Singapore Changi Airport and SITA partner for innovation

‘World’s best airport’ launches SITA’s next generation self-service and passenger processing technology

Global IT and communications provider SITA today announced a major partnership for innovation with Changi Airport Group (CAG),which manages Singapore’s Changi Airport. The project was implemented in a record five months in which both organizations collaborated to introduce the latest passenger processing and self-service technology in close cooperation with airline and ground handling partners.

Tan Lye Teck, Executive Vice President, Airport Management, Changi Airport Group, said: “We are always on the lookout for new ways to enhance the airport experience, and we leverage technology very extensively throughout Changi Airport to facilitate processes and provide passengers with a seamless travelling experience. At the same time, the use of technology also allows us to work closely with our airline partners to achieve efficiency and productivity gains, resulting in a win-win situation for all stakeholders at the airport. SITA is one of the leading players in the air transport industry, and CAG is very pleased to have SITA as one of its partners in Changi Airport’s innovation journey.”

Changi Airport has equipped more than 450 check-in counters and 111 boarding gates with SITA AirportConnect Open, the industry’s leading common-use system. Under the new agreement, airlines across three terminals at Changi Airport have migrated to this new platform, which uniquely supports both agent-assisted and self-service passenger processing.

SITA’s Airport iValidate technology, which is part of SITA’s wider business intelligence and passenger flow management solution at Changi, automatically verifies passengers’ paper and mobile bar-coded boarding passes to better facilitate the flow of passengers through airport security.

Ilya Gutlin, SITA President, Asia Pacific, said: “The Changi Experience is legendary. Not only does the airport provide exceptionally high levels of service quality, it is also a visionary airport which embraces new technology to improve the passenger experience. Changi trusted us with a challenging five-month migration to SITA’s technology across the airport, and I’m proud to say that our combined teams delivered on time. Now that our common-use and self-service systems are in place, we have a platform for future innovations in passenger processing, mobile technology and many other areas.”

SITA has enjoyed a presence in Singapore, which has served as the company’s Asia Pacific headquarters, since 1968. Home to one of SITA’s two Global Command Centers, Singapore provides mission-critical technology, communications and support for the entire air transport community, including air traffic control, border agencies, airlines and ground handlers.

Changi Airport, recently named by Skytrax as the ‘World’s Best Airport 2013,’ is the world’s seventh busiest airport in terms of international traffic. A major hub in Asia, it serves more than 100 airlines flying to more than 250 cities in about 60 countries and territories worldwide. In 2012, Changi Airport handled more than 51 million passenger movements, an annual record. A flight takes off or lands at Changi roughly once every 100 seconds. Changi Airport is the world’s most awarded airport with more than 420 accolades received since it opened in 1981.