Air France, Amadeus, IER and Nice Côte d’Azur Airport carried out a six-month pilot scheme last year to establish whether NFC technology can be applied to the aircraft boarding process.

As a short-range, high frequency wireless communication technology, NFC allows for the high-speed transfer of data between enabled devices. It operates at 13.56 MHz, therefore allowing data to be transferred at speeds up to 424 Kbits/second and another of its major appeals is that it is both a ‘read’ and ‘write’ technology, thus allowing for the transfer and storage of data between each of the respective devices.

While the technology is still in its relative infancy – at least within the aviation sector – pilot schemes have already been undertaken to put the viability of the technology to the test.

NFC in action

Beunardeau: “For the passenger, there were many benefits, mostly the fact that they didn’t even need to print their boarding pass.”

Last year, Air France, Amadeus and IER partnered with Nice Côte d’Azur Airport in one of the industry’s largest NFC pilot schemes. Over a six-month period, members of the airport’s Club Airport Premier (CAP) passenger programme and the airline’s frequent flyer programme travelling on the route between Nice and Paris Orly piloted Pass and Fly – an NFC-based boarding pass.

The idea of the project was to establish whether passenger recognition, the crediting of CAP points and aircraft boarding could be simplified through the use of the wireless technology. To enable the project, Amadeus developed the NFC application for mobile phones, while the company worked with its partners to develop the departure control system and the NFC readers. Once the infrastructure was in place, the NFC-enabled mobile phones could interact directly with the NFC readers.

“We decided to try to see how this technology works and we wanted to see whether using NFC technology for a real flight was possible,” said Yannick Beunardeau, director airport solutions, Amadeus. “What we have since proven is that we can use NFC for real operations of aircraft as people were successfully boarding planes using the technology. The airline, the airport and the passengers all appreciated the way that the technology was working. For the passenger, there were many benefits, mostly the fact that they didn’t even need to print their boarding pass. Normally, they had to show their boarding pass and their card to get the fast track, and another to collect the frequent flyer points. Instead, using NFC technology enabled all of these processes to be complete in one transaction in a matter of milliseconds.”

Beunardeau: “We have proven that we can use NFC for real operations of aircraft as people were successfully boarding planes using the technology.”

While the main idea of the project was to establish the potential of NFC-based boarding passes, Beunardeau explained that the technology can provide further benefits. These include implementing NFC-based payment systems and using the technology to allow access to restricted areas of the airport, as well as using NFC to provide the airport with information on passenger flows between two specified points.

Future challenges

Of course, each of these processes would require the passenger or member of staff in question to have access to an NFC-enabled mobile phone, but with such handsets yet to be made widely available, the widespread implementation of the technology appears to face a major hurdle.

However, mobile phone manufacturers – namely Nokia and Apple – have recently vowed to integrate the technology into their future handsets, with NFC-enabled smartphones expected to be more readily available as early as next year. Furthermore, Beunardeau explained that Amadeus has designed a chip that can be added to the phone in the form of a sticker, which will enable the handset to be used as an NFC device.

Another issue that also needs to be addressed is that of cost. Beunardeau said: “As NFC readers use an existing reader with some modifications, it isn’t too expensive to implement and I wouldn’t say that it is out of range because of cost. We have to remember, also, that this could provide a permanent solution.”

Mobiqa’s mobi-pass service is now ‘live’ with Northwest and Qatar Airways and is in the trial stage with a number of other airlines in Europe and the Middle East.

It has been reported that by 2010 60% of airlines will offer mobile check-in, a development that is inevitably linked with IATA’s target for 100% Bar Coded Boarding Passes (BCBP) by 2010. The drive to achieve 100% BCBP means more airports will be mobile-enabled; the target for BCBP is an enabler of mobile check-in. “Most airlines that are implementing BCBP are also looking at mobile check-in. If airlines make mobile check-in available there will be no reservations from passengers as it is so convenient,” said Ronnie Forbes, founder and chief technical officer, Mobiqa.

Both iPhone and BlackBerry sold more than 6MM units in Q3 2008; that is particularly significant as they are devices that are typically sold with data plans attached.

Alon Kronenberg, IBM’s Practice Lead – Mobile Applications, believes that if mobile check-in is defined as the ability to receive a BCBP on your mobile – even if the check-in transaction itself took place in a different channel – then the 60% figure is certainly possible.

IBM has several initiatives underway; last year it added support for SMS-based check-in, where the check-in transaction transpires entirely through an exchange of text messages between the passenger and the airline. “We believe this approach will resonate in emerging markets where data plans for mobile devices are not as readily available as they are in Europe and North America,” said Kronenberg. “We are also looking at further tailoring our mobile check-in offering to automatically adapt itself to the look, feel and input methods of the target device, thus delivering a more natural user experience.”

