Design and Engineering
Article | January 7, 2022
Blockchain's abilities and features such as security, transparency, and centralizing systems can help aerospace companies reduce maintenance costs, minimize errors in aircraft parts and increase aircraft availability.
Blockchain technology has been valuable to one of the world's most complex and globally interconnected industries—the aviation industry. The technology can deliver ultimate benefits for thousands of suppliers, mainly involved in manufacturing an aircraft.
Aviation business leaders know that they need to adapt and innovate to survive. And blockchain in the aviation industry is one growing area of innovation that is yet to be explored. However, experts agree that aircraft maintenance and operations innovation will enable aviation companies to improve their efficiency. In this way, the technology will enhance performance and safety notions to the next level.
"We believe blockchain is significant in the aviation industry. Its probabilities promise to stimulate efficiency in the industry through maintenance process in general."
- Scott Thompson, the aerospace and defense leader at PwC.
Blockchain: A Technology of Trust
According to IATA's study in "Future of the Airline Industry 2035," blockchain study has been identified as one of the technologies that may significantly impact the future of aviation. It also states that demand for new commercial aircraft may reach nearly 40,000 planes over the next 20 years!
Looking at the demand scale, the companies that manufacture, provide services and operate aircraft mostly seek out AI, 3D printing, and blockchain technology. They would allow airline businesses to optimize performance.
"Blockchain is a lot about trust in the context of aviation, but the trust comes with huge costing."
- Scott Thompson
To him, blockchain for the aviation industry is like medicine. Through blockchain tools, the more data you have on every aircraft part, the better you can predict the parts' performance, longevity, abilities, and performance. Thus, the potential of predictive analytics will increase.
With blockchain, you have a snapshot of every part of the aircraft and know the parts' history. Moreover, the decentralized nature of blockchain made the maintenance process flawless, with all data being analyzed at the same time.
So, what areas can benefit from the blockchain and make a difference in aviation? First, let's highlight the part.
Blockchain Technology: Making a Difference
The Role of Blockchain in the Supply Chain
The supply chain in the aviation industry is looking promising for collaborations to happen in the supply chain. Blockchain will bring revolution in the long term to connect many loose ends in the supply chain ecosystem. The technology offers a prominent way to track data and provide consistent aircraft configuration data across the supply chain.
So, by knowing the absolute configuration of an aircraft part, blockchain solution empowers airlines and defense companies to share and authenticate data securely.
Blockchain in Aircraft Parts Tracing
Blockchain also plays a vital part in transforming maintenance logs and tracing aircraft parts. With the help of blockchain technology, you can ensure that parts being produced are authentic and meet the necessary airworthiness requirements.
For example, a blockchain application named Enspan, formerly known as Parts Pedigree, is pioneering. It could offer a more efficient approach to documenting an asset's lifecycle.
At the same time, with the help of blockchain applications, airlines would be able to sell and purchase parts with confidence. The only consideration is the documentation should be accurate and comply with all maintenance regulations.
Blockchain Applications in Loyalty Programs
Blockchain in the aviation industry can automate loyalty program transactions and security. It is relevant today as more and more airline companies are issuing credit cards, rental cars for accommodation, membership cards, and more like these.
By creating a standard digital currency like tokens using the blockchain, travelers can access instant value for flights on the spot. On the other hand, airline executives get a transparent understanding of how the revenue generates from reward programs.
For example, companies like Loyyal have already leveraged the benefits of blockchain to create digital wallets. These wallets will let customers store their reward tokens.
Deloitte mentions that blockchain for the aviation industry could be a game-changer in this field. This is because intelligent contacts can automate transactions through the blockchain, even in the supply chain.
Blockchain In Enhancing Security Measures
Blockchain technology, along with encryption, offers aviation an outstanding security blanket. As digitalization is speeding up, the need to have extra security layers for users is more critical than ever. So, for optimum security measures, blockchain employs cryptography that serves as a firewall against online threats and attacks. Any part of the information on the blockchain is stored cryptographically in secrecy.
Do you remember Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 that vanished in March 2014? The case was the biggest mystery in the aviation industry. There was no information on the flight's disappearance. Millions of dollars were spent trying to uncover the mysterious reason behind Malaysia Airlines Flight 370's disappearance.
