been addressing them over the years by embracing technology at different stages of their growth. However, each of these challenges has evolved and needs airports to adopt state-of-the-art technologies to keep up with the changed dynamics. This evolving era of airport digitalization and digital disruption, which saw its inception decades back, constitutes what we call ”smart airports”.
Within the smart airport ecosystem
Smart airports stimulate the need for an integrated and comprehensive ecosystem that demands the airports to be not only fully functional but also intuitive, efficient, and predictive. This also requires that the manual airport processes, which are often slow and error-prone, be reduced and digitally governed to bring automation, efficiency, and accuracy to day-to-day functioning.
Smart airports are functional, intuitive, efficient, predictive, and digitally governed.
Therefore, it becomes imperative that digital technologies and solutions like cloud networks, biometrics, mobility solutions, data science and related fields, immersive technologies and IoT, and other sensors-based solutions, be leveraged increasingly to encompass the diverse areas of airport operations and processes.
Although the smart airport concept is blooming in several spheres, the following are the three regions where we think airports can drive maximum gains:
1. Achieving airport operational efficiency through data and digital engineering
Airports are structurally complex, and a single channel does not drive their smooth functioning. A deeper understanding of the intricate association and dependency of various airport departments has brought awareness that siloed operations cannot be the solution to achieving operational efficiency and resilience. Airport stakeholders need to be transparent and readily available with real-time data they can exchange to deliver consistent and exceptional performance.
With the right technology and data solutions, airport stakeholders can achieve efficiency and productivity.
To achieve this, more and more airports should start adopting networking and collaborative frameworks like AOP (Airport Operational Plan) and ACDM (Airline Airport Collaborative Decision Making). These frameworks encourage initiatives to promote data sharing and transparency within and between airports.
Data science and AI must be leveraged to derive meaningful insights from past and present data. Building such data-rich integration platforms can help airports extract immediate and real-time information from various interconnected departments. This will help smoothen communication and increase responsiveness in multiple ways. For instance:
Swift and efficient allocation of gates and counters to airlines
Smooth passenger flow management with better predictability
Better resource management
Improved runway slot adherence
Further, airports can also employ sensor-based solutions in various areas to improve efficiency. For example, using RFID-based solutions that can read data instantly from numerous items like luggage and cargo and can aid in bulk item transportation with proper tracking and tracing. Also, it simplifies the manual and time-consuming inspection of assets by instantly reading information like expiry date, next due scan date, etc., from the asset and sending it back to the data source.
Similarly, technology in the form of mobile solutions can also stand out in comparison to the usual paper-based checks. Their highly interactive and data-rich interfaces allow airport staff to send immediate updates, retrieve data, and take corrective actions.
2. Upscaling the passenger experience
Since passengers spend more than 60% of their total travel time at the airport premises, their comfort and convenience put a lot of onus on the airport’s authority. Even with many initiatives to smoothen the process, passengers invariably express their distress towards adhering to the airport’s elaborate checks and protocols. The actual journey that begins from flight take-off for passengers exhausts them beforehand due to the:
Need to reach airports hours before flights take off,
Long and unpredictable waiting times in several queues,
The exhaustive process of baggage tracking and collection,
Extensive scans and scrutiny, and,
Being unheard and feeling lost in the complex airport maze.
Understanding passengers’ needs, their interaction with various touch points across the whole journey, predicting their next move, recommending them with the right offer, and intuitively guiding them in the right way are some areas where airports can effectively act. Again, customer data plays an important role here. Keeping track of customer preferences, concerns, and historical transactions can help airports in improving those relationships and bring in a personal touch.
The long-term vision of airports for a passenger aims to shift the notion of “being stuck inside the airport” to “experiencing a world of leisure and excitement.”
With features like smart parking, virtual queues, digital identities, baggage notifications, personalized merchandizing and recommendations, smart menus and smart washrooms, virtual assistance, and an immersive feel, more and more airports can work to provide a different experience beyond the usual to the passengers.
3. Bringing in greener initiatives
Now that the aviation industry’s contribution towards global greenhouse emissions is well established (around 3% of the total emissions), airports need to pace up to achieve their target of becoming carbon neutral by 2050 or before. The path to net zero is long and challenging, and although there are measures being taken, much is yet to be done in this zone.
