Ovation's weekly client e-newsletter, the Informed Traveler, keeps readers updated on travel industry news and trends.
Following is a recap of March's Top 5 (most clicked by Ovation clients) e-newsletter stories.
1. TSA Shifting Focus to Public Areas Outside Security Checkpoints
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is shifting focus away from security checkpoints and towards public areas of airports, such as baggage-collection zones and check-in areas, reports Skift. The new TSA Administrator, David Pekoske, called for the agency to become more entrepreneurial and adapt faster saying, "We can no longer focus only on preventing the bad guys from getting into the secure area of an airport. More and more we must focus on both sides of the checkpoint and in the public areas where airport and surface transportation systems intersect." To read more, click here.
2. Delta Introduces Fingerprint Entry to Sky Club Lounges
Beginning next week, Delta Air Lines' Sky Club members will be able to use their fingerprints to gain entry to the Sky Club lounges, reports USA Today. The rollout of this new Delta Biometrics program capitalizes on Delta's partnership with CLEAR, a biometric technology platform that provides expedited access through security checkpoints by checking identities against fingerprints. The Delta Biometrics program will be open to Delta Sky Club members who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Members who are already enrolled with CLEAR will be automatically registered. Customers who do not want to use the fingerprint scans may still gain access to the clubs by using their boarding passes. To read more, click here.
3. Biometric Self-Boarding Trial at LAX is a Technological Milestone
A trial project testing biometric self-boarding for international departures at Los Angeles Airport (LAX) is the first such project to involve more than one airline, making it one of the most advanced trials of its kind, reports Travel Weekly. The trial, which eliminates the use of tickets and passports during the boarding process, is part of U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) attempt to enable widespread use of biometric exits. CBP has been partnering with airlines and airports to deploy facial recognition exit tests since last year. Trial partners have included British Airways, Delta, JetBlue and Lufthansa, while trials have been conducted at Houston Bush, Houston Hobby, Chicago O'Hare, Miami, Washington Dulles, New York JFK, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Boston and Orlando in addition to LAX. A survey by airport transport company SITA found that over the next three years, 63% of airports and 43% of airlines plan to invest in biometric ID management solutions. To read more, click here.
4. Artificial Intelligence to Improve Baggage Handling in Airports
Airport IT company SITA has published a report that finds smart technologies such as AI and radio-frequency identification (RFID) will be critical to airlines' ability to track every bag they handle by June 2018, reports Airport Technology. "Investment in baggage processing is a high priority for more than half of the world's airports and number four in their list of top investment areas," said SITA in its report. SITA predicts that AI-powered machines will be able to track bags from the point of a passenger checking in all the way through to their destination without human intervention. It also states that automatic sortation systems that move bags from airports into planes are already being used, and that some airports have even deployed robotic loaders and unloaders to further automate the process. To read more, click here.
5. Chicago, American Airlines Reach Deal on O'Hare Expansion
American Airlines is working with the city of Chicago on an $8.5 billion, eight-year renovation and expansion plan of O'Hare airport, reports Travel Weekly. The O'Hare expansion plan calls for a 25% increase of the airport's 184-gate capacity and a 60% increase in its terminal square footage. Terminal 2, which now handles only domestic arrivals, would be demolished and replaced with a new international terminal, equipped with customs facilities. In addition, Terminal 5 would be upgraded and expanded, while Terminals 1 and 3 would be renovated. To read more, click here.
