Everywhere we look, airport technology trends are emerging and changing how we live. Advancements in airport technology reflect broader patterns in how these technologies are transforming our day-to-day existence.
Airport technology is constantly evolving to make travel and transportation more manageable for people worldwide. Here are the top 6 airport technology trends reshaping air travel and the aviation industry.
Airport Technology Trends: Biometrics
Biometric technology enables the identification of individuals by their unique behavioural or physical characteristics. Airports are putting this cutting-edge technology to work to make boarding easier and safer for passengers. For example, to verify a traveller’s identity, facial recognition software captures a photo of the individual and checks it against a database of known faces. The same goes for fingerprint scanning; it can be used for payments, access control, and identification.
Using biometric authentication instead of physical documents allows passengers to have a more streamlined experience at check-in, security checks, and boarding gates when travelling. One outstanding use of biometrics is at Dubai International Airport. Here, Emirates uses biometric technologies like iris and face recognition to make the check-in and boarding process paperless for travellers.
Immersive Simulations
Immersive technologies are transforming the aviation industry, through innovative passenger engagement, operational simplicity, and safety enhancement capabilities. Potential applications for virtual and augmented reality technologies are being explored in pilot education, aviation maintenance, and in-flight entertainment. With virtual reality (VR) simulations, pilots can sharpen their skills and make better decisions by flying through various simulated scenarios. On the other hand, augmented reality (AR) helps ground crew in aviation maintenance by providing real-time repair data on airplane components, reducing downtime.
For passengers, VR and AR can improve in-flight entertainment by making it more participatory and exciting. This enhances the travel experience. Additionally, these technologies help simplify data presentation, enhancing navigation and flight planning.
Automation
Automation of services will allow airports to process more passengers with less human intervention and reduced congestion. As a result, airports will be able to provide a higher level of personalised attention. For instance, automated bag drops enable customers to access their reservation using biometrics rather than a boarding card, saving precious seconds that might add up as hundreds of people check their bags aboard aircraft. Future airports will be able to reduce congestion at these contact points, making them more immersive and giving passengers more time to peruse the terminal’s many retail and entertainment choices.
Robotics & Autonomous Vehicles
The presence of robots at airport terminals is on the rise. Airports all across the world have begun using robots to improve customer service and increase productivity in recent years. Currently, Asian airports are at the forefront of this trend, with examples like the Airstar robot at Incheon Airport and the robot portfolio at Haneda Robotics Lab.
Robots could potentially play a significant role in luggage handling. Rotterdam, The Hague Airport, is one of the locations testing out autonomous luggage handling carts, sometimes known as baggage robots.
With the help of machine learning and artificial intelligence, these robots can learn new things and get smarter over time. This means they can help airports and airlines run more smoothly and provide customers with more helpful information. Therefore, as more airports follow this lead, the technology will play an increasingly important role in improving airport-passenger interaction.
Blockchain Technology
The blockchain technology seems to have been developed specifically for the aviation sector. The core concept behind blockchain technology is the secure data exchange among various parties. The goal is to provide data at a certain location so that workflow and data interchange can go on more smoothly. The aviation industry has unique problems, and this reliable network was designed to solve them without sacrificing the privacy of passengers’ information or the quality of their experience.
The aviation sector can benefit from blockchain technology’s ability to save costs. The saved money will come from automated processes, improved record reconciliation, safer document storage, and better repair time and inventory insights. For instance, Winding Tree’s blockchain platform lets airlines and travel agencies save costs for the business and the customer by eliminating intermediaries.
Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
As 5G networks come online, AI programs improve, and sensors are built into cheaper gear, the Internet of Things (IoT) is finally starting to live up to its long-awaited potential.
IoT establishes a system of interconnected, data-generating assets and gadgets that can communicate with one another and raise airport-wide efficiency. Technologies such as machine learning, computer vision, robotics, autonomous vehicles, language, and virtual agents, use the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence to address business challenges. Machine learning algorithms don’t need direct instructions from a programmer; they learn from data and experience how to spot patterns, as well as how to generate predictions and suggestions.
The use of real-time data to effectively manage turbulence and changing weather patterns is already on the rise. To help crews avoid unnecessary problems and make smarter, more adaptable flight plans, SITA has introduced eWAS Pilot, a system that integrates weather predictions with satellite data.
Conclusion
Nowadays, airports operate in a very complex and technologically sophisticated environment. To stay ahead of the curve, maintain high-quality standards, and secure their continued development, airports are always looking for new technology and customised IT solutions. At Airport Gurus we help airports navigate and adapt to this rapidly changing environment by providing the best airport technology solutions for increased airport efficiency.
We work closely with airport engineers, architects, and management to support technical operations and provide assistance. Through our various IT initiatives, we provide expert airport operations and technology assistance and carry out IT evaluations at airports, among other IT projects. Contact Airport Gurus now to learn more about how we can help you revolutionise your operations by harnessing the power of cutting-edge technology.