By embracing smart operations using data and analytics, airports can reduce their carbon emissions.
Some ways to become a green airport would involve the following:
Tracking & MitigationThe first step requires thorough analysis and regular tracking of direct and indirect sources that contribute to emissions. After that, airports need to define immediate short-term and long-term sustainability targets. To achieve this, airports must start by leveraging sustainability tracking solutions and showing progress towards net zero objectives. For example, using cloud-based sustainability platforms that offer detailed dashboards and provide periodic details on fuel consumption, offset achieved, emissions via waste, business travel, etc., and other sources and provide a clear progress report using science-based targets.
Moderating the consumptionAlthough some airports are also considering shifting towards renewable energy sources by setting up solar panels and using CNG, reducing incidents from day-to-day airport operations (wherein the consumption of resources like fuel, water, and electricity goes much beyond the need) should also be tracked. Keeping a continuous and consistent check on these expenditures would certainly go a long way in keeping up with the net zero goals.
Technologies like sensor-based IoT devices could also be harnessed to regulate the usage of electricity, water, and air conditioning as per need by sensing a human presence. Similarly, computer vision-based ML solutions could be used to build smart dustbins that identify types of waste and help in proper disposal. Leveraging AI and analytics could aid airports in measuring the food, paper, and other waste passengers generate. This can help drive eco-conscious passenger initiatives.
Conclusion
In the stride to become exceptionally performant, there is a continuous need for airports to explore further upcoming avenues and adapt. Also, emerging technologies and innovations play a huge role in curating specific solutions, and the coming times will see them being leveraged even more. It would be apt to say that with all these digital disruptions, the long-term vision of airports will be to bring efficiency, comfort, and luxury inside the terminals.
Changi Airport looks to bridge manpower gap with autonomous vehicles
During the pandemic, the aviation industry lost 2.3 million jobs globally. As the world returns to travel there have been staff shortages worldwide, impacting the service that the sector can offer.
In a recent press release, Changi Airport discussed their experience of manpower shortages which were particularly notable for roles in the airside which the airport believed “if left unaddressed [would] pose a huge constraint for the future of Terminal 5’s operations.”
Ultimately, the airport group envisions a future where:
“A combination of multi-skilled airside workers will be augmented by different types of autonomous vehicles to deliver seamless operations.”
Building towards this goal, Changi Airport Group signed a formal partnership agreement with Aurrigo International plc, a leading provider of airport transport technology, for the continued joint development and testing of the company’s autonomous vehicles.
Identifying the driving of baggage tractors as requiring the highest number of drivers in airside operations, the airport has been exploring the automation of these processes since February 2022.
The multi year partnership builds on existing trials of an autonomous individual baggage trailer, Auto-Dolly, as well as the Auto-Dolly Tug, capable of towing three additional trailers, driving the next phase of development.
As technology progresses, it can automate more processes, bridging the gaps that staff shortages present, and facilitating the redistribution of the work force to optimise overall operations.
On Tuesday, a panel of industry experts will discuss the role of digital transformation in ramping up airport operations in Asia’s post-pandemic recovery era. Get your ticket here.
Three start-ups to look out for at Aviation Festival Asia: Optimisation through advanced technology
Aviation Festival Asia gathers together industry giants, start-ups, and everyone in between to drive innovation in the aviation industry. The event is an opportunity for start-ups to get noticed and for influential industry players to forge business partnerships in the Asia Region.
Advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and software solutions play a significant role in optimising operations throughout the aviation industry. With these, costs can be reduced and outcomes maximised. Here are three start-ups, facilitating optimisation within the industry.
1. Motulus.aero
Optimal solutions for a world in motion. Motulus provides business software solutions that specialize in optimizing crew and aircraft. Such software is critical to run large-scale, daily operations in a cost-efficient and productive way maximizing crew satisfaction, reducing operational disruption and minimizing the environmental impact. The solution leads to significant cost savings, week after week. Motulus software streamlines and accelerates the workflow to design, plan and operate these logistic operations and provides in-depth analytical insights. Motulus.aero was formed in 2018 by a group of mathematical experts who specialize in building solutions deploying the latest scientific and software developments.
