Technology trends at the airports
The SITA company in December, 2019 submitted 10 futuristic forecasts connected with technologies of passenger experience in the airports of the future. In their basis – results of researches, drivers of an aviation industry and innovation.
Airports of the future: 10 futuristic forecasts for the following desyatileniye
For the last 10 years process of service of passengers at the airports sharply changed thanks to implementation of the systems of biometric examination and also services of mobile registration for run and trackings of baggage. According to forecasts of SITA, next decade the accelerated rates of development are expected. With arrival of digital transformation to an aviation industry passengers and employees will open for themselves boundless opportunities of advanced technologies – from flights by the taxi to the airports with own intelligent system. SITA claim that serious changes will affect practically all systems of the airport.
According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the number of passengers in the next twenty years should double, however process of expansion of the airports will not be so operational. And passengers absolutely fairly want that all processes in the airport were performed with hardly any trouble at all. The only way to ensure smooth operation of air harbors – to develop and apply new technological solutions which increase efficiency of their work and service quality of passengers.
Security will be integrated into the system of "a seamless travel"
According to the forecast of SITA, within the next decade passing of a zone of control will turn into walk along the corridor. It will not be necessary to take off a coat, footwear and a belt any more, to put small bottles in small bags. Queues will remain in the past too. The system of recognition of passengers and their baggage will automatically work when passing through advanced check-points. Tough zones of control will be succeeded by "smart" touch corridors that will make verification of paper documents outdated.
Passengers will be able to control process of digital identification
Implementation of the digital identity certificate and individual ID code will allow passengers to define independently what aspects of their personality should be disclosed during the travel and for what purpose. At the airports of the future risks of date leak will be constantly estimated by the artificial intelligence (AI) specialists using digital identification of the passenger. The most important elements of these data will be provided only to the governments of the countries applying automated systems to approval – or, in certain cases, disapproval – different stages of an aviatravel. At the same time airlines will not bear responsibility for data processing of passengers for the purpose of security of frontiers any more, consider in SITA.
The travel will be decentralized
The tags will be intended for each category: for passengers, baggage or loads. All this will be traced throughout all travel, irrespective of the used type of transport. It means that to get permission to a trip and it will be possible to undergo customs inspections even before arrival in the airport that will allow to save time considerably. At the same time, the service of remote checking in will be offered where it is the most convenient for the passenger, for example, at stations.
The territory of the airport will be equipped with high-speed communication
On belief of experts of SITA, in an era of the connected airports more and more cheap sensors, less specialized equipment and new cloud services of the data working from devices over a 5G will be used. Data collection will be performed through software-defined networks, then data will pass a stage of comparison and the analysis. Such method will increase efficiency of the airport and will help to make it much more convenient for passengers.
The airport will independently "think"
According to forecasts of specialists, algorithms of the artificial intelligence (AI) will be a key to efficiency, and difficult AI will become a secret of success of the aviaindustry. Air harbors will use Digital Twin technology for work in real time with all interested in the parties, optimizing work and improving service quality of passengers.
In the whole Digital Twin – it is advanced computer simulation which uses data of all airport and airlines for further interaction and forecasting. These data then are applied to optimization of operational activity and the maximum automation. Thus, it is possible to send voice messages to employees of different services – from immigration to cleaning. As a result it is possible to receive pro-active answers and, therefore, more operational and precisely planned actions from airlines and the airports.
Cooperation will be crucial
Is responsible for security and comfort of each travel from 10 and more different organizations. The only way to collect all data and to make a travel "seamless" – to provide close cooperation between all organizations: airport, airlines, government agencies, land services, restaurants and shops. Smooth operation of all components of an ecosystem of the air harbor is also necessary.
Within this ecosystem operational data will be transferred using trust mechanisms, and concerned parties will share uniform sources of information for implementation of the main transactions.
Work of the airport will be completely automated
High-speed mobile communication at the airport will be crucial for smooth operation. The airports even more often will execute transactions just in time, and automation and self-service will allow to increase the effectiveness of services considerably. The connected automated and autonomous vehicles and also robots will become an everyday occurrence at all airport.
Automation will also allow to use more effectively available resources. The broad spectrum of objects – from luggage or aviation tows – will function using 5G networks, providing huge amounts of data in real time.
The airport will adapt to needs of passengers
Besides, according to representatives of SITA, the fast travel to the airport and free passing of all stages of check in its territory will make unclaimed some earlier profitable services, for example, the parking. Thus, the airports need to find new methods of increase in comfort. The personalized approach will be able to help with it. It will provide to passengers desirable service at any time at each stage of a travel, and not just in the territory of the airport.