Ronnie Forbes, founder and chief technical officer, Mobiqa: “We have also been expanding our airline product suites. We have a vision of the completely mobilized passenger – for the complete journey from reservation to check-in, flight alerts and revenue-generating ideas.”

Real Time’s technical director Alaistair Deacon believes that by the end of 2010, we will see mobile check-in as a regular option. “However, I’m not sure it will become the dominant check-in mode. Into 2011, we will see maybe 30-50% of passengers moving from remote check-in to mobile check-in,” he said.

It was announced in February that Austrian Airlines has launched Real Time’s paperless mobile phone boarding solution FirstPass, which was previously successfully trialed and rolled out in the UK by bmi. “Put simply, a passenger using FirstPass no longer needs to queue to check-in, use a kiosk or even find a printer to print an online paper boarding pass. One mobile boarding pass will give a passenger everything he/she needs to board an aircraft via security with additional information displayed as text for inspection once on board,” said Deacon. “FirstPass also provides additional benefits such as sending passengers immediate flight updates to their mobiles or, for low-cost carriers, delivery as a premium service to increase passenger revenues.”

FirstPass uses WAP Push and MMS technology to deliver a boarding pass directly to the passenger’s mobile phone. Real Time’s technology then ensures that the boarding pass and 2D barcode are sized correctly.

David Reszner, Austrian Airlines’ ground product development manager, said: “We are delighted to be one of the first European airlines to introduce mobile phone boarding passes. We were looking for a mobile solution that would not only improve the service we offer our customers but, over time, would also reduce our costs. Real Time’s FirstPass solution has met all our requirements and we are excited at the prospect of rolling out this groundbreaking technology across our whole network.”

Mobile vision

Real Time’s technical director Alaistair Deacon: “Put simply, a passenger using FirstPass no longer needs to queue to check-in, use a kiosk or even find a printer to print an online paper boarding pass. One mobile boarding pass will give a passenger everything he/she needs to board an aircraft via security with additional information displayed as text for inspection once on board.”

Swissport has been looking at mobile check-in possibilities. It is implementing the mobile boarding pass into web check-in for its biggest customer – Swiss. “It is not a pure mobile application, but removes the need for a printer. It is the first step towards pure mobile check-in,” said Rico Barandun, Head e-Services, BOE, Swissport.

The Swiss application will be rolled out in June 2009. Development was completed in April and followed by two months of testing.

Mobiqa’s mobi-pass service is now ‘live’ with Northwest and Qatar Airways and is in the trial stage with a number of other airlines in Europe and the Middle East. Forbes reports that the trials have been very successful and those airlines are looking to go into live operation. “NWA, which went live with the service in May 2008, is rapidly expanding the mobile check-in service across airports in the US; Qatar Airways is extending it across different countries. This is now becoming recognized as the best practice mobile check-in,” he said.

NWA has extended the capability of its offering so that whether the passenger checks in via the web, via their mobile or on a kiosk, they receive their boarding pass on their mobile phone. “We have also been expanding our airline product suites. We have a vision of the completely mobilized passenger – for the complete journey from reservation to check-in, flight alerts and revenue-generating ideas,” said Forbes.

Revenue opportunities

There are revenue opportunities to be gained from mobile applications; these are predominantly likely to be upselling opportunities. “With mobile, adverts can be interactive – the user can make a rental car or hotel booking, for example. It is ‘the kiosk in your pocket’. Airlines are very happy to have revenue-generating ideas,” said Forbes.

Kronenberg explained that many airlines have gone through the process of unbundling services to generate ancillary revenue. “I believe the mobile channel presents a unique opportunity to further realize that revenue stream, since mobile – unlike any other channel – offers the prospect for interaction at any time,” he said. “For instance, I am likely to be a great deal more amenable to purchasing a lounge pass if offered – perhaps at a nominal discount – when notified of a delay on my mobile than I might have been weeks earlier at the time of booking.”

Advertising and retail opportunities will, according to Forbes, come in the first half of this year, with SMS text alerts tied into the offering. “The concept of the fully mobilized passenger is gradually being implemented. The ability to use mobile phones onboard, such as the recent Ryanair/OnAir deal, opens up opportunities to prepay for inflight F&B. If airlines can capture that revenue on booking, it means they don’t have to handle cash onboard,” he said. “We recently did a trial of this with OnAir; this was very successful and we are now in discussions with them about proposing discounts at duty free, for example, to the airlines.”

Kronenberg similarly referenced the possibilities relating to duty free and F&B. “I would not be surprised to see something along those lines piloted soon – especially around duty free,” he said. “I do believe that mobile devices offer a unique opportunity to generate ancillary revenue. Similarly, I expect the passenger’s mobile device to quickly become his/her primary point of interaction with the airline for many – if not most – CRM-related initiatives.”

