Aug 15, 2016In an effort to reduce wait times for passengers, as well as labor time for its own employees, Indian budget airline SpiceJet has launched a check-in system at Hyderabad International Airport that uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and Near Field Communication (NFC) radio frequency identification technologies. The solution, which enables passengers to check in for flights via the SpiceJet smartphone app, was officially launched late last month. The airline is now in discussions with other airports to expand the system.
At most Indian airports, passengers must obtain a paper boarding pass, either at the airport or via a web-based check-in process. The paper adds an extra layer of security since it is stamped by security officers so that flight-gate personnel can ensure that each passenger has completed the screening process. This paper-based process, however, can lead to long queues, according to Glory Nelson, SpiceJet's senior VP of IT. Passengers arrive at the airport up to three hours in advance of their flight, then line up in order to check with an airline and receive a boarding pass. Security officials inspect and stamp every pass, and airline personnel and security agents at the gate examine each stamp. Even if an airport accepts electronic boarding passes, passengers must use the app or the website to input their ID and check in.
All of this causes some inconvenience for passengers, Nelson says. SpiceJet is a budget airline with 38,000 to 40,000 passengers flying its aircraft daily—approximately one million passengers a month. "With the check-in process for any airline," she states, "you have to do something—you have to take action," such as waiting in line for check-in service, or keying in identification information at a kiosk, or on a smartphone or other device. "We wanted technology to transform this process. We thought, 'Why not let technology [provide check-in] automatically?'"
The company held some brainstorming sessions, Nelson says, before settling on a system that would use the airline's existing app (typically used for booking flights), as well as enable passengers to check in via that app and prompt them to get it done using beacons or NFC. Hyderabad Airport is among the first airports in India that does not require a paper boarding pass. It can accept an electronic pass (displayed on a mobile phone screen), and security personnel follow prompts in the airport's software to indicate that they have screened each passenger.
Airline employees at the gate can view that data upon scanning the QR code displayed on the electronic boarding pass, and thereby confirm that the individual has completed security screening. Because Hyderabad has a system in place for using electronic boarding passes, SpiceJet opted to launch its automated check-in system there. Software company Xebia helped SpiceJet to add the NFC and beacon functionality to the airline's existing content-management software.
Early this summer, SpiceJet installed Estimote beacons in several locations—at the departures unloading area outside the airport, and near the check-in desk for its flights.
First, a user must download the SpiceJet app on her Android or iOS device, at the Google Play or iTunes website. She can then book a flight on the app, and the system links that flight information to her personal data in SpiceJet's software. When she arrives at the airport and steps out of her car, the beacon within the area transmits its ID number to her phone, and the app determines her location based on that beacon's ID. The software then searches all flights scheduled for the next three hours, as well as the flight number linked to that individual's phone, and display the matching flight on that phone's SpiceJet app.
The app then asks the passenger to acknowledge that this is her flight. When she does so, she is automatically checked in and her boarding pass is stored in a file in the app. In that way, once she reaches the security officer, she can easily access the pass and show it to him.
If the passenger has a bag to check, she must still use the traditional method of printing a baggage tag at a check-in counter and dropping the luggage at the appropriate desk.
If the customer does not respond to the beacon transmission at the departures area, or if she fails to receive that transmission, she can still use the technology in the check-in area. An Estimote beacon is installed here as well, and the traveler can respond to the message linked to that beacon's transmission. Another option is for her to walk to a sign displayed in the area, and—provided that her phone has NFC technology built into it—she can tap the handset against the sign to launch the check-in process via the app.
The technology, put in place in early June, was offered to those already using the app to book flights. In late July, the system was announced publicly with a ceremony that included Shri Ashok Gajapathi Raju, India's union minister for civil aviation. Staff members at the airport are now encouraging passengers to try the new technology. To date, Nelson reports, only a few passengers per flight are using the system, but the numbers are increasing as awareness grows.
About 30 percent of those using the app are employing iOS devices, Nelson says, while 70 percent utilize the Android version. Of those with Androids, she notes, the majority appear to prefer the NFC technology, by which they tap their phone against the sign. However, she says, it is still too early to assess how much time may be saved for passengers using the system, or by SpiceJet's staff. "Our goal is to improve the customer experience and reduce congestion," he states, and the airline plans to continue determining how well the system is achieving that goal.
SpiceJet is also in conversations with other airports where the technology could be employed. Some airports are moving toward a system similar to the one deployed at Hyderabad Airport that would enable the use of electronic boarding passes, as opposed to printed paper versions.