2. Speedcargo
Speedcargo Technologies brings innovative solutions that use computer vision technologies, advanced algorithms and artificial intelligence to transform the air cargo operations of Airlines and Ground Handlers. The technology was developed from research undertaken at Technical University of Munich (TUM) – CREATE in response to an industry requirement initiated by the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). We developed, tested and deployed the technology in live operations and demonstrated the world’s first fully automated, robot-packed cargo pallet. In 2020, SPEEDCARGO Technologies Pte Ltd. incorporated as a Singapore-based deep-tech startup and launched products for digitization and optimization as crucial first steps towards automation.
3. Synaptic Aviation
Synaptic Aviation at Work. We provide unprecedented visibility into ground operations; avoid delays, lower injuries, minimize damages, and operate at your best. With the help of artificial intelligence you gain control of turnaround activities to prevent avoidable service failures and become predictive over time.
Track activity
Real-time alerts
Video database
Insightful dashboards
These three start ups will be at Aviation Festival Asia at the end of the month. To find out more about these and many other start-ups, get your ticket here.
Hong Kong air passenger traffic thrives with the relaxation of travel restrictions
Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) recently announced the January 2023 air traffic figures for Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). The numbers speak to a strong recovery following the relaxation of COVID-19 related travel restrictions.
The announcement showed passenger traffic reaching 2.1 million in the first month of 2023, a year-on-year surge of 28 times. Reportedly all passenger segments grew substantially following the relaxation of travel restrictions towards the end of 2022, but the most significant increases were recorded with passengers moving to and from Southeast Asia and Japan.
The Airport Authority added:
Due to the relaxation of travel restrictions, all passenger segments experienced significant growths, particularly Hong Kong residents, compared to the same month last year […] Strong passenger demand was observed in the second half of the month due to the Chinese New Year holiday. The re-opening of the Mainland market to international travel also drove a recovery in passenger traffic between Hong Kong and Mainland China.
The start to a strong recovery is visible in these latest figures with the airport handling over 80,000 passengers daily at its peak last month. This volume of passengers is representative of approximately 40 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. Notably, international passenger flights also increased from 4,427 to 10,665 year-on-year, up 141 per cent.
The figures supplied by AAHK marking a promising start to the new year and bode well for the reopening of the region more broadly.
At Aviation Festival Asia next week a CEO panel will discuss “What is the future of the Asian aviation industry as we come out of the pandemic and how will further digital technology adoption, sustainability, collaboration, and new business models help shape the outlook for 2023 and beyond?” Get your ticket now to be a part of the conversation.
Perth Airport set to open a virtual reality lounge
This May, Perth Airport will be introducing a Gaming Point VR lounge delivered by Travel Point Group. The lounge will transform the waiting process with access to a hi-tech, VR gaming experience. Located at Terminal 1 International before customs and security screening, the lounge will be accessible to all domestic and international passengers as well as the general public.
Unusually, the lounge will include one immersive VR escape room for up to five players per session, with each session lasting 30-45 minutes. Additionally, people can choose from a range of individual high-speed internet gaming stations linked to the steam network allowing players to continue on from their own accounts or enjoy solo gaming options as newcomers.
Growing rapidly, the VR market generated 4.7 billion USD in 2022 and, according to Deloitte research, will generate an estimated 7 billion USD by the end of 2023. The technology already has multiple existing applications within the aviation industry ranging from entertainment to teaching. However, it remains “relatively niche” amongst the general population for the time being, with an active installed base of just 22 million in 2023. This novelty is partly where the airport VR experience can tap in to this growth area, offering people a new experience in an unexpected setting.
Looking towards the future, Graeme Stewart, Director of Point Group said:
“Point Group is in advanced discussions with many major airports around the globe to deliver exciting new experiential offers using virtual reality and high-speed gaming facilities.”
Wanting to create new experiences in airports that move beyond eating, drinking, and shopping, Gaming Point began as an ambitious step to introduce VR gaming into an airport setting. By May, the lounge will offer a innovative, collaborative experience for passengers, whilst simultaneously diversifying the retail offering at Perth Airport.