Swissport has been looking at mobile check-in possibilities. It is implementing the mobile boarding pass into web check-in for its biggest customer – Swiss.

Deacon highlighted another potential revenue area – the possibility to offer a premium rate service on domestic routes. Real Time, for example, offers First Pass as a premium rate service. Instead of the airline paying for the mobile boarding pass, the provider would pay the airline and then make money by charging the passenger for sending the message containing the boarding pass.

An additional benefit of mobile technology indicated by Forbes is that if the traveler has a multi-sector journey and misses their connection because the inbound flight is delayed – mobile technology means the airline can automatically rebook the passenger and issue them a boarding pass, which is a popular objective of airlines.

Unique mobile interaction

IBM believes that the mobile channel will play a significant role in a number of areas; not only check-in, but also as far as booking, day-of-travel – flight status, delay notifications, etc – and even inflight. “However, one must realize that simply shrinking an existing web application to fit into a smaller mobile screen will not yield success, it is truly imperative to re-think each of these functionalities and re-shape them to leverage the unique nature of the mobile channel,” said Kronenberg. “We are focused on enabling the mobile channel beyond check-in. We are identifying what other airline functions/processes can be transformed to leverage the unique mobile interaction and are building associated applications. Essentially, we are looking at ways of helping our customers transform their mobile channel from a mixture of various disjointed schemes to a single and consistent initiative that will transform, in a very significant way, how they interact with their customers.”

In June, Delta Air Lines and the TSA partnered to launch a pilot program of NCR Corporation’s mobile check-in solution at New York’s LaGuardia Airport.

Emerging mobile technologies continue to expand the efficiencies and possibilities for airlines looking for new ways to streamline check-in processes and improve customer service. As the industry enters the mobile era, today’s traveler can begin the journey by checking in over coffee in the hotel room, monitoring flight status on the ride to the airport, using curbside luggage drop and walking straight to the gate without stopping to print out a boarding pass.

In June, Delta Air Lines and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) partnered to launch a pilot program of NCR Corporation’s mobile check-in solution at New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA). The service is available for any domestic flight from LGA, and Delta is currently working with NCR to expand the program to other airports within the year.

The concept is simple but the benefits are clear. Using any web-enabled mobile device, passengers can check-in to flights within 24 hours of departure and receive a 2D bar code. Once at the airport, the passenger proceeds to the security checkpoint where the bar code on his or her mobile device is quickly scanned by the TSA and again upon boarding the flight.

Providing added convenience is critical in an environment where rising costs associated with modern air travel are forcing carriers to find new tools to save time and money. By adding mobility to their self-service offerings, carriers are tempering the difficulties of higher prices and longer security lines by giving their customers the ability to check-in from anywhere they choose.

These new mobile check-in capabilities are sure to spread rapidly beyond the gates at LaGuardia and soon won’t be limited to mere airline check-in. The pilot program can be seen as a bellwether for the future of mobile data services as the very same technology used with the mobile airline check-in can also be leveraged to check in to a hotel, arrange a rental car from the airport or rent movies from an airport terminal kiosk. And the possibilities don’t end there.

The paperless initiative and move to 2D bar codes follows the ‘Simplify the Business’ plan set forth by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), a plan that is sure to benefit carriers, airports and travelers by minimizing costs and improving the traveler experience. With a goal of reducing the hurdles, constraints and long lines associated with modern travel, enhanced mobile functionality offers multiple benefits which will only help aid bottom line returns for all industry participants.

Alon Kronenberg, Practice Lead - Mobile Applications, Lead Architect, Toronto Innovation Centre, IBM Global Business Services: “Numerous airlines already have a mobile check-in that will allow for paperless travel subject to approval by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).”

As part of the IATA Simplifying the Business initiative, the target for 100% e-ticketing in 2008 has effectively been achieved. The next target is to eliminate the ATB magnetic stripe boarding pass by 2010 and move on to the 2D bar code boarding pass. “The value to the industry will be $500 million by December 2010, through taking costs out of the check-in process. IATA figures are that desk check-in costs $9 per passenger and kiosk check-in $2.50. If we can make check-in self-service, then a lot of the cost is taken out,” said Ronnie Forbes, chief technology officer, Mobiqa.

Mobiqa’s Airline Product Suite is designed to streamline the passenger process through WAP, SMS check-in and mobi-pass, as well as supplying passengers with up-to-the-minute travel information with SMS alerts and the ability to click through a mobi-pass banner advert to book car hire. Through mobi-pass, passengers are sent an IATA-approved mobile bar coded boarding pass in the form of an MMS or WAP message. Mobiqa’s Optimiser technology tailors the bar code specifically to the passenger’s handset and mobile phone network. “The biggest challenge is ensuring that the technology works on all handsets,” said Forbes. “We have a database of 1,600 handsets and a monthly process of testing new devices as they come onto the market. It is vital that the passenger gets a quality experience.”

