S P O T L I G H T
The ABCs of business aviation
In today’s increasingly maturing and competitive markets,
there are ever-rising challenges in how to differentiate and innovate
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This comes down to managing,
understanding, and leveraging the
new technologies that are the “ABCs” of
the future of business aviation.
Specifically, these ABC’s are A:
artificial intelligence (AI), B: biometrics
and C: connectivity. While all three of
these concepts can create a fear of
the unknown, the reality is that we can
address these challenges by anticipating
how they will impact our industry.
With regards to AI, it is important
to note that the human-element is still
essential, and we are far from living in
the dystopian world that we saw in the
Terminator movies. There are actually
three levels of AI, which are analytics,
human inspired, and humanized artificial
intelligence – with the latter being when
machines are self-aware and in control. As
an industry, we are not nearly there yet.
For the business aviation industry,
the key is that AI should help to work out
logical decision-making, where the human
element will always play an important
role. System design still lies with people,
and these systems are not quite as
advanced as some may think – at least
not yet. Ultimately, if an organization has a
problem it wants to solve, and it’s big and
requires lots of data, then AI could, at the
very least, be a big part of the solution.
Meanwhile, biometrics are starting to
make their way into airport terminals –
with facial recognition being rolled out in
airports around the world – with the goal
of moving people along seamlessly in
their travels. In terms of business aviation,
one opportunity lies in developing
applications that help with creating
invisible borders for seamlessly entering
and exiting countries. This is a significant
benefit for high-profile passengers, which
are more common in business aviation.
In terms of connectivity, the launch
Above: Facial
recognition being
rolled out in airports
around the world
Above left: Faster
networks will create
a fully connected
ecosystem, on the
ground and in the air
of near-Earth orbiting satellites and the
future-focus of ever faster networks will
create a fully connected ecosystem, on
the ground and in the air. Now is an ideal
time to consider how having access to
ubiquitous data will impact the overall
passenger experience, and the wider
airspace management system.
Are the ABCs of business aviation an
opportunity or a threat? Understanding the
value and difference between the roles
of technology and humans when looking
over the horizon is critical. Processes and
analytics exist to complement the human
touch and judgment. In other words,
technology should be used to meet
human goals, as well as enhance our lives
and the passenger experience.
Of course, fully predicting the future
can be difficult when it comes to
technology adoption. However, being
prepared – and knowing your ABCs – can
help in creating more differentiation and a
much stronger competitive advantage.
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