70% of air passengers want self-service while on a journey

The most comprehensive global survey ever undertaken of passenger use of air transport self-service technology has found popular demand is now reaching out into non-traditional areas of self-service as airline passengers demonstrate their increasing ease with online, kiosk and mobile phone channels.

 

While online booking and check-in are nearing their full potential, there is now a clear demand from the travelling public for self-service on other steps of the passenger journey including automated security checks, which are now acceptable to 70% of respondents compared to 58% in last year's survey.

 

Similarly, the demand for automatic boarding gates is now at 70% compared to 57% last year.

 

Two-thirds of survey respondents would use kiosks for other purposes including booking/changing a flight; purchasing additional services (e.g. baggage fees, meals), printing bag tags; self-transfer; claiming delayed baggage.

In addition, there has been dramatic year-on-year growth in the percentage of passengers using airline websites to book hotels, up from 21% in 2009, to 38% in this year's survey; car rental, 19% to 35%. Similar growth is being recorded in other ancillary revenue streams including purchase of travel insurance, bus and train tickets and duty free items.

 

This year's SITA/Air Transport World Passenger Self-Service Survey includes two new airports: China's Beijing International Airport which served 65.3 million passengers last year and Germany's busiest airport, Frankfurt, which had 50.9 million passengers.

 

The 5th annual SITA/Air Transport World Passenger Self-Service Survey is an in-depth look at the attitudes and habits of a representative sample of the 287.6 million passengers who use seven leading international airports. It includes previous survey participants: Hartsfield-Jackson, Atlanta; Mumbai International; Moscow Domodedovo; Sao Paulo Guarulhos, Brazil; and OR Tambo Airport, Johannesburg.