July/August - 22

PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
AUTHOR Kurush Minocher
The Greater Toronto Airport Authority uses AI for predictive maintenance planning.
GREATER TORONTO AIRPORT AUTHORITY
Three Ways Airports Are
Innovating to Improve
the Passenger Experience
Infrastructure enables journeys, creates connections
and sets the stage for the airlines, retailers and
government agencies that operate in our terminals.
FOR PASSENGERS, airports are waypoints on a journey
to somewhere else. But for the people who work at them,
airports are communities - small cities in their own right.
Where I work, the airport authority
is just one of more than 400 employers.
Our airlines, subcontractors, government
agencies and commercial partners
provide more than 95 percent of
the jobs at Toronto Pearson. It's one
of Canada's largest employment zones.
Of course, we had a much more
vibrant community before COVID-19.
Aviation employers are still working
to rebuild the workforces they lost
three years ago, a task made more
difficult by labor shortages, pandemic
retirements and demographic trends.
As global air traffic approaches its
pre-pandemic volume, talent may be
the most critical of all the challenges
facing our industry partners.
This is where airports have
an opportunity to reimagine the
approach: through innovation.
Traditionally, airports have not
been thought of as aviation's service
providers. But the infrastructure we
build plays a key service role - it
enables journeys, creates connections
and sets the stage for the airlines,
retailers and government agencies that
operate in our terminals. While our
partners staff up and train, airports
can help by harnessing a host of new
technologies that are designed to create
more seamless processes and improve
the passenger experience.
22 \ AIRPORT BUSINESS / JULY/AUGUST 2023
Artificial Intelligence
Not everyone is happy to see AI
making inroads at the airport. While
computers are ubiquitous in airline
cockpits, the idea of robot pilots still
makes many passengers queasy. Others
are suspicious of facial recognition at
check-in and security - Air Canada
recently faced backlash on social
media simply for introducing a biometric
option at boarding - available
only to traveller's who choose to use
it. But this, too, is increasingly in use,
including at U.S. airports. To be sure,
safety and personal privacy are issues
that need to be rigorously addressed.
But as long as they continue to be dealt
with smartly and sensitively, public
opinion will continue to evolve.
AI also has many applications
where the benefit dramatically outweighs
such concerns. For example,
the U.S. Transportation Security
Administration pairs algorithms with
X-rays to speed travelers and their carry-on
through security. Frankfurt's
airport has tested autonomous robots
as luggage porters.
The Greater Toronto Airports
Authority uses AI for predictive
maintenance on our baggage-handling
system, allowing us to replace
parts before they break down and
cause delays. We're also enhancing
our security processes by becoming
the first airport in the world to use
HEXWAVE, a contactless, walkthrough
security portal that detects
concealed weapons in real time. And
along with airports like Seattle, John
F. Kennedy International, Cincinnati/
Northern Kentucky International and
London Gatwick, we recently partnered
with Assaia, an AI company
whose software uses cameras and AI
to track the physical preparation of
aircraft at gates to relay updated data
about baggage and departure times to
airline operators and passengers.
Digital Baggage
One of the most visible operational
concerns for travelers is baggage.
July/August

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of July/August