It is possible to give the service of the order of a limousine provided at the airport including also registration of baggage in the house, office or hotel plus simplification of procedures of border control for permanent aviatravellers as an example.
The mobility will become service on demand
The airports will become the huge centers of "the intercepting parking", providing access to a broad spectrum of vehicles. By 2030 there will be such innovations as air taxi which will provide much more effective transfer both in the airport, and from the airport.
Single system of API
As potential travelers will be digital natives, the people managing work of the airports should equal on them. This technology competent environment will allow to separate a complex system of the airport into a number of services of information service which can be used as the application programming interfaces (API). In turn, it will provide an ecosystem in which all processes will be performed much more simply thanks to harmonious work and innovations, are convinced of SITA. For example, thanks to "new syntax" and artificial intelligence using voice service it will be possible to learn whether B34 exit has, for example, pink suitcase and also to supply with transport those exits where it is necessary.
"Hot" trends
Biometric identification of passengers
One of the most demanded technologies of the future at the airports can call biometric identification of passengers. It can be applied at different stages: for example, for registration of passengers for run on a selfie, when passing border control, at the boarding gate. Implementation of the concept "the person as the passport" is capable to accelerate these processes and to increase capacity of the airports.
According to a research of developer company of IT solutions for an aviation industry of SITA which is released in September, 2018 in the next three years of 77% of the airports and 71% of airlines plan investments in large projects or research works in the field of biometric identification.
 | The technologies implementing the idea "the passenger's person as the passport" are developed and completely ready to use. They safe and reliable. Now the question costs in integrating these solutions and to deliver their use on a flow at the airports, - the president of SITA in Europe Sergio Colella notes. |  |
It is possible to carry the USA where the normative and regulatory base allows to try the most advanced innovations to the countries which already most moved ahead in use of passenger biometrics. In the summer of 2017, for example, Jet Blue airline together with Logan International Airport in Boston the beginnings of testing of a system of biometric check of the identity of passengers at the boarding gate exempting them from need to show documents.
The project was started in interaction with the developer of this system – SITA, and Management of customs and boundary protection of the USA. In September of the same year the project was considered successful and partners announced plans for its development.
As of September, 2018 Management of customs and boundary protection of the USA tests biometrics for the boarding gate at 15 main airports of the country. Department is interested in use of these technologies not only for the taking-off, but also arriving passengers. For the last the biometrics is tested at 14[1].
Implementation of biometric identification of passengers gradually goes also in Europe. In Italy, for example, 3 airports – in Rome, Bologna and Naples implemented biometric passport control.
In Russia, with its rather conservative regulatory base, at the airports so far the first steps on use of biometric identification of passengers are only taken. At the same time similar technologies are already rather widely used at the Russian airports for control of internal security. Plans to integrate a sensing technology of persons based on VisionLabs software on the basis of the trained neural networks into work of business halls at the Moscow Domodedovo Airport were announced by S7 Airlines. The company calculates that it will allow to identify passengers of S7 Airlines and to personalize services for visitors of business halls.
Artificial intelligence
It is possible to refer to technology trends also artificial intelligence (Artificial Intelligence, AI). According to SITA, 61% of the airports will develop projects of artificial intelligence in the next three years. In 2017 the share of like those made 34%. In this case it is about use of these technologies for predictive analytics to improve operational indicators of the airport.
Using artificial intelligence it is possible to improve predictability of processes at the airport, understanding that in it occurs at the specific moment and that can occur later. It is possible to predict with a big accuracy effects of this or that incident for the airport, including strikes of employees which often take place in a number of the countries, to predict effects of a delay of this or that run and in advance to warn passengers, gave examples of TAdviser of Sergio Kolella from SITA.
Robots
Robotics is also one of technologies which begin to find broad application at the airport. For example, they can admit baggage of passengers directly at an input to the airport. Such robot developed by SITA is tested, for example, by the airport in Geneva. It allows the passenger to scan independently the boarding passes, to put bags in a cargo compartment of the robot and to attach on them the labels printed with the robot. After that the robot closes the cargo compartment that nobody could damage baggage on the way on the station of loading where people will throw baggage on the conveyer belt.
According to Sergio Kolella from SITA, about 50 similar robots that there was an essential effect can be necessary for airport terminal.
The Dutch airline KLM Royal Dutch in the summer of 2018 announced plans to start Care-E robots assistants at the airports of San Francisco and New York. They are able to accept baggage at passengers and to see them to the necessary point in the airport building.
The robotic terminal in the summer of 2018 opened at the airport of Singapore. The automated front desks and luggage tapes, passport control with sensing technologies of persons are available to passengers. At the airport the innovation scanners of baggage which are not requiring a vykladyvaniye of notebooks and phones from hand luggage are also installed. Robots at this airport also work as cleaners.