The event is a clear example of why there is a need for a more robust storage mechanism. Blockchain usage in security measures is a priority to tackle such incidents in the future. In emergencies, information regarding flight routes, in-flight operations, location tracking, passenger data, and documents can be easily detected.
Flight-related data on a blockchain backup record adds an extra layer of protection in today's time amid centralized systems. However, it is all being done to ensure that all the processes remain transparent and effective.
Blockchain for Aircraft Maintenance
A commercial aircraft’s average lifetime remains up to 30 years. So, it's a laborious process to maintain documents associated with an aircraft.
On this, says,
"90% of entire maintenance records of an aircraft are paper-based documents. So there are millions of boxes."
- John Maggiore of Boeing
Understandably, such a system can have many drawbacks and lead to loss or fraud. For example, American Airlines in 2015 was proof of a fraud case in maintenance, which still can be an issue as senior aircraft have no chance of having a digital record.
So, when looking at the role of blockchain in helping airline companies go digital, there are higher expectations for the technology to serve in this field. In addition, the tools associated with blockchain technology can maintain an immutable record of aircraft, benefiting stakeholders in the aviation leasing community.
Furthermore, blockchain technology for the aviation industry can also speed up the release of an aircraft. It would be as simple as scanning a QR code on an engine to provide the entire history of the asset.
Hence, there is no stopping here! For example, companies such as Boeing are examining more and more blockchain applications. Similarly, Airbus has also demonstrated an interest in how blockchain technology could be used in supply chain tracking.
Therefore, by using blockchain to reinforce the Internet of Things, you can understand the potential of two crucial technologies working to work together to digitize and future proof airline processes.
Finally, Blockchain is Gaining Traction in Aviation!
The aviation industry operates under strict safety standards, regulations, and concerns. And the way it leads ultimately comes from the technologies it adopts (historical or present). For this reason, the bar of expectancy always remains high. On top of all, the pandemic has resulted in proving blockchain’s capabilities.
Among most airline companies, Airbus is intensely learning about the potential of blockchain. In addition, several other airline companies have expressed their interest in bolstering blockchain technology. As mentioned above, Lufthansa, British Airways, and Air New Zealand have already implemented the technology in their various airline projects. Whereas Air France in 2020 announced that it is looking forward to using the technology to enhance its maintenance activities.
The blockchain has already captured the needs of aviation businesses across the world. Still, the testing continues on the other side of the table. However, the providers of blockchain solutions are progressing rapidly.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is blockchain used in the aviation industry?
Blockchain in the aviation industry is gaining high value. It showcases its capabilities in tracking the status and location of flights, detecting parts, passengers' data in detail, monitoring operations in-flight, and more.
How can blockchain improve the aviation industry?
Blockchain in aviation can bring in much-required shifts and alterations. Shifts like improving ground operations, getting transparency in processes, transactions, costs, and revenue, and provide layers of securities to essential assets..
Do airlines use blockchain?
Airlines use blockchain technology to manage their take-offs and landing slots. The technology helps create cost-effective solutions to allow airlines to swap take-off slots and land more efficiently.e
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Aviation Technology
Article | June 2, 2022
Failure is beneficial for many reasons. But important is to manage and survive the onslaught of errors. With respect to bold attempts like adopting a new strategy, making judgments about the market, bad publicity, launching new products or services, and more like these often make airline marketers discourage due to a little or huge foul.
The list also includes branding. Airline branding mistakes are often seen when businesses try either to aim to re-position in the market or create awareness among customers. If you are making branding mistakes, then remember that a combination of poor communication and ineffective brand planning causes one of the worst branding disasters!
Aviation Branding Mistakes of All-Time
Branding any airline company is challenging. When bad decisions about branding strategies happen, it costs huge to businesses. And most of the aviation businesses do it habitually. On this note, mistakes could happen in various ways. But some aviation branding mistakes shouldn’t be ignored at all. Mistakes can hurt your business hard. So, let’s highlight the common mistakes that can happen while branding for aviation and how you should avoid them.