Spanair recently completed trials of mobi-pass and is awaiting Aena approval before full implementation. “By the end of May, we will be launching mobi-pass with a large US carrier and a Middle East carrier. This is very significant – it is the biggest international mobile boarding pass deployment to date,” said Forbes.

Through Mobiqa’s mobi-pass, passengers are sent an IATA-approved mobile bar coded boarding pass in the form of an MMS or WAP message.

bmi trials Real Time mobile technology

UK airline bmi is piloting Real Time’s FirstPass, which delivers boarding pass information directly to passengers on their mobile phone, PDA or Blackberry, to help speed up the boarding process. The system went live on 12 May.

The airline has introduced FirstPass on selected domestic routes, including Heathrow, Manchester, Edinburgh and Belfast City, for a three month trial period with a view to rolling it out across the complete bmi network as mobile phone boarding passes are accepted by airports.

FirstPass uses mobile technology to encode a passenger’s details within an industry standard 2D barcode. The boarding pass can then be read directly from the mobile handset by existing scanners installed at airports for paper-based ‘print at home’ boarding cards. FirstPass removes the need for passengers to carry any type of paper-based boarding pass.

Alaistair Deacon, Real Time’s technical director, said: “The live testing of FirstPass is a groundbreaking development and means that during this trial period bmi passengers will always have their boarding passes available. Put simply, a passenger using FirstPass no longer needs to queue to check in, use a kiosk or even find a printer to print an online paper boarding pass. One MMS will give a passenger everything he/she needs to board an aircraft via security with additional information displayed as text for inspection once on board.”

UK airline bmi is piloting Real Time’s FirstPass, which delivers boarding pass information directly to passengers on their mobile phone, PDA or Blackberry.

During the trial, bmi will use ‘Picture Messaging’ (MMS) technology to deliver a boarding pass directly to the passenger’s mobile phone. Real Time’s technology is designed to ensure that the boarding pass and 2D barcode are sized correctly for every mobile phone handset, PDA or Blackberry on the market.

Real Time has been working with IATA over the last two years to develop the standard that will be used by all airlines.

David Menezes, bmi’s senior product and development manager, said: “We selected Real Time’s FirstPass solution as the best implementation of the new IATA boarding pass standards and the simplicity of the solution for our passengers. Real Time’s extensive experience of airline solutions, processes and project management ensured this ground breaking solution was successfully rolled out on the bmi network.”

Rewarding user experience

In the coming years as this platform and its users mature, the opportunity to leverage mobile devices will only continue to increase. “Faster devices with multimedia capabilities that are able to hold substantially more information will lead the way towards richer applications with more rewarding user experiences,” said Alon Kronenberg, Practice Lead – Mobile Applications, Lead Architect, Toronto Innovation Centre, IBM Global Business Services.

He referred to the possibility of using the mobile platform to confirm menu choices while waiting to board the aircraft. “They could opt in to have personalised music playlists, new video games or favourite movies downloaded to their in-flight personal entertainment systems,” said Kronenberg.

Mobiqa’s Forbes outlined something similar. “Our vision is that passengers can follow a full range of services from an airline on their mobile phone. The idea is that passengers can prepay for inflight refreshments, so that they do not have to deal with cash onboard. A barcode on the mobile phone would be scanned to validate the purchase,” he said.

“The driver from the passenger point of view is convenience,” said Ronnie Forbes, chief technology officer, Mobiqa. For the return journey especially, the passenger might not have access to a computer to print a boarding pass, so mobile technology is valuable.

The airline could also generate revenues by hosting logos relating to services such as hotels, car hire, etc. The passenger would be able to click through to make the actual booking.

Location based services could include dynamic maps of airports that would show travellers how far they are from their gate and where the airport Wi-Fi spots are. “While these are still the early days of the mobile revolution, with adoption still in its infancy within the travel industry, it is clear that mobile is here to stay and that soon it will become a critical channel in any airline’s range of self-service offerings,” said Kronenberg. “In support of these trends, IBM has developed a self-service roadmap for airlines and supporting multi-channel framework. The framework allows airlines to isolate business rules from channel specific logic, thus enabling the rapid deployment of new channels.”

According to Forbes, airlines are embracing the technology. Mobiqa is also working with a number of partners, such as IER, on its initiatives. “Mobile check-in is demand driven. In our meetings with airlines, they have told us they would like it. It will definitely become the dominant form of check-in in the future. Mobile is the next wave after web check-in,” said Forbes. “From what we have seen with event ticketing, there are initial adoption levels of 5-10% – it then grows quickly.”