In addition to service of passengers robots are used also as guards of public order, performing functions of police officers. Such robots, for example, can be seen at the airport at LaGuardia Airport in New York.
The robotic equipment is used also at the Russian airports. So, for example, in September, 2018 at the Moscow Domodedovo Airport testing of a robotic temporary storage warehouse of baggage which should ensure additional safety and accuracy on delivery of baggage of passengers on run came to the end. Robots in two minutes after receipt of a command find the necessary tray and transport a bag to the place of a complete set of run.
Blockchain
There are interesting perspectives for application at the airports and blockchain technology. It can be used for a wide range of the purposes — from process of identification of passengers before sale of tickets, tracking of baggage and management of programs of service of often flying clients. Each of these scenarios of use is capable to increase efficiency of joint work of all concerned parties of the industry.
According to the research SITA, till 2021 34% of the airports plan research and development in the field of a blockchain. The most desired result of use of a blockchain — simplification of process of identification of passengers: representatives of 36% of the airports say about it.
Chief information officers of the airports as potential benefits from a blockchain call tracking of a status of property — for example, baggage (28%) — and operational efficiency (24%).
The set of the companies which need to exchange reliable and timely information takes part in service of runs. To simplify this task, SITA drafted the system of the smart contracts Flight Chain. It is already applied British Airways and Heathrow airports airline, Geneva and Miami. A problem of a system - to allow airlines and the airports to resolve an issue of quality of the runs given about the status. A system stores information on runs in a blockchain, providing uniform reliable data source.
The airport of Brussels, for example, in the summer of 2018 started the blockchain-application of Freight Management App intended for tracking of movement of a load at each stage of delivery – from handling works before freight forwarding. The application works together with BRUcloud – the open platform of data management into which the airport is going to integrate all the transactions.
At the airport of Brussels expect that use of a blockchain will allow to digitize completely information on logistics, to depart from manual processes of filling of documentation for import of products and also to increase transparency and efficiency.
Technologies for tracking of baggage
In June, 2018 the resolution became effective 753 International Air Transport Association (IATA) obliging to trace airlines baggage throughout all route. Losses of baggage remain a big problem and yield to airlines severe losses.
One of the most popular methods to satisfy conditions of the new resolution which is adopted by the airports, - to supply all baggage of passengers with RFID tags. SITA, for example, see this technology as the most perspective for the above-stated purpose. In spite of the fact that it is about obligations of airlines, the technology of RFID marking of baggage can be carried to applied at the airports also: exactly there tracking of baggage begins and downloads.
At the beginning of 2018 at the airports of the USA on internal runs and also between the London Heathrow airport and the USA, the Delta airline began to use RFID labels for tracking of baggage. In the short term Delta was going to implement this technology at 344 airports. The technology allows passengers of Delta to keep track of exact location of the bags through mobile application in real time.
The international airport of Hong Kong uses technology of tracking of baggage with RFID tags since 2008. Also airlines of Cathay Pacific, Dragon Air and Air China use it.
In Russia the pilot project using RFID was started at Sheremetyevo Airport in 2016, and the Aeroflot airline was going to apply such service since 2018.
Barriers to implementation of technologies
Speed of implementation of new technologies at the airports in many respects depends on that, the local legislative and normative regulation in the different countries allowing to apply innovations from operators of the airports, airlines which are the driver of new solutions for passengers will change how fast.
According to the research SITA, for example, 39% of the airports call the main problem at implementation of biometric identification at different stages of preflight procedures need to conform to requirements of the legislation. More than a third of airlines also consider one of the main problems in this area lack of standards of use of similar technologies.
| | For example, there are the general regulations on data protection in the European Union, and the organization of use of biometrics at the airports should correspond to it. And it is quite difficult to make it because the regulations order receiving consent from the passenger to use of such data for different processes. And when every time the consent of the passenger is necessary, it is difficult to provide large-scale implementation. There are questions as to make it when there are passengers not concordant with providing and use of their biometric data, and others, - the senior vice president of Fraport AG managing the airport Frankfurt am Main (FRA), Rolf Felkel noted in a conversation with TAdviser. | |
The speed of distribution of innovations at the airports, undoubtedly, is influenced also by the price of technologies – the high cost of projects often serves as an obstacle for their wide circulation. It can be carried, for example, including to implementation of RFID tracking of baggage: the disposable label with a tag of RFID initially was above, than a normal label with a barcode.
At the same time, Sergio Kolella notes, the final financial effect of use of technologies often exceeds the investments invested in them.
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Notes
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