Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic has had, and continues to have, a dramatic impact on the aviation industry. Many of these changes are enabled by new technologies that have permanently transformed the look and feel of much of the passenger experience at airports and require greater coordination with internal and external stakeholders. These technologies have also introduced new airport and airline service offerings with benefits that are desirable beyond simply addressing pandemic challenges. By viewing this transformation across each area of the passenger journey, airport operators can become better prepared with a holistic and strategically planned approach to their operations.
Background
At the outset of the pandemic, airlines canceled flights and many passengers were reluctant to fly even once flights were restored. Regulatory agencies issued mandates and guidance targeted at reducing the spread of the virus. Airport operators quickly identified touchpoints that directly and indirectly impacted passengers, and they explored and adopted new processes and procedures.
Changes to the passenger journey have focused on social distancing, responsible use of space, touchless solutions, and improved cleaning, while another impact of COVID-19 has been continual changes to the passenger processing model. These changes include new ways to interact with devices, airline agents, government agents, and other staff members, as well as opportunities to enhance the customer experience. San Francisco International Airport, for example, introduced a touchless solution that allows passengers to print bag tags from their mobile phones on self-service kiosks.
These technology-enabled changes require greater coordination with internal and external stakeholders. For example, regulatory agencies issued mandates and guidance that impacted how passengers traveled and interacted at various touchpoints. As a result, airport operators began considering technologies that could help their airports overcome some of the challenges presented in the pandemic environment. Some of these rules may not remain after the pandemic; others could represent a transformation in airport operations for the foreseeable future. Even if specific regulations are lifted or no longer required, airport operators can use this opportunity to future-proof their operations in case of future disruptive events.
In reviewing this transformation, the following is a list of various business drivers and enabling technology areas that airport operators should consider.
- Business Drivers
- Help passengers feel safe to travel through and operate within the airport.
- Monitor, track, and mitigate virus spread at the airport, especially in light of increasing passenger traffic.
- Increase passenger throughput at touchpoints (e.g., check-in and security checkpoints).
- Expand passenger processes and self-service options.
- Develop a holistic approach to the passenger journey.
- Improve operational efficiency.
- Future-proof processes and facilities.
- Explore non-aeronautical revenue opportunities.
- Enabling Technology Areas
- Touchless technologies (e.g., screen sensors and biometric integrations).
- Passenger mobile device integration.
- Queue management and crowd monitoring (e.g., virtual queuing and social distancing).
- Increased data capabilities (e.g., 5G and Wi-Fi 6).
- Automated processing (e.g., self-service bag drop and robotics).
- Location-based sensors (e.g., navigation/wayfinding).
Technologies and Solutions Across the Passenger Journey
Many technologies that enable the pandemic business drivers are still relatively new, and their implications will continue to grow and transform airports as well as the passenger journey and experience. At a summary level, this includes the following:
- Passenger devices have become a primary or core component of an airport’s infrastructure in processing passengers at every step of the journey.
- Passengers use fewer devices that are owned and managed by airports and airlines.
- Increased automation is reducing opportunities and the necessity for agents to interact with passengers.
- Airport staff interactions with passengers are increasingly digital, automated, and robotic.
- Increases in digitized airport interactions with and monitoring of passenger flows provide greater customer service insights than have ever been available.
The following sections provide specific detail on how the pandemic has changed the use and function of technology throughout the steps in passenger journey, which are presented in Figure 1.
Figure 1: Overall Steps in Passenger Journey
Pre-arrival
Off-site bag collection allows passengers to divest their baggage before they arrive at the airport, eliminating the need to drop baggage within the facility. This reduces congestion and the number of passengers in check-in hall queues.
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Arrival
Curbside bag drop helps reduce congestion within the check-in hall, allowing passengers to check in and drop baggage before they enter the facility. The additional use of robots to collect these bags from passengers will reduce the physical touchpoints and interactions with devices and staff within the facility. Automated parking systems and people movers (i.e., personalized vehicles) can make the parking and terminal transfer process easier and less time-consuming for passengers. This may potentially create additional revenue opportunities for airports as passengers are likely to be more relaxed and can spend more time at other locations in the airport, like concessions.
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Check-in
Check-in kiosks, bag drop kiosks, self-service bag drop units, and robots can provide a touchless airport processing experience for passengers. Using sensors or mobile devices, passengers can interact with each of these technologies without physically touching them, mitigating the spread of contaminants, and reducing the need for constant cleaning. In addition, the self-service option continues to expand, now allowing passengers to drop their baggage without any agent interaction.
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Security
To meet regulatory and safety requirements during the pandemic, airports implemented health screenings like temperature and COVID-19 testing, adding new touchpoints along a typical passenger journey. New monitoring and tracking solutions have also been deployed, such as queue management, virtual queuing, and crowd monitoring. For example, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport recently completed a successful trial of virtual queuing technology.[1] These solutions are providing airport operators with a host of new information on passenger traffic and distancing. New security screening technologies have also been deployed. Automated screening lanes provide faster screening of passenger carry-ons and alleviate social distancing concerns. Additionally, biometric security gates allow for fewer agent interactions with passengers.
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Post-security
Augmented reality, virtual reality, and other navigation/wayfinding technologies are providing passengers with more personalization in their journey. Airport operators can also use these navigation technologies to drive customers to ideal retail locations. The use of passenger sensors is also expanding to provide more crowd monitoring and flow management features. In addition, autonomous vehicles such as wheelchairs are growing in deployments, providing additional self-service options for passengers and reducing physical touchpoints with staff.
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Holdrooms/Concessions
The uses of mobile applications continue to expand in the airport environment and passenger journey, enabling passengers to use their own devices to order food and retail items from restaurants and concessions. In addition, monitoring passenger flows and crowd density in particular locations allows airports to point passengers to less crowded areas to dwell within the airport. This can enhance the customer experience and reduce passenger health concerns.
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Restrooms
Airport operators have deployed smart-restroom solutions that use sensors (e.g., for air quality, capacity, supply levels) to gain a better understanding of the facility status. Passengers benefit by receiving up-to-date information on the cleanliness and capacity of the facilities.
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Other Points of Interest
Robotics are being deployed to aid both passengers and airport staff at several locations. Food delivery robots provide passengers with touchless and quick food service. Cleaning robots help limit the spread of viruses and keep passengers healthy. Contact tracing/exposure risk procedures also help to keep passengers safe and aware of possible health risks. Cleanliness monitoring helps to keep airport staff aware of the current cleanliness status of every part of the facility.
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Conclusion
Considering the many changes that have occurred in the aviation industry, airport operators’ efforts to manage change will greatly benefit by planning out the steps needed to keep their airports ahead of the curve. These planned steps need to include intentional change management activities. For example, with ongoing discussion around health passports, the extent of the pandemic’s impacts continues to grow. Focusing on these technological changes post-COVID-19 will help airport operators make strategic decisions with a holistic approach to improving their passenger journey.
References
[1] Airports Test Virtual Queuing for Security Checkpoints, Travel Weekly, Silk, Robert, June 29, 2021, https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Airline-News/Airports-test-virtual-queuing-security-checkpoints.