IBM helps eliminate queues at airports

It`s the holiday season and thank goodness you`re flying, not driving. Pity about having to waste time in the check-in queues, though. Well, not for too much longer. IBM has developed self service check-in kiosks that are already being deployed by British Airways (BA) in 190 European destinations and are dropping check-in time to less than a minute.

There are no immediate plans to deploy such kiosks in South African airports, but IBM SA`s Gerard Dumont believes they`ll make an appearance sooner rather than later.

"There is generally less traffic at South African airports than in Europe or the United States, but the principle of being able to handle more passengers in less time and therefore save on costs applies everywhere in the world. And, like everyone else, our airports are always looking for ways to optimise space.

"Also, letting passengers use kiosks to do the commonest check-in tasks, like select their seats and meals and request upgrades, frees up ground staff to spend more time with passengers with more difficult requirements or those who are simply nervous about flying and need personal attention.

"That not only boosts airline efficiency, it also enables them to consolidate the positive experience both frequent and infrequent flyers have with the airline - thereby building loyalty to the airline.

"Initially, the kiosks will be a very distinctive way of differentiating service from one airline to another, but they will very quickly become a hygiene factor. Airlines that don`t offer their passengers kiosk options will lose market share."

IBM`s self service kiosks can be deployed either by airport companies or individual airlines. If installed by airport companies, they can be used as access points for a number of different airlines that agree to share the facilities.

Passengers operate the kiosks through touch screens, authenticating themselves by means of credit or airline loyalty cards as dictated by the organisation that owns the kiosk.

Dumont, who commutes every week between his home in Cape Town and his office in Johannesburg, believes that there is a large community of South Africans who regularly commute between the coastal cities and Johannesburg and would welcome a kiosk option.

"Every air commuter would like to reduce the eight or ten hours that they spend getting to and from the airport, in the airport and in the air. That`s almost one day a week lost to travel.

"Realistically, though, the car journey from home or office to the airport can`t be shortened much. And the flight itself takes as long as it takes. The only point at which you can save time is during the check-in.

"Airlines that help you save time - through kiosks or any other way - will be the ones to attract the passengers that spend the most money on flying."