Implementation of Rigid Strategies
Implementation of rigid branding strategies for aviation results in economic slumps
Airlines need flexible marketing strategies to control the cost of labor and acquisition in order to balance the brand image.
-Lauda, Marketing-In-Chief, Southwest Airlines
While any significant shift in airline business strategy, like the pandemic forced, usually takes two to three years to implement. Therefore, you should design branding strategies that could afford the room for adjustments. In addition, those strategies will revive your older market position. Failing to do so could lead your airline company’s image to suffer a massive loss.
So, what can you do ahead?
Implement unique branding strategies for aviation to strengthen the value of your company. For this, you need to work and pay attention constantly to existing and potential customers you deal with. By understanding their perspective, marketers will be able to bring uniqueness to strategies. Following this process will ease you to adjust and cope up with the current economic condition.
Overlooking SEO
The entire aviation industry is going digitalized, especially after the pandemic fall. SEO is one of the most significant areas of digital marketing. So, if you do not master SEO, you are lagging behind competitors in branding for aviation. Your target audience/existing audience should never find difficulty in discovering your brand. This is the only rule of conducting tested SEO practices. It is because overlooking SEO means your customers are gone.
So, here’s what to do instead.
Try to find out what keywords are becoming relevant every day. Keep a watch at what keywords your competitors include to rank their brand name. Check relevant keywords for your brand message. Also, make sure about the trending keywords and how they are being searched. After you have mastered this metric, create branding strategies that are fit for your company.
A Disconnect with Audience
Failing to connect with an audience is the most significant mistake. Conducting inappropriate research on target audiences makes it hard to know how to connect with them. To understand it, you will have to think creatively and strategically simultaneously. For that, your team should create the best marketing design materials to attract a wide net of customers.
What can you do more?
While you connect with customers, an innovative perspective on your upcoming plans should be out of the box. Thinking in this way will help to reveal the gaps, problems, and undiscovered opportunities to make your brand better. Also, you will get deep insights about customers by directly reaching out through social media. You can use forums, email campaigns, loyalty programs, and other ways to connect.
If you overcome this mistake, you will be able to connect with your potential customers. To have your criteria is essential. And then, you would be surprised to know how enthused some customers will be about a glimpse into the potential future of a product or service they will gain from your company.
Becoming too Generic
Coming across too generic ideas of branding for aviation will give a bad impression on your airline company. So, what constitutes this aviation branding mistake? Let’s know here
• Depending on stock imagery
• Forgetting on your core branding elements—for example, using a generic logo
• Having a similar brand name as competitors’
• Offering a similar product/service similar as competitors’
• Usage of non-specific/non-industrial terms in marketing materials
These points mean that the more generic your brand will showcase, the less unique you appear to the audience. A generic brand reflects being unprofessional, slapdash, or uninteresting. It’s clear—who would want to buy products or services from.
What should you do instead?
If you can offer a better or different picture of your airline brand, do it, even if you have to raise your budget. Connect a great designer and take full advantage of their experience.
Your designer can help with much more than the standards of the branding work. Do some market research for brand promotion/positioning strategies to understand deeper. By doing so, you can leverage the complete value expertise and implement it in your branding techniques.
Branding is One-time Action
The action of branding in one time only is an old-school industry policy of aviation. Today is the era of digitalization, where still many existing aviation companies are practicing this approach. If your company falls in this category, then hold on and restrict it now. This is the time when your airline company needs a tangible branding suite, humanization approach. It should also include the defined message, value, logo, and other elements. However, the work doesn’t stop with these elements. The fact is, branding is an endless process.
So, what do you need to do?
You need to work diligently by keeping a very sharp razor focus on every effort associated with the branding process. So that you can continue to carve your company’s position in the market and stand out. Also, this will help your company stand out in customers’ minds. And hence, this will automatically strengthen your brand.
Putting Branding Responsibilities on One Department
Branding efforts are not only reserved for the marketing department. Instead, it should involve efforts along across departmental actions as well.