The latest interactive, AI-powered retail experience at Changi Airport
A partnership between Pernod Ricard Global Travel Retail and Lotte Duty Free has produced a unique, AI powered, experience redefining retail in an airport setting. This “first of its kind” for an airport space, pushes the boundaries of retail with its combination of technology, personalisation, and imagination.
Encapsulating the world-famous airport’s customer focused and technology driven vision, the 33-square-feet boutique has a range of immersive experiences and services for passengers, including an AI ambassador, digitalised merchandising units, robot bartenders, and VIP tastings.
“We are proud to launch the Martell AI-powered boutique, which harnesses the power of data and technology to deliver personalized customer-centric experiences; a key tenet of the Changi Airport retail experience.”
Located in Changi’s Terminal 1 Lotte Duty Free store, the interactive exhibit features the ‘Martell Untouchable Taste’ tool, which “guides shoppers through the Martell range, and provides personalized tasting recommendations based on their preferences. This recommendation is then sent to the Martell robot bartender, who proceeds to serve the desired beverage to the customer.”
With Changi consistently positioning itself at the forefront of innovation, the integration of this “retail theatre” continues to elevate the airport experience though new and engaging technologies.
What to expect at Aviation Festival Asia with Henry Harteveldt
Henry Harteveldt is one of the world’s best-known travel industry analysts and President of Atmosphere Research Group, a company providing market research and analysis to the global travel industry. With over a decade’s experience in identifying emerging travel trends, Henry is well-equipped to discuss the landscape of the industry at the event making perceptive observations and encouraging thoughtful analysis.
In this short ten-minute interview, the Atmosphere Research Group President highlights a few aspects of the Asia-Pacific region which make it so consequential for the wider evolution of the aviation industry. Moreover, the Atmosphere Research Group President shortlists some key conversations to look out for in the “open, honest, and unfiltered” discourse at Aviation Festival Asia.
Henry will be participating in multiple sessions at Aviation Festival Asia including:
Interviewing Haoyu Dai, Divisional Vice President Digital, Singapore Airlines Limited on how the industry can accelerate digital solutions that optimise operations and improve the customer experience while overcoming challenges of legacy systems.
Interviewing Kerem Kiziltunc PhD, Chief Information Officer at Turkish Airlines on digital ambition at the airline
Moderating the closing keynote digital product panel with the General Manager Digital at Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, CCO at TUI, and Chief Digital and Information Officer at IndiGo.
Moderating the CIO panel on ‘how are airline CIOs in Asia are prioritising investments as we head further into 2023 to meeting passengers digital demands and deliver on sustainability efforts?’ with Turkish Airlines, Singapore Airlines, and Virgin Australia
Moderating a panel of Aviation tech Asia innovation going into 2023 – time for a new mindset? With Lufthansa Innovation Hub, Starburst Accelerator, and Singapore Airlines
Moderating a panel on ‘how can we as an industry fully embrace cloud modernization and enterprise transformation to usher in a new era of operational efficiencies, better customer experiences, and actional data insights’ with Bamboo Airways, SpiceJet, ET AL, and SriLankan Airlines.
Interviewing Ayman Aboabah, CEO King Abdulaziz International Airport, exploring the airport’s vision for 2023 and beyond with digital transformation and capacity expansion.
Interviewing Hari Marar, MD and CEO Kempegowda International Airport Bengaluru on how the design of T2 reflects the world’s biggest changes as a result of the pandemic.
Moderating the CEO panel on entering Asian airports’ post-pandemic era of unprecedented digital transformation, collaboration, innovation, and reimagined business models with Kempegowda International Airport Bengaluru, SITA, and King Abdulaziz International Airport.
If you want to see Henry’s sessions and other unmissable talks, interviews, and panels get your ticket here. To see a previous interview with Henry, click here.
London Heathrow reports its busiest start to the year since the pandemic whilst keeping security queues low
Today, the UK’s busiest airport announced over 5.48 million passengers travelled through Heathrow in January making it the “strongest start of the year since the beginning of the pandemic.”
