What are the Emerging Technologies in the Air Travel

Travel & Hospitality Tech Outlook | Monday, October 14, 2019

Technological advancement is helping in bringing the necessary changes in the way airlines and airports assist their travelers. Most of the airports and technology companies are already welcoming the changes and making the passengers' travel experience more personalized and hassle-free.

FREMONT, CA: There is a rapid change in air travel technology as they have doubled their commitment to delivering a fantastic in-flight experience to capture customer loyalty. Almost every operator understands the importance of improvising customer touchpoints, loyalty offerings, and services. Here is a sneak peek of the new technologies that will rock the future of air travel.

1. Robotic Assistants: Navigate the Airport with ease

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Robotic assistants are becoming more common at airports. The robots help the passengers to navigate their way through the crowd, and also keep track of their flight information. According to various sources of market research, the demand and frequency of travel are expected to increase in the upcoming years. Moreover, air travel will also witness an increase in the number of passengers.

To ease the overbearing increase of airport traffic, most of the airports have started hiring robots that will readily guide the travelers to the check-in counter. The robots can also provide the customers with the required gate and flight information from the moment they step inside the airport. With robotic technology, airports can become more efficient as they can streamline the check-in experience and eliminate long lines and saving time. The robotic assistance in various airports will not only guide them through the airport but also carry the luggage for them.

2. Biometrics: No Piece of Paper can Represent a Person Better than their Face

In the near future, manual identity checks will get entirely replaced by biometrics. The endless line at the check-in counter, tax-free shops, border checks, and boarding gate can be a real weekend holiday spirit killer. Moreover, the delays and cancellation of flights can create more confusion.

With the implementation of biometrics, long waits have almost become history. There are high chances that in the future, it will not be necessary to prove the identity of the passengers manually. The advanced recognition technology can automatically pass all the checks and grant entry into the aircraft without even monitoring the passport and boarding pass. If the name of a person is there on the passenger list and they do not have any outbound restrictions, the unique biological traits like fingerprint and iris will be enough to prove the identity of the passengers and airline staff.

Market researchers have already predicted that in the next few years, many airline companies will incorporate technologies, which will include Blockchain, Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence, advanced recognition technologies, and Augmented Reality.

3. VR and AR: Making of the Unreal into Real

In the department of technology, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are the two hottest topics. The incorporation of AR in the travel industry has a lot of potential as the travelers will be able to navigate their way through the airport more efficiently by using the AR interface on the phone. The staff of the airport can also use the technology to verify passenger identity and evaluate the size and weight of baggage.

On the other hand, VR will help passengers entertain themselves in the virtual world, therefore escaping the dullness that they may have to go through during their journey.

4. Autopilot: Smooth and Affordable Air Travel

The current aviation industry has already started using the partial automatic pilot system, and in the next few years, the sector will switch over to complete cockpit automation. With the complete automation, airports can operate more smoothly and efficiently as there will be more precise ETAs, air traffic management, lower organizational costs, safer route planning, and cheaper flight tickets.

5. Supersonic Airplanes: Travel Faster

It may not be possible to teleport from one place to another, but accelerated travel is almost on the verge of being the closest thing to the instant travel. It is not a pleasant experience to be on long, non-stop flights. Therefore the supersonic airplanes will surely make a difference as the passengers can reach their destination a lot earlier than the expected time.

However, a supersonic airplane already exists, but they are not available for commercial purposes because of the sky-ripping noise that they make while traveling at a higher speed than sound. In the future, more advanced technology may solve the sound problem with the introduction of these high-speed aircrafts.

6. AI: A Smart Partner for Travelling

Most of the companies are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) so that they can make improvements and customize the online booking experience. AI has the capability to lessen human error as they streamline the entire procedure, so there will be no more lost luggage or mistakes in the booking. The AI-powered chatbox will also take care of the queries that passengers have, thus providing them with better customer service.

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