Overview Of Airline Industry

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

An airline is a company that provides air transport services to travelling passengers and freight. There are types and sizes of aircrafts. This industry works for domestic and international customers. DELAG; Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktiengesellschaft was the world’s first airline. It was founded on November 16, 1909 with government assistance.

One must understand a customer in order to know how new aircraft might work in the present market. The customers are the airlines for commercial transport aircraft manufacturers while the market behaves completely differently for business aircraft, military programs etc.

Air travel is a large and growing industry which fosters the economic growth, world trade, international investment and tourism. It is also the central to the globalization taking place in many other industries.

Over the past decade, the airline industry has faced many changes in its working environment that even includes the high and changing fuel prices and an economic recession that reduced the demand for travelling. For e.g. airlines operating costs on fuel in 2001 which was 10% had risen to 35% by 2011. As a result of this the industry has experienced financial problems leading to filing of bankruptcy by more than 50 U.S passengers and cargo airlines in the last 12 years.

http://adg.stanford.edu/aa241/intro/airlineindustry.html

http://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/dot/files/Aviation%20Industry%20Performance%5E9-24-12.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline

Brief Overview of Technology selected

There are a list of issues that drives the travelers crazy like overcrowded flights, cancellations, long security lines, etc. But now the airline industry has introduced several new technologies to make things safer, better, faster and more entertaining for everyone who travels. Here are the three big technologies that are running and affects the way we travel i.e. the bar code, the millimeter wave scanner, etc.

http://rickseaney.com/2007/10/12/3-big-technology-changes-for-airline-industry-2/

Application of Technology

The Bar Code – The Bar-Coded Boarding Passes (BCBP) project launched in 2005 to reduce costs and improve the experience of the passenger. BCBP use an International Air Transport Association (IATA) industry-standard 2D barcode that replaces the magnetic stripes defined in the Automated Ticket and Boarding Pass version 2 (ATB2) standards.

2D bar codes can be accessed from anywhere; even from a mobile phone ( as 90% or more of the airline passengers uses mobile phones), via the web, kiosk or check-in desk. Passengers are able to carry all their documents including an e-passport, boarding passes, baggage receipts and visas in their phones. They are convenient for the passenger as they don’t have to be printed on expensive paper stock and ease-off airport check-in. They save up to US $1.5 billion every year to the industry. QwikCheck, a solution accelerator developed by Hexaware enhances generation of 2D bar coded boarding passes integrates with any existing DCS system and intensify the web and mobile check-in facilities to offer passengers to receive the BCBP on their mobile phones; which gets displayed on the screen of the mobile phone instead on a printed paper. The QwikCheck BCBP solution benefits all its three main stakeholders i.e. the airlines, airports and the passengers.

Benefits for Airlines

a).Reduced check-in costs by directly delivering the boarding passes to the passengers.

b).Reduced equipment cost with the replacing of mag stripes by 2D bar codes.

Benefits for Airports

a). Saving time by spending less time in check-lines.

b). Better use of space.

c). Less cost of maintenance.

Benefits for Passengers

a). Less disputes and troubles on the airports when boarding pass is directly delivered on the web or on the phone.

b). Single boarding pass for the entire journey.

http://www.iata.org/whatwedo/stb/Documents/BCBP_english.pdf

http://hexaware.com/bar-code-boarding-passes.htm

The Millimeter Wave Scanner – A millimeter wave scanner is a whole body imaging device used to detect the objects hidden beneath a person’s clothes using a form of electromagnetic radiation. They transmit a special type of microwave; which is not X-ray. Two rotating transmitters produce the waves when the passenger stands inside the machine, energy passes through human’s clothing and skin and then returns two receivers, which send images of back and front to the operator station.

Millimeter scanners produce their waves with a series of small disc transmitters piled on one another. A single machine contains two piles, which are surrounded by a curved protective shell known as radome. Each transmitter transmits energy in the form of a wave to the person standing in the machine, passes through their clothes, skin or hidden solid and liquid objects and then travels back to the transmitter acting like a receiver and detects the signal. The device can even form a complete picture from head to toe and front back as the discs are stacked vertically and rotate around the human.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millimeter_wave_scanner

http://science.howstuffworks.com/millimeter-wave-scanner.htm

Impact of Technology on the Society

Positive Impact of BCBP

It enables the passengers to travel without documents/completely paperless. In this era, everything can be done on a tip of the finger. This new innovation has allowed passengers to travel to any part of the world paperless or without documents making it easier and less complicated. Carrying a printed boarding pass can have problems as paper can degrade in water and you lose all the travelling details.