The majority of travellers passing through the airport were from the European Union (EU) – 1.62 million, followed by passengers from North America – 1.21 million. These represented a 135 per cent and 120 per cent increase in passenger traffic respectively.
Despite EU and North American travellers composing the two largest groups of passengers for the airport in January, the APAC market demonstrated the largest growth compared to last year according to Heathrow’s figures. With 764,000 passengers in January 2023, number of travellers at the airport from the APAC region were up 181.3 per cent compared to the previous year.
Importantly, despite the strong passenger recovery the airport also reported the congestion problems in the airport had been resolved with “98 per cent of passengers waiting less than ten minutes for security in January.”
The airport is also trialling eGates for children ages 10 and 11 in Terminal 5 which will continue the airport’s progress towards establishing “smooth and seamless journeys.”
Reporting on the month’s passenger traffic, CEO John Holland-Kaye said:
“Heathrow is back to its best, with passenger satisfaction scores meeting or exceeding 2019 levels. We are giving a warm welcome to families over the half-term getaway by delivering excellent service and bringing back the magic of travel.”
What to expect at Aviation Festival Asia with Mike Arnot
As highlighted by Mike Arnot in this discussion, many players in the APAC region are at the cutting edge of digital marketing and communication with their customers. Considering this, insight from these industry leaders could enrich practices across the globe. Mike Arnot, Principal at Juliett Alpha is involved in several of the marketing strategies & branding sessions taking place at Aviation Festival Asia at the end of the month.
The Juliett Alpha Principal is:
Moderating a CMO panel reconsidering marketing priorities as airlines rescale and emerge as internationally relevant brands. The session includes the CMOs of Saudia, Korean Air, and Virgin Australia as well as the APAC Managing Director for EveryMundo.
Interviewing Amad Luqman Mohd Azmi, Chief Executive Officer Airline Business, Malaysia Airlines about Malaysia Airlines’ outlook on digital marketing for 2023 and beyond.
Moderating a panel on devising digital marketing tactics to create iconic branding which will speak to 2023’s target online audiences. This panel includes the Director of Customer & Brand, HK Express, Chief Executive Officer Airline Business, Malaysia Airlines, Head of Marketing and Communications, Beond, and Digital Manager – Omnichannel Orchestration, Cathay Pacific Airways.
In this short interview, Mike explains his approach to these, detailing what delegates can expect to gain from attending and explaining how he intends to move beyond “Marketing 101” in the sessions.
To see Mike’s sessions and other unmissable talks, interviews, and panels get your ticket here.
What to expect at Aviation Festival Asia with Mabel Kwan
Aviation Festival Asia is fast approaching. The event gathers together airline, airport, and tech leaders for an honest discussion into lessons learned and plans for the future. With a packed agenda exploring sustainability, retail, payments, marketing, IT, tech, loyalty, AI and more, there is a rich array of topics, speakers, and sessions to navigate.
Mabel Kwan, MD Alton Aviation Consultancy will be moderating some of the airport tech sessions at the event. Watch the short interview below to hear more about what to expect from these sessions, what to look forward to at the event, and why Aviation Festival Asia 2023 is not one to miss.
Mabel has years of experience in planning, investment and business development in the airline, airport, and tourism and travel industries. Formerly a Managing Director of Investments at Changi Airports International (CAI), Mabel’s experience in the industry equips her well to moderate airport tech panels at the event. The Alton Aviation Consultancy MD will be moderating the following sessions:
A panel exploring how biometric technology within airports can uplift the entire aviation ecosystem. The panel includes CIO of Malaysia Airports, CDO & CCO IGA of Istanbul Airport, VP Customer Experience at Star Alliance, and VP Business Management, APAC at SITA.
A panel looking at the role of digital transformation in ramping up airport operations in Asia’s post-pandemic recovery era. This panel includes the Director of Procurement and Logistics at IGA Istanbul Airport, the Head of Operations at Noida International Airport, the Head of Terminal Operations at GMR Megawide Cebu Airport, the Lead Systems Engineer at SriLankan Airlines, and the Regional head of Operations at Collins Aerospace.
