The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is calling on governments and industry to work together to take full advantage of modern technology, put passengers at the center of travel and improve infrastructure efficiency.
The call was made at the opening of the IATA Global Airport and Passenger Symposium (GAPS) in Warsaw by IATA Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac.
Transcript of Alexandre de Juniac’s speeches
Good morning ladies and gentlemen, it was a pleasure to be with you.
The Global Airport and Passenger Symposium is a key event in the IATA calendar. There will be a number of important items on your agenda in the coming days under the theme of building capacity for the future.
Thanks to our friends at LOT Polish Airlines for hosting. and the many sponsors who have worked with us to make this event possible.
economic trends
- In September alone, four airlines in Europe collapsed. This issue is clearly stated to staff and passengers. It shows how difficult it is to fly an airline. Especially in Europe where infrastructure costs and taxes are high.
- Trade tensions are spilling over to freight. We haven’t seen growth in 10 months. In fact, this year’s number is less than 4% lower than last year’s.
- Geopolitical forces have become more unpredictable than ever and have real consequences for our economy. The recent attack on Saudi oil infrastructure reminds us that oil prices can change quickly.
Our Deputy Chief Economist, Andrew Matta, will shed further light on these issues. But I want to start by reminding you briefly that I am going through a challenging time. These things are building the future; airports are changing; this is great context for your discussions on how to take full advantage of digital capabilities and create a seamless journey for more and more travelers.
The challenges are not limited to economic trends. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) meeting concluded earlier this month. Building a sustainable aviation future is at the top of the agenda for the 193 Member States.
The aviation industry takes environmental sustainability very seriously. We have long recognized that connecting with 15 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals is key to our ability to amplify and spread the benefits of global connectivity.
Years before this year’s climate change, our industry has been working hard to reduce the impacts of climate change. For more than a decade, we have set a goal to cover net emissions starting in 2020. By 2050, we want to reduce carbon emissions to 2005 levels.
The ICAO meeting reaffirmed its commitment to the Carbon Emissions and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). This will help us achieve carbon neutral growth by 2020.
By 2020, we are charting a path to achieve our goals. A key outcome of the meeting was that ICAO began exploring long-term goals for reducing emissions. As a result, government and industry will merge.
Progress has been made. Emissions from an average trip are about half of what they were in 1990. Advances in sustainable aviation fuel production may hold the key to our greatest opportunity for emissions reductions. They have the potential to reduce the carbon footprint of the aviation industry by up to 80% over their entire life cycle.
These important efforts need to be matched with effective communication. People worry about climate change. They need to know what our industry is doing. Tourism stakeholders We will increase communication efforts to engage governments in more meaningful dialogue.
program
People in developing countries especially want to share in the benefits of aviation. Our industry is evolving to meet our needs.
This brings its own challenges. Building Capabilities for the Future, the theme of this conference is Airports; Transformation Needed at Aviation and Industrial Level.That is
- Putting customers at the heart of our decision-making process – We need to get to know our customers better to meet or exceed their expectations.
- Develop an infrastructure that can meet future needs – without relying on ever bigger airports;
- Build a workforce with the skills of the future
Passenger Priority Approach
The survey found that 70% of passengers are willing to share more personal information, including their biometric details, to speed up the process at the airport. This is related to the number of flights per year.
Biotechnology has the power to transform the passenger experience. Today’s trip to the airport was disappointing. Presenting your travel documents to verify your identity at multiple locations requires repeated steps. It’s a waste of time. Unaffordable and long-term traffic growth will not be sustainable.
IATA’s One ID program lets passengers enjoy a paperless airport experience, with faces, using biometric travel tokens such as fingerprints or irises, helping to transition from control to door-to-door days.
Airlines strongly support the move. Our members unanimously passed a resolution to accelerate One ID’s global implementation at our Annual General Meeting in June. The priority now is to ensure regulations are in place to support the vision of Undocumented Travel Experience 4 to properly protect their data.
luggage
Airlines and airports mainly facilitate this by implementing tracking of passenger and cargo points (IATA Resolution 753). To meet passenger expectations, IATA airlines have unanimously decided to deploy global radio frequency identification (RFID) for baggage tracking. Implementation has made good progress so far. A number of airlines and airports in Europe are collaborating to introduce RFID, most notably Air France at Paris-Charles de Gaulle.
In addition to meeting customer expectations, I take this opportunity to remind our members that RFID implementation will help airlines reduce $2.4 billion in baggage costs. The benefits don’t stop there. Tracking luggage can also reduce fraud. Advance notification; automate and simplify check-in and baggage processes.
infrastructure
We partnered with Airports Council International (ACI) to create the NEXTT program to meet the challenges of the airport of the future. Together, we are exploring major changes in technology and processes to improve the efficiency of our customers’ travel experience.
This includes options to check for off-site changes and enhancements; project queues can be reduced or eliminated. We use artificial intelligence and robotics to use space and resources more efficiently. Improving information sharing among stakeholders is an important factor.
NEXTT has 11 projects under its banner. I will have the opportunity to get to know you later today. I encourage you to experience the “Future of Airport Travel” in reality at the NEXTT booth in the exhibition area.
We look forward to seeing Poland take the lead and play a role in NEXTT’s mission by building the new Warsaw Airport – Fitness Transport Hub. Europe’s first greenfield airport in over a decade. This is a great opportunity to focus on using the latest industry technology standards.
- Smooth, safe and efficient travel
- luggage
- faster shipment of goods
- Efficient flight changes powered by automation and data exchange between stakeholders.
We are project leaders and have formed a group of stakeholders to liaise with government to achieve this and ensure cost-effective enforcement.
future capabilities
It’s no secret these days that there is a gender imbalance in the upper echelons of aviation. If women at all levels are not fully engaged in the workforce, they will not have the skills they will need in the future.
A few weeks later, IATA announced Gender in the Industry, a voluntary initiative by airlines that has pledged to increase the proportion of women in senior positions to at least 25% by 2025. We should remember that the ultimate goal is to bring us 50-50 representation.
IATA is also a participant. One of the commitments we’ve made is to have more diverse speakers at our conferences. This year women’s participation in the GAPS program is 25 percent. Next year next year I will do it next year.
in conclusion
- We must effectively manage our climate change impacts
- We must ensure passengers are at the center of our decision-making process
- We must build efficient and effective infrastructure to meet future needs
- We must build a gender-balanced workforce with the skills of the future
These are small tasks. But we’re used to challenges. When the aviation industry comes together, we always deliver unique solutions.
Thanks
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