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ASIA-PACIFIC AIRPORTS MAGAZINE
SPECIAL REPORT: INDIA
Time for technology Leveraging technology will help India’s airports overcome today’s operational challenges and usher in the next generation of air travel in India, writes Andrew Seow.
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he Indian aerospace industry has witnessed impressive growth during the past few years, with major contributions from the civil aviation segment. This translated to faster domestic air passenger growth than both China and the United Stated in 2015, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and it predicts that India is likely to become the third largest aviation market in the world by 2026. Driven by factors such as low-cost carriers (LCCs), Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in domestic airlines and a growing emphasis on regional connectivity, civil aviation in India is entering a new phase of development after experiencing both stagnation and explosive growth over the past 20 years. However, in order to accommodate and sustain the growth, there is a need to upgrade airport infrastructure and address associated challenges such as airport congestions and security. Local airports face the pressure of improving operational efficiency and passenger processing procedures to deliver a better overall passenger experience, while taking the pressure off its staff.
APA Issue 2, 2016
ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES
According to IATA, India is expected to have 275 million new passengers by 2034. This kind of growth cannot take place unless there is infrastructure in place to support it. As such, local airport operators are seeing the value in technology investments to help them address capacity challenges. Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, for example, is the first airport in India to launch a fully common-use mobile check-in platform to ease the pressure off the counters and speed up passenger check-in processes. The busiest airport in South Asia saw the deployment of the cutting-edge technology, which enables passengers to check-in from anywhere in the airport using a tablet-based application. The airport has also made an investment to install 90 hand-held scanners for the automated baggage reconciliation system (BRS) that will handle 12,800 pieces of baggage per hour. While check-in counters have been equipped with Common Use Passenger Processing Systems, another first for India. Indeed, next-generation technologies such as common-use kiosks and mobile check-in systems are being introduced across India as airport operators and airlines bid to ensure a seamless air travel experience for their passengers.