Five start-ups to look out for at Aviation Festival Asia: Simplifying and improving the travel experience
Aviation Festival Asia gathers together industry giants, start-ups, and everyone in between to drive innovation in the aviation industry. The event is an opportunity for start-ups to get noticed and for influential industry players to forge business partnerships in the Asia Region.
A passenger’s travel experience is informed by many different stages of their journey. Consequently, as the aviation industry works to refine the overall journey, improvements can be made in a variety of ways. From enhancing retail opportunities to facilitating off-airport bag check these five start-ups simplify and improve the travel experience for passengers.
1. bagchain
bagchain is a travel communication platform and leading mobile baggage check-in provider. Check-in baggage remotely, anywhere, any place, anytime using bagchain’s’ eco-system bagchain cloud. With direct secure Wi-Fi, 3G/4G connections to the airlines systems.
For the remote baggage check-in bagchain offers various mobile modular kiosks. They can be optional equipped with a platform scale, combined boarding pass/passport scanner & biometrics. All the kiosk functionality is now also available in a handy bagchain iOS App. Together with a mobile handheld printer they can be used anywhere you want to check-in passengers’ baggage. Start using a bagchain kiosk or App just requires an internet connection.
2. E23
Passengers enjoy shopping at the airport but stringent security checks and long distances between gates and shops often make it challenging. In addition, passengers lack the means to compare prices between retailers making it hard to exploit all shopping opportunities. Our mission is to provide a simplified solution for our clients by creating a new mall experience at international Airports with time-efficient convenience. Through our innovative order-and-delivery system passengers can now shop as soon as they receive their flight booking confirmation or their online boarding pass, enjoying stress-free on-premise and last minute in-flight shopping with delivery up to arrival gates.
3. Inovat
Inovat is a digital VAT refund solution that allows travellers to save more than 20% in tax refunds on shopping without the need to complete any paperwork or stand in the airport queues. Inovat partners with banks by integrating tax refund functionality via an API to allow bank customers to save on shopping during their travels. The Tax Free industry has never been challenged – a paper process with high fees, stress and long queues for travellers. Inovat is the only digital product that solves the full cycle of travellers’ pain. With Inovat tourists get more money and save more time.
4. SimpleVisa
Are your customers confused about the documents they need to travel ? SimpleVisa informs, processes, and stores visas for them. In doing so we create a unique customer service and revenue opportunity for travel vendors. Implementation is seamless. Conversion and revenues fly high. And we deliver a smooth and secure user experience.
5. Travelsist
Founded in 2018, Travelsist is an Atlanta-based TravelTech startup modernizing passenger services for airports and airlines. “Reimagining passenger services, turning non-fliers into fliers and making air travel truly seamless are all key parts of our mission. In 2023, we’ll work with airport and airline leaders around the world to redefine passenger services and help them save money in the process. Our commitment to innovation, as well as to our people, will help Travelsist become the most effective, efficient passenger services workflow the airport has ever seen,” states CEO & Founder, Veronica Woodruff.
These five start ups will be at Aviation Festival Asia next month. To see how these and many other start-ups can enhance passenger experience, get your ticket here.
An ambitious future for Jeddah Airport. Interview with Mr Ayman Aboabah, CEO Jeddah Airports Company
Mr Ayman Aboabah, CEO Jeddah Airports Company provided insight into the rich passenger experience at King Abdulaziz International airport (Jeddah Airport). With added responsibility as the gateway for pilgrims to the Holy Mosques (Hajj and Umrah), Jeddah Airport plays an important role in shaping the passenger journey.
As described by Mr Ayman, Jeddah Airport has developed the experience they provide passengers. Recognising these efforts, last month a report by the General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) placed Jeddah Airport top of the list of international airports for overall performance in Saudi Arabia. GACA’s monthly report evaluates the country’s airports’ commitment to improving their passenger experience and services. This is judged on fourteen performance criteria including time spent in travel procedures, passports, customs areas, and disability services.
Jeddah Airport has been integrating a wealth of innovative technologies to ensure a unique travel experience for passengers whilst ensuring safe, secure, and efficient operations. These will be scaled up with the airport’s ambitious goal of catering up to 300 per-cent more passengers in the airport before the end of 2030. For more insight into the role of technology, future plans for the airport, and potential challenges in the region, watch the concise interview below.
