Airport Digitalization—Technology Trends and Future Best Practices

Global airports have faced extreme challenges in generating sustainable revenues and maintaining expenditure due to the sudden decline in passenger demand and aircraft operations caused due to the COVID-19 crisis. The sudden spread of the coronavirus, slow vaccination rates, uncertain travel regulations, declining passenger confidence, and receding economies have led to the drastic reduction in not only the number of domestic and international passengers but also the industry’s weak financial status. Accelerated vaccination rates, adherence to regulations set by health authorities, planned lockdown relaxations, and transparent travel policies will be the key to overall recovery of the aviation industry. Minimizing fixed costs, optimizing operational costs, ensuring an efficient and safe passenger experience, and improving employee safety and productivity will be critical as airports sustain business operations during the recovery period. Shifting aviation applications from legacy infrastructure to cloud infrastructure is a key digital initiative being implemented across the majority of airports worldwide. The growing adoption of the Internet of Things (IoT) has led to a significant increase in data collection capabilities. These capabilities have increased the focus on cybersecurity initiatives and on maintaining the integrity of sensitive data. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and blockchain will play a crucial role in not only enhancing data security, privacy, and transparency but also in adhering to data regulations. Location-based services and smartphone applications will help develop customized and highly personalized offers which can further enhance ancillary revenue. Most airports now focus on automating passenger touchpoints, but they should look beyond automation and enhance operational efficiencies for the next 2 or 3 years. The aviation industry requires higher levels of collaboration between software and hardware providers and master integrators to meet business requirements and provide seamless services. Sustainability is a critical initiative, and airports are prioritizing optimization of fuel utilization, carbon and noise emission reduction, and so on. The significance of non-aeronautical revenue has significantly increased over the last decade and plays a key role in enhancing the financial resilience of airports. Airports are facing increasing bottom-line pressure due to volatile operational costs. Non-aeronautical revenue will ensure profitability despite rising operational expenditures. Total airport management (TAM) brings together all aviation stakeholders in the airport ecosystem. It ensures the interconnection of all airport systems, such as check-in counters, bag-drop areas, self-service kiosks, and network and security systems. It provides the airport the capability to collate real-time data from various data siloes to analyze and provide insights to enhance decision making is a major benefit. It also can empower airports with the predictive capability to highlight potential scenarios/ failures and take the better decision. Author: Nripendra Bahadur Singh