One of the major advantages is its simplicity because when the passenger books the ticket, the airline simply sends a 2D bar code on the passenger’s mobile phone or smart phone. This technology skips the trouble of lining up for the checking-in and waiting for your turn. It directly proceeds you to the security check.

Passengers don’t always have the access to printer at home, so sending boarding pass to phone in the form of 2D bar code eliminates the trouble of checking in at the airport. Old printers take a long time to print something and if the cartridge is over it causes more tension; so having 2D bar code in a phone is a safe option to prevent tension.

It is safe as it is difficult to duplicate the 2D bar codes than the 1D bar codes that are used on many tickets printed online. The information density of 2D bar codes is higher than the 1D bar code. 2D bar codes capacity to carry information is bigger than that of 1D bar codes. The information on 1D bar codes are only in numbers and English whereas the information typed on 2D bar codes are in numbers, English, Chinese, pictures, voice and other binary information. 1D must depend on database or communication network but 2D doesn’t have to be dependent on database or communication network.

"Paper is out, cell phones are in" read the NY Times on March 18, 2008. It is eco-friendly as it saves paper; saves trees. A passengers information is stored in one place, while respecting the environment too.

Negative Impact of BCBP

The biggest disadvantage of carrying a bar coded boarding pass on a smart phone is what if phone battery drains off or if there is any problem reading the e-boarding pass.

Bar codes are exposed to damage.

Can be wrinkled, damages by tape, strapping, etc/ making them unreadable.

Data cannot be changed/updated or corrected, if so; new label must be printed.

A difficult task to carry BCBP when number of travelers is more as not all airlines manage multiple boarding passes. But airlines like Alaska airlines do provide you to switch over multiple boarding passes within their applications. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boarding_pass

Positive Impact of Millimeter Wave scanner

Negative Impact of Millimeter Wave Scanner

Use of low level radiation also poses a great risk to human health.

Passengers are searched without their consent which means that when they stand in the machine they are scanned as naked. The machine documents and photographs all parts of the body including abdominal regions, breasts, etc just to check if no illegal items are being carried.

Impact of Technology on the Airline Industry

Positive Impact of BCBP

A definite advantage 2D scanners have over 1D is that they can read and decrypt 2D bar codes. It uses the same space like 1D to collect and save more data as 2D bar codes have the capacity of storing hundreds of characters in its barcode.

The bar code scanners can read the code from any direction. Whatever the position of the barcode is it can still recognize it. Thus, you can scan the barcode at any position reducing fatigue and read times.

Same sensor as used in digital cameras is applied for the bar code scanners too. Even if the image is gray in color, the 2D scanner can still send a scanned picture to the computer. Thus, it can be used to scan signs, damaged packs and other important pictures.

It is more efficient as it has only one trigger switch. It helps reducing failure when using the scanner.

http://www.dime-co.com/computer-tips/Weighing-the-Advantages-and-Disadvantages-of-2D-Barcode-Scanner_printer.shtml

Negative Impact of BCBP

Due to the use of expensive technology such as more pixels used for image sensors, faster decode algorithms, faster illumination and aiming patterns. The price of the scanner will fall soon as the technology advances.

There might be a problem in some scanning cases as it has lesser working range.

The barcode contains the booking reference which makes it easy for someone to manipulate your booking.

http://shaun.net/2011/05/whats-contained-in-a-boarding-pass-barcode/

Positive Impact of Millimeter Wave Scanner

The industry’s main motive is to prevent terrorist attacks. So the millimeter wave scanner helps in scanning the whole body and the hidden objects underneath human’s clothing.

It helps in taking the pictures of front and back of human body so that it can be clearly seen that no illegal items are being carried on.

Negative Impact of Millimeter Wave Scanner

As per as the studies, the cost-benefit ratios of these scanners are poor.

As of January 2011, there were no reports of action of terrorism as a result of the body scanner. In a series of repeated trials, the body scanner was unable to scan a gun hidden under the undercover agent’s undergarments.

Conclusion & Recommendation

The technology is certainly well-proven. The information contained in the barcode is harmless; as besides the booking reference nothing can be collected from the boarding pass. But if you don’t want the personal information to be discovered then obscure the barcode as well. I would recommend not to leave the boarding pass on the aircraft before disembarking. Millimeter wave scanner is a good way to be secured while a passenger travels but lot of questions have been raised by the health authorities about the scanner due to high frequency microwave radiation; saying that humans should only be scanned unless there is a medical benefit. Non-ionizing radiation can be dangerous. The industry should take more care in inventing a technology that is more eco-friendly and satisfies the customers well too.