Questions asked:
How do you offer a premium experience to all passengers going to Jeddah Airport?
Can you tell me about any upcoming opportunities for the airport?
Could you name some challenges that Asia’s airport CEO’s might face at the moment?
Does technology play a significant role in the passenger experience at Jeddah Airport?
What are your ambitions for Jeddah Airport in the coming year?
Mr Ayman Aboabah will be delivering the Keynote interview on ‘Exploring King Abdulaziz International Airport’s vision for 2023 and beyond with digital transformation and capacity expansion.’ Additionally, Mr Ayman will be on the Keynote CEO panel discussing ‘Entering Asian airports’ post-pandemic era of unprecedented digital transformation, collaboration, innovation, and reimagined business models.’ Get your tickets here.
SITA finds aviation CIOs are “ramping up digital technology investments”
Earlier this week, SITA published their 2022 Air Transport IT Insights report. The study’s overall findings indicate that “aviation CIOs [are] ramping up digital technology investments.”
David Lavorel, CEO SITA said:
“Air travel has recovered faster from the pandemic than anyone in the industry had initially expected, particularly in Europe and the US. While the recovery is welcome, airports and airlines have found themselves on the back foot with staff and resource shortages. This has put strain on operations, resulting in an increased risk of congestion, delays, cancellations and mishandled baggage. Digitalization is seen as key to addressing these challenges, providing more scalability and flexibility.”
Catalysed by the pandemic, the aviation industry has been on an accelerated digitalisation journey which is reflected in a year-on-year growth in IT spend since 2020. Next year, is predicted to follow the trend, with 96 per cent of airlines and 93 per cent of airports expecting their IT spend to stay the same or increase in 2023 compared to 2022.
Here are some of the key findings from the report.
Airlines
The three main investments for airlines’ IT services are cyber security, mobile applications for passenger services, and IT service management enhancement.
The top four priorities for airlines investment in technologies are business intelligence software, data exchange technologies, artificial intelligence (AI), and radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking.
76 per cent of airlines forecast to implement self-boarding gates using biometric & ID documentation.
25 per cent of airlines currently offer the option to receive real-time information sent to their mobile about bags but 42 per cent confirm implementation by 2050.
Self-service solutions to help tackle irregular operations remained the top priority for this year at the airport.
87 per cent of airlines have an innovation strategy now or one that is currently being developed.
Airports
75 per cent of airports anticipate IT&T investment to increase in 2023.
Three of the top priorities for IT services are cybersecurity initiatives, self-service processes, and Business intelligence solutions.
The top two focuses for the future of passenger identify management are self check-in and self bag-drop.
Aviation Festival Asia has some of the APAC region’s leading aviation CIOs from Turkish Airlines to Virgin Australia, SriLankan Airlines to Bangalore International Airport. Get your ticket here to be a part of the discussion.
What to expect at Aviation Festival Asia with Yen-Pu Paul Chen
At the end of the month, industry executives, start ups, and established leaders in the field will congregate for Aviation Festival Asia.
Yen-Pu Paul Chen, MD, V.X Consulting will be joining the event’s loyalty track, drawing on his multidisciplinary background to bringing a nuanced and perceptive approach to the interviews and panels.
In this short interview, Paul offered an exclusive insight into what to expect from his sessions.
Paul will be moderating panels on:
Maintaining bespoke, relevant relationships with loyalty program members in line with their unique realities.
Update and upgrade – revamping aviation loyalty programs to reflect current and future passenger priorities.
As well as interviewing Melissa Vandersay, Lead – Strategic Partnerships – Retail, Lifestyle, Points Exchange and Sustainable Partnerships, Etihad Airways on ‘Key teachings from the pandemic regarding diversifying loyalty programs that airlines can bring into the future.’
Some of the panellists in these sessions include Siddhartha Butalia, CMO, AirAsia India, Shefali Higgins, Head of Member Engagement, Emirates Skywards, Katherine Benton, Director, Customer Platforms IT, Hawaiian Airlines, Melissa Vandersay, Lead – Strategic Partnerships – Retail, Lifestyle, Points Exchange and Sustainable Partnerships, Etihad Airways, and Wilson See, Marketing & Strategy Research, Japan Airlines.