There could be multi-departmental knowledge that could save you from poor branding. Might your marketing team’s efforts like the design or PR do not necessarily work perfectly. It's also possible that they ideate a similar design repeatedly. And you may be unknowingly making significant aviation branding mistakes. Those mistakes must have damaged the credibility of the strategies and the motive. A lot of companies work for branding only with the marketing team. That is why they lack in many other parts of branding. If you have a similar working process in your company, you need to think again!
So, how to go ahead?
To create an effective aviation branding, involve the sales, customer service, IT, networking, data analyst department on board. By collaborating with them, you can initiate many efforts to create purposeful solutions for audiences. Even the representatives of each department can involve and create target-proof branding strategies for aviation.
Devaluing the importance of social media
Devaluing the power of social media has been one of the most common and costly aviation branding mistakes businesses are making. From being active on it to acting on the audience’s activities has a lot of differences in-between. Many companies listen, but they don’t hear. The problem is they don’t show to their audiences. And thus, results in disconnection among audiences.
So, what can you do instead?
In the current time, the travel market is now more fragmented with the continuous shifting behavior of travelers. In this case, social media’s role is becoming significant. It’s one platform where you can obtain feedback by creating polls, communicating, and engaging with marketing tricks. It's a free and paid platform. You have every reason to take advantage of it to showcase your company and brand message to a wide net of audiences. Doing it regularly—keeping your content relevant and updated- will make your brand image evergreen.
Save your Airline Company with Branding Bloopers
Now you must have gained some insights on how to avoid branding mistakes. So, it's time to bid farewell to branding mistakes. Remember that consumers, context, and quality design should be at the forefront of your mind when you begin with branding planning. It’s crucial to hone on the right branding strategy because it’s an important way to position your aviation company in the market.
The airline business is the biggest team sport in the world. When you are all consumed with fighting among yourselves, your opponents can run over you every day.
– By Gordon Bethune Former CEO of Continental Airlines
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the other airline branding mistakes businesses usually make?
Mistakes happen every day in airline businesses. But some common mistakes can cost a huge to a business. Here are some more airline mistakes:
• Aviation businesses tend to implement competitors’ tactics that become entirely different from their original business structure or current and future plans of action.
• Businesses do not think of investing in an aviation advertising agency.
• Usually forgets the purpose behind the brand creation.
• Create fake brand values
What should airline businesses avoid in brand planning?
While creating a brand, the airline businesses should avoid the following things:
• Underestimating your customers
• Untracking your marketing efforts
• Unwilling to invest
• Broad targeting
• Lack of USP
• Lack of research
What do airline customers want from airline businesses?
Airline customers are broad. They look for a wide array of services and products. So, your customer will always want some basic yet valuable things like committed customer service and satisfaction, easy approachability, content to understand solutions, and easy ways to invest.
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Business Aviation
Article | January 7, 2022
Every month OAG updates its year-to-date Punctuality League table to provide an ongoing ranking of the world’s largest airlines and airports alongside its Monthly on-time performance (OTP) data. The list is based on the twenty largest airlines (by number of flights operated) known as Mega Airlines, and we provide a Top 10 ranking. With November Monthly OTPs now in, we have 11 months of data to take an early look at how these Mega Airlines have performed to date.
And whilst we have another month of data go, it is great to share some early insights before we release final numbers early next year.All the Top 10 airlines in our sneak preview currently come in with an OTP of over 85%. When compared to 2019, the last year of ‘normal’ flying, the Top 10 Mega airlines achieved OTP of between 75% and 86%, so this is a clear indication of just how much punctuality has improved over the past year.
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Business Aviation
Article | August 26, 2021
As 2021 is a few months away from its end and is the beginning of a new year, it is hopeful that it will bring more positiveness for airline businesses. But what the industry has ahead? How will the new landscape of technology strategies in airline businesses look?
Or say, what will be the platforms for novel technology strategies in the aviation industry in the future?
Let’s have a quick read in the next!
What Airline Technology Strategies Will Look Like?
As you know, the airline industry saw a lot of disruption in 2020. But the circumstance also paved the way for promising and powerful new technologies.
Airline businesses are now turning the tech trends to their advantage. In this way, they can get a handful of opportunities to streamline operations. They could do this because the landscape of technologies is reshaping aviation.
