News Backgrounder
China races to keep ahead of passenger demand for a ‘smart’ travel experience
April 1st 2016
Chinese airports and airlines are outspending the rest of the world in bringing the latest information technology to their customers, reports air transport communications and information specialists, SITA. Read More »
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Nearly three quarters (72%) of China’s airports are investing in new technology compared with 58% globally. As well, China’s airlines are spending 38% of their information technology budget on innovation against a global average of 32%. The investment program is a response to passenger demand that the latest technology be onboard as part of the travel experience.
In its latest analysis, SITA said China has the world’s fastest-growing domestic flight market and international travel is soaring. Passenger numbers are forecast to climb above 1.3 billion annually by 2034, an increase of 856 million from 2014.
The exponential growth is exerting relentless pressure on existing airport infrastructure, especially as 93% of passengers have smartphones and are keen to use them and other personal technology.
SITA believed passengers’ attachment to their smartphones and tablets would produce a major shift to “off airport” check-in, mainly because passengers want less face to face contact at the check-in stage of their journeys.
Only 28% of passengers in SITA’s survey preferred an airport counter for check-in. More than half of all passengers (59%) said they would prefer to use their own technology to check-in for their flights. In addition, 67% wanted to use their smartphones for identification and access, including boarding the aircraft and entering airport lounges.
“Our global IT surveys cover trends from the perspective of passengers, airlines and airports,” said SITA vice president and general manager, China, May Zhou. We work with airlines and airports across China to identify opportunities that can exceed the expectations of travelers. This is particularly challenging, and rewarding, during these times of fast rising passenger numbers.”
As the aspirations of Chinese consumers become more sophisticated so do their expectations for a different airport and boarding experience. “Change does not happen overnight, it is going to take time for the industry to deploy infrastructure and services in a way that enables mass adoption by passengers,” Zhou added. “One area is the development of ‘Smart Airports’ where new technology such as sensors, beacons and business intelligence are used to deliver efficiencies.”
In the next couple of years, 85% of airports will have sensor technology projects while 82% of airports will have business intelligence strategies in place to monitor passenger flow and behaviour, SITA said.
Additionally, 62% of airports use social media to provide real-time information and notification of delays or other service information to their passengers.
Baggage management and delivery is under pressure to change. Passengers want to know where and for how long they will have to wait to collect their bags after they arrive at an airport. Some 72% of passengers want more detailed information about their luggage, including the carousel and waiting time for bag collection.
A minority of airlines and airports provide this information, mainly in the Asia-Pacific, but SITA said that in a relatively small number of years, 86% of airlines would provide baggage tracking notification and 57% of them would offer baggage collection information to passengers.