During the conversation, Paul also shared his thoughts on what makes APAC such an exciting region for aviation, key trends the audience can expect to hear about at the event, and why Aviation Festival Asia is important for the industry ecosystem.
To see Paul’s sessions and other unmissable talks, interviews, and panels get your ticket here.
Well-positioned with a career spanning both airlines and airports, Claire will bring a first-hand appreciation of where the two overlap and where further collaboration is required.
On the second day of the event, Claire will be interviewing Christina Selvanayagam, Adelaide Airport on ‘Inter-industry data sharing within the travel sector to enhance the passenger experience.’ The Customer Centric Consulting Director will also be moderating a panel with Munich Airport International’s Head of Market, SriLankan Airlines’ Digital Transformation Lead, and Adelaide Airports’ Christina Selvanayagam exploring ‘Data analysis at the centre of passenger experience strategies within APAC airports.’
In this 10-minute conversation, Claire provided exclusive insight into what to expect from these sessions and offered her perspective on broader trends in the region and themes to look out for at the event.
To see Claire’s sessions and other unmissable talks, interviews, and panels get your ticket here.
Six start-ups to look out for at Aviation Festival Asia: Data and artificial intelligence (AI)
Aviation Festival Asia gathers together industry giants, start-ups, and everyone in between to drive innovation in the aviation industry. The event is an opportunity for start-ups to get noticed and for influential industry players to forge business partnerships in the Asia Region.
Data and artificial intelligence (AI) are two of the most influential driving factors spurring innovation and advancement in the aviation industry. Both data and AI have begun to transform the landscape of the industry working separately and synergistically to progress multiple facets of aviation. Here are six start-ups working with data and/or AI to look out for at Aviation Festival Asia.
AEROSENS
Throughout the history of business, people use data to make more informed decisions. Digitalization is key to the future success of any industry. Our goal at AEROSENS is to develop technology solutions making the aviation industry more transparent, smarter, and cost efficient. Today, we provide solutions that transform the way information about parts, products, equipment and even people is gathered and analyzed.
Airevo
Airevo has been set up to transform airlines Commercial, Sales and Distribution environments through intelligent use of AI.
We are building a range of modular AI-driven solutions that will directly impact on profitability. The first is focused on reducing distribution costs, addressing unproductive bookings and increasing seat availability. The second solution will dynamically create personalized offers based on customer personas. This can be integrated into modern Direct and Indirect selling systems to increase upsell.
ALEIOS
ALEIOS help startups disrupt and large organisations to remain competitive using the best of Cloud-Native, Serverless. Building highly scalable systems we connect people, liberate data and create innovation through technology.
BookingData
BookingData enables hotels to make closed offers to airline travellers (currently confirmed: Lufthansa group, Eurowings and SunExpress). Hotels are receiving all the bookings made by the airlines and can select the profiles it wants to make offers to. Offers are then carried by the airline to the travellers.
NABLA Mobility
NABLA Mobility is a startup company that designs, develops, and provides software to optimize airline flight operations. We improve operational resilience and decarbonization by introducing the latest technologies such as AI/ML to support better operational decision-making for aviation.
“Weave” is our software product that supports pilots to make optimal in-flight decision making, based on our own developed unique set of AI/ML technologies, “Untangle”
RecoSense
RecoSense offers an AI-powered platform for document analysis and data centralization. Our primary expertise and focus are on transforming raw unstructured data into structured data with meta context definition. The platform powers Process Automations and Compliance Management with MROs in the Aviation Industry. We work as an Engineering partner with our customers to build enterprise-specific solutions.
Aerobot is an enabler system as a digital assistant for the functional and business teams for process efficiency and automation rather than replacement of human resources.
These six start ups will be at Aviation Festival Asia next month. Data and AI will be discussed across the majority of the tracks at the event with a range of top industry leaders discussing their experience, lessons, and plans for the future. Get your ticket here.
Watch ‘Data analytics in aviation. An interview with Dirk Jungnickel, SVP Enterprise Data & Analytics at Emirates Group’ here.
