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The briefing automated travelling
The news, views and numbers you need to know this month
The briefing on connected aviation
The news, views and numbers you need to know this month
News in numbers
65 years-old+
Senior travellers, aged 65 years and older, have a strong preference for traditional check-in procedures and bag-drop processes
No 1
Removing personal items was named the top frustration during security and border control
145
More than 10,000 flyers from 145 countries were surveyed by IATA about their preferences while travelling
82%
of respondents said they want to be kept informed throughout their journey
10 mins
is the maximum time passengers want to be waiting at security or immigration desks
65%
of passengers are willing to share personal data for expedited security
In quotes
Nick Careen, IATA’s Senior Vice President for Airport, Passenger, Cargo and Security:
As we move more and more towards digital processes, passengers need to be confident that their personal data is safe. IATA is working to establish a trust framework that ensures secure data sharing, legal compliance and privacy.
Charles Vine, head of Spafax Brand Alliances:
Around 27% [of the British public] are against being helped by AI for a hypothetical upcoming trip, whereas a resounding 68% of the British public want AI to help them get the most out of their time at the airport – whether that be assistance navigating the airport terminals or speeding up the check-in process.
Angela Gittens, director general of ACI World:
As competition in the airport industry grows, continuous service improvement is key for business performance and airports are clearly making the customer experience a high priority.
Top stories
Air passengers are keen to have access to new technologies that give them more control and information, as well as improve efficiency during their journey, according to a report issued by IATA. Almost 56% of passengers said that they want real-time baggage tracking throughout the journey. Airlines and airports are implementing tracking at major journey points, including loading and unloading, to meet passengers’ demand.
Source: Airport Technology
Emirates is gearing up to launch the world’s first ‘biometric path’, which will offer its customers a smooth and truly seamless airport journey at the airline’s hub in Dubai International airport. Utilising the latest biometric technology – a mix of facial and iris recognition – Emirates passengers can soon check-in for their flight, complete immigration formalities, enter the Emirates Lounge, and board their flights, simply by walking through the airport.
Source: International Airport Review
Passenger satisfaction with service quality at airports worldwide increased in the third quarter of 2018, according to the latest research from Airports Council International (ACI). Airport facilities, including retail and food & beverage, was the highest riser among the categories assessed with a year-on-year rise from 3.88 to 3.94. This category focuses on the availability and quality of services, and includes passenger ratings on value for money of these services.
Source: The Moodie Davitt Report
Automated travel pods devised by NEXT now offer air travellers the convenience of completing a majority of the check-in process during their commute to the airport. NEXT’s patented modular vehicle platform, which allows individual pods to connect in motion and form a fleet. While en route, various security technologies are applied in combination to ensure a layered approach to security. NEXT’s passenger authentication solution utilises artificial intelligence, biometric and facial recognition to accelerate the check in process.
Source: International Airport Review
Oman Air has introduced a new WhatsApp service which enables its guests to communicate instantly with airline staff via the popular app. Clients who opt for this service can now receive their booking confirmations, check-in notifications, boarding passes, flight status updates in addition to other requested information, directly through the messaging app.
Source: Breaking Travel News
20
February
2018
Emirates to introduce service between Auckland and Bali
Dubai-based airline Emirates is planning to launch a new daily service from Dubai to Auckland, New Zealand, through the island of Bali in Indonesia.
Starting from June 2018, the new service complements Emirates’ existing non-stop daily service between Dubai and Auckland and its daily A380 service between Dubai and Christchurch through Sydney. Emirates will offer a total of three daily services to New Zealand to global travellers.
The airline’s two existing daily services are currently operated by a Boeing 777 300-ER in a two-class configuration.
Emirates Airline president Sir Tim Clark said: “We are confident that our year-round service between Auckland and Bali will be well-received by our customers, not only in New Zealand and Indonesia, but also from our global network particularly from markets like the UK, Europe, and the Middle East.”
The new service is expected to provide better connections for London and other major European cities.
Welcoming Emirates’ announcement, Auckland Airport aeronautical commercial general manager Scott Tasker said that the new service will add more than 250,000 seats to the route.
Tasker added: “Bali continues to grow as a popular holiday destination for Kiwis, who can now fly there non-stop, year-round. Additionally, this new service provides an option for European travellers to stopover in Bali when flying to and from New Zealand.”
The new service is also set to provide 20t of cargo capacity between New Zealand, Bali and Dubai.
