by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 11:20 AM ET, Tue February 6, 2024
The majority of airline and airport executives predict that flight disruptions will continue to remain elevated this year, as demand for air travel continues to grow amid key staffing shortages.
According to our sister company, Phocuswright, flight disruptions, which happen when a flight is delayed two or more hours or canceled within 48 hours of the departure time, remain 300 percent higher than usual. The reason: a skills shortage and high post-pandemic demand.
“In 2022, airlines struggled with supply and staffing issues, but during 2023, airlines and their partners are simply facing an unprecedented return of demand,” said Harry Grewal, director of infrastructure and customer experience at the International Air Transport Association (IATA). “Of course, that’s very welcome, but it brings its own operational challenges.”
An Amadeus report, “Better Together: Rethinking How to Manage Disruption in Aviation,” surveyed top airline and airport executives, and found that while they disagree on whether the disruptions should grow or decline this year, they agree that more innovation is one way they are looking to improve the rate of travel disruptions.
Sixty-four percent of airlines are investing in new technology, with 70 percent of those airlines hoping to improve their public image. Another 34 percent aim to reduce costs using new technology.
Fifty percent of airport leaders report “a lack of common technology that brings stakeholders together” to respond to disruptions, with a third of them reporting that last-minute information from airlines is a major challenge. All airports plan to invest in operational control technology this year.
Biometrics is a big new technology airports are starting to invest more heavily in across the globe. Another Amadeus report found 40 percent of airports have at least some biometric service points, with another 50 percent planning to add some, especially for bag drops. Fifty-six percent desire biometrics to improve the passenger experience and improve security.
For example, Singapore’s Changi Airport, considered one of the largest and the world’s best airports, took 3.5 years to expand its Terminal 2, which offers a “Fast and Seamless Travel” zone with automated check-in kiosks and bag drop machines, as part of its goal to become passport-free by 2024. Biometrics will be installed at every international checkpoint, including customs.
Meanwhile, a new fingerprint-scanning system is expected to roll out among EU airports for international travelers in October 2024 as part of the updated ETIAS system, which has seen several years of delays due to the pandemic.
“Disruption is a hugely complex problem that requires airlines, airports, ground handlers and others to work collaboratively,” said Holger Mattig, senior vice president for product management of airport and airline operations at Amadeus.
“Unfortunately, we still have too many information silos in aviation, which impacts the overall response and, ultimately, passengers,” continued Mattig. “However, I do sense a real determination across the industry to put historic commercial tensions to one side and deliver a better, more joined-up and traveler-centric approach to disruption that’s empowered by shared technology. At Amadeus, we are happy to contribute to this stronger ecosystem collaboration across people and technology, allowing for more efficient airport operations and a smoother end-to-end passenger experience.”
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