Indian airlines must invest in new tech for passengers: Study

Indian airlines, which have been reluctant to invest in new technologies to improve passenger facilities primarily due to resource crunch, should start using latest IT solutions to benefit passengers, a recent study has found.
According to the study carried out by aviation consultancy firm CAPA and prominent aviation IT solution provider SITA, facilities like provision of wi-fi on-board planes, greater usage of mobile technology, self-check in kiosks and biometrics and e-passports for border protection should be introduced in newly-modernised airports in India.
It said airlines were "reluctant" to aggressively promote self-service check-in because the product was available at limited number of airports, on grounds of infrastructure constraints and variations in pricing models.

"Indian aviation has experienced a very challenging couple of years. As budgets have tightened, one of the repercussions has been a slowdown in the deployment of new technologies. And yet now more than ever, technology has the potential to deliver to the bottom-line of airlines and airports," the study claimed.
The SITA-CAPA paper, titled 'Transforming the Passenger Experience: Information Technology in Indian Aviation in 2015', says that almost USD 10 billion was invested in airport modernisation between 2005 and 2012.
Earlier this year, new airport terminals were completed at Chennai and Kolkata airports, while Mumbai is expected to open new Terminal 2 to domestic traffic later this year.

"As a result, by the end of the year new terminals will have been inaugurated at all six metro airports representing a significant milestone in the airport modernisation programme," it said.