For example, IATA recently calculated that the airline's revenue worldwidewould be more than half of what it was in 2019. That means the industry will witness a massive change due to emerging tech stacks. Its rising importance is influencing market leaders to make more informed decisions today. This is why it is critical to imply technology strategies in your business.
Thus, the focus is on the clients' strategic choices and investments. It will now depend on the implications of technology strategies.
How will some of the applied proactive technologies in business processes look like in the new normal?
This blog groups some of the newer technologies for the new normal in aviation. Explore them and take inspiration from the potential of technologies to revive your business and drive growth.
5 Tech Strategies to Reshape Airline Industry
Machine Learning with AI
Before the pandemic, the airline industry displayed an exceptional commitment to the potential of AI. Like, you must have seen the adoption of chatbots to communicate and other ways to improve operations.
Now, the usage of AI is soared, and its application is more profitable than before. The platform analyses a faster deployment of millions of operational data.
Mechanization
Mechanization technology in the airline industry is gaining thrust. Due to the rapid developments and advancements, several airline businesses are implementing it. As tools are becoming smarter, businesses will soon have completely automated operations. Automation will ease all the workloads, reduce manual intervention and errors to a high accuracy rate.
Real-Time Information Technology
Real-time information technology is a significant technological aviation strategy. It has the potential of improving airlines’ operation efficiency with the help of customized software usage.
Your business can drive growth by implementing custom software applications. But, as you know, to deliver customized and personalized solutions, it is essential to understand clients’ expectations and preferences. So, how is this technology going to take you through it? Let’s understand in the following ways:
Personalized solution: Custom software applications are developed with the help of the updated information collected by knowing customer’s preferences. In this way, you can create personalized or customized solutions for your clients.
Technical Excellence: Having an expert development team across all application stages is a plus in your business. The cutting-edge tools will benefit from fulfilling clients’ demands
Higher business value realization: It's critical to properly align real-time information technology with your business processes. This will deliver solutions on time with the right approach to your client. This way, your business can generate higher value and build trust in long-term relationships with clients.
Analytics
Analytics is the most urgent technological need for airline businesses in the future. Aacquiringe accurate data, predicting losses, and evaluating clients’ needs will be the next transformational scenario in the airline industry.
Implementing this technology will allow airlines to streamline their operations ahead of time. It will also help to take realistic measures to bring down losses that occurred due to the pandemic.
Analytics are also effective in predicting and preparing for the results of business efforts. Data-backed analytics would provide insights to pinpoint geo-specific interventions to gain higher ROI.
Agility
The implementation of technology strategies has encouraged airline businesses to become agile. At the same time, some leading industry market players have now shifted their business to operate in agility. So, it's expected that this trend will continue beyond 2021.
The aviation industry caters to a vast array of products and services. It works to deliver seamless operations and services. The adaptation of agility requires multiple systems to interact and exchange data. So, with the growing rate of partnerships, agility is the need of the hour.
Today, in several airline businesses, teams work in separate locations. Being agile helps them to win adverse circumstances. It also builds the trust of audiences by keeping transparency in work and responding to queries faster.
With this, the emerging technology is also expected to help track the progress of smaller efforts and proactively handle the metrics for projects coming in. In addition, the technology ensures that you can constantly inspect functions and deliver quality products or services.
Lastly, since the budget is one of the top concerns of airline businesses, the development of agile technology strategies helps to keep a check on expenses. Therefore, by tracking the expenditure, it will be easier to plan future budgets adequately.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are other critical new technologies that will transform aviation?
According to IATA’s report, the aviation industry will witness a drastic transformation. Some important new technologies such as cybersecurity, 3D printing in manufacturing, robotics, and biometrics will enter in the future.
How has technology enhanced the aviation industry?
Technology has enhanced aviation in manufacturing. New techniques have created new aircraft with improved fuel consumption and reduced environmental impact. In terms of operation, automation and AI are the new takeovers in aviation.
Why is technological development important for aviation?
Technological development is important to improve the efficiency of airline operations. The need for better connectivity, enhanced travel experience, reduced fuel costs, budget alignment, control over expenses has urged technology to step in.
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