COVID-19 crisis necessitates new systems and processes – the five ‘priority areas’ for rebuilding air travel

26 July, 2021

Aviation technology specialist SITA has highlighted five "priority areas" that it has identified as "critical" to rebuilding air travel post-COVID. These are highlighted in its 'Your Runway to Success' whitepaper, which sets out critical areas for the air transport industry's rebuild in the next 18 months, it says the solutions are aligned to the industry's priorities, "maximising return on investment and managing volatility".

Over the past 12 months, COVID-19 has dramatically impacted the aviation industry financially and operationally. IATA estimates a net loss for the airline industry of USD47.7 billion in 2021. IATA research also reveals that average passenger processing and waiting times have doubled from what they were pre-crisis during peak time - reaching three hours despite travel volumes hovering at around 30% of pre-COVID-19 levels.

With revenues dropping, growing passenger volumes, and new health requirements impacting operations, it is forcing airline and airport executives to refocus their IT spending priorities to address these challenges, as reflected in SITA's 2020 Air Transport IT Insights. In response, SITA has pivoted its portfolio by modifying or launching new products and solutions to meet increased air transport industry demands for a healthy, safe, and frictionless passenger experience, along with requirements for agility, resilience, and cost-efficiency.

Outlined in the 'Your Runway to Success' document, SITA highlights several solutions to address the five priority areas for IT investment in response to the changing demands of the industry following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The solutions recommended by SITA start first by addressing the new health requirements at the border through digitalization and then to the automation of the passenger journey to make it touchless and mobile-enabled. "Investing in the right technologies now will deliver short, medium, and long term benefits for our industry," says Sébastien Fabre, CEO of SITA for aircraft.

Here are SITA's "priority areas" and its observation on each:

  • Digitalising the new health requirements at the border- avoiding long waiting times and lines in the airport as passenger traffic recovers will be "one of the key indicators" of success in managing health documentation.
  • Automating the passenger journey with mobile and biometric solutions - SITA advocates a touchless airport experience, enabled by mobile and biometric technologies, to help "reassure passengers, put them in control, make them feel safe, and create a hassle-free journey before, during, and on arrival, and beyond".
  • Delivering a touchless, mobile experience onboard with the next generation of inflight connectivity and digital applications - SITA's Passenger IT Insights 2020 shows that more than two-thirds of all passengers opt to use their own device onboard to stay connected or access entertainment. With the touchless, mobile travel experience onboard the aircraft fast becoming the new industry standard, SITA recommends deploying "fast, uninterrupted connectivity onboard" to deliver on this growing trend.
  • Driving more collaboration and cost-efficiency across airport operations - with "a critical need for cost containment and greater agility" in operations at the airport as demand fluctuates and increases, SITA advocates use of cloud technologies and systems to help manage and optimise operations and enhance collaboration among the various stakeholders.
  • Driving greater efficiency and sustainability in aircraft operations - according to SITA, an area accelerated by COVID-19 is the digital transformation of the aircraft. It says connected aircraft technology delivers "safer, more efficient, and more sustainable aircraft operations".

SITA own solutions for the industry's five priority areas are laid out in full in the 'Your Runway to Success' paper and provides another positive pathway post-pandemic. But, that remains a challenging journey.

The challenge for aviation "is to manage health issues, restore confidence, contain costs, make better use of resources, and find efficiencies, all while increasing sustainability, improving passenger experience, and maintaining safety and security," said Luis Felipe de Oliveira, director general, Airports Council International (ACI) World, last week. No easy task, for sure, but one that will likely be supported by digital transformation in the airport space.

As such and adding to the digital solutions to boost recovery, ACI World has launched comprehensive guidance to help airport executives approach digital transformation as the industry enters a post-pandemic environment. The second edition of the Airport Digital Transformation Handbook - supported by Honeywell and Mott MacDonald - examines how new technologies and the digitalisation of existing manual processes can lead to new ways of addressing airport capacity challenges as the aviation industry recovers to pre-pandemic levels of air traffic.

The handbook provides advice on focus areas of technology adoption, how to approach digital transformation, and case studies. It has been adapted to include the challenges and opportunities brought by COVID-19. "The COVID-19 crisis necessitates new systems and processes that are more efficient and touchless, enabling quick recovery and future growth," said Mr de Oliveira.