Brussels Airport and Virgin Atlantic Airways: The secret behind their great passenger experiences

Air travel volume is on the rise. The future of the aviation industry promises to be exciting – IATA predicts that the number of passengers will double by 2036.

But is your organisation equipped to handle the massive increase in traffic without sacrificing passenger experience? When great passenger experience is a powerful differentiator that separates you from competitors, you can’t afford to answer ‘no’.

Picture this scene: Your passengers are efficiently served at your airport from beginning to end. With sufficient number of counters and lanes open, your passengers can clear every check point quickly. Queues are short. Passengers are relaxed and have time to explore retail and dining outlets. Flights take off on time. Taking a connecting flight is a stress-free experience and retrieving baggage is swift.

These are ground operations that are optimised for the satisfaction of your passengers, even as volume continues to climb.

Let’s take a quick look at two big names in the aviation industry and see how they have improved their operations to cope with growing demand, with the help of Quintiq.

Brussels Airport
Brussels Airport needed to optimise the usage of its resources. With Quintiq, the airport is able to plan its 162 check-in desks and 54 gates with greater efficiency and flexibility.

Through its built-in intelligence, the Quintiq solution takes into account many variables, including special requirements of airlines and available check-ins and gates. Quintiq interfaces with the central airport operational database (AODB), so it’s able to automatically update plans with new information from various partners.

Brussels Airport can now deliver a much higher level of customer service for both airlines and passengers. Since implementation, the airport has seen better planning efficiency and resource utilisation.

Virgin Atlantic Airways
Virgin Atlantic Airways uses Quintiq to optimise planning of its ground staff at London Heathrow Airport Terminal 3. Using a demand-driven approach to staff planning that takes its lead from the flight schedule, the airline’s planners can combine a future flight schedule with the predicted number of passengers to identify tasks that need to be covered.

The queuing of passengers at check-in is now better managed, as the system suggests the number of check-in desks to be opened based on predicted demand. This visibility of demand also allows planners to evaluate the headcount requirements of future schedules. In addition, planners are equipped to make informed decisions on the day of operations to make sure that scheduled staff coverage meets the demand derived from the flight schedule.

With Quintiq, the airline is on track to realise its vision of offering the best passenger experience while keeping staff happy and costs low.

Click here to find out more of Quintiq’s strategies to prepare your operations for future air passengers.