After a total shutdown of air travel of 2020, the aviation industry is gradually recovering and becoming more affordable and desirable. Aviation employs an estimated 65.5m workers worldwide, with 10.8m of those jobs being indirect suppliers to the industry.
In 2019, airlines worldwide carried over 4.5 billion passengers and earned $550 billion of revenue. And while before Covid, IATA predicted a doubling of passenger traffic to 2037, the new prediction has adjusted the date to 2040.
And while a lot of trends already emerged due to the pandemic directly, American engineering company NTS outlined the key general trends in global aviation:
1. Service for niche markets
Aviation has to adapt its “traditions” to modern trends and needs. Thanks to the business model’s strategic diversification airlines will be able to cater to passengers and logisticians, increase profits on international cargo transportation and get into one or more potential niche markets:
- Low-cost air travel. The market is not new, but in the future, it will go beyond short-haul to medium-haul and long-haul transcontinental flights;
- “Premium economy”. More comfort for less money than in the classic premium class, it is a model of reasonable consumption and responsible attitude towards the environment;
- Cargo transportation. Global trade is leading to increased demand for cargo transportation – particularly, by planes. Mostly, we can see the rise of this demand in rapidly developing regions such as Asia-Pacific. So, with a positive development, cargo transportation will definitely have its impact on the future of the aviation industry.
2. Environmental awareness
Even though airlines contribute only 2 percent of the world’s carbon emissions a lot of people believe that aviation is a serious threat to ecology. Nevertheless, the industry is trying to do its best to reduce CO2 and to be involved in ecology initiatives.
IATA, individual leading airlines, airports, are working on developing broad ecology policies to reduce their environmental impact and become more sustainable. That is to say to cut CO2 emissions by 50 percent by 2050 in comparison with 2005 levels.
And some companies even say that they’re planning to bring their emission down to 0% in the same period. Individual manufacturers have set an even bigger goal of zero emissions by 2050.
Here are some of the innovations which could be used to achieve such a goal:
- Biofuels. Some airlines now operate scheduled routes using biofuels such as waste oil.
- Energy-efficient engines. It is simple – the more efficient engine a plane has, the less fuel it will consume and therefore the less emission it will produce.
- Carbon offsets. Some airlines are using their communication channels to urge passengers to donate some money to environmental initiatives such as reforestation.
3. More jobs
According to the survey among international aviation human resources professionals conducted by IATA, 3/4 of respondents hope that number of jobs in the industry will increase in the next few years. Meanwhile, the number of pilots will also increase, despite the sagging and massive layoffs in 2020.
The main reasons for it are:
- Increased aircraft repair and service volumes
- generational change due to gradual retirement of “baby boomers”
- increased demand for pilots
4. The implementation of biometrics
It is no secret that airport passenger security is the No.1 priority in aviation. Therefore, the industry is always looking for new technologies which could help to keep everyone safe and conduct security procedures as fast as possible at the same time. And biometrics is one of the keys to achieving that.
Thanks to biometrics, airport security can do their job more quickly and waiting times and queues should sufficiently reduce. Another new trend is automated monitoring of human health (temperature measurements, express testing for viruses) with data entered into a single database, which will allow all countries to better track the “migration” of viruses.
This would effectively support all the other airlines’ efforts to keep flights safe in time of the pandemic.
5. Intelligent cockpits
Cockpit connectivity helps ground operators control different systems of the plane. Thanks to that they plan and perform airport services faster and more efficiently. In essence, this feature is important because it helps to avoid disruptions to the schedule.
Knowing how long it will take to maintain an aircraft will enable ground operators to make better decisions about the cancellation or delay of all flights. At the same time, it would be easier to rearrange the schedule in case of cancellation, mitigating its impact. So expenses for implementation of the technology will be probably paid off by saving billions of dollars.
6. Maintenance is expensive
Maintenance is a huge expenditure item for airlines. Inefficient maintenance could add billions of dollars to the expenses of an airline in annual quantities. To contain all kinds of costs, airlines are already practising a smart attitude to Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO), which helps to improve its efficiency. Major MRO trends:
- Drone-assisted aircraft exterior inspection
- Online tracking of aircraft exterior condition
- Predictive maintenance with digital twin technology
7. Aviation standards and testing
Safety is undoubtedly the number one priority for airlines and aircraft manufacturers. To make aviation as safe as possible, consumers and industry experts must ask hard questions about how to improve aircraft safety with advanced testing technology to raise standards in the industry.
The only way to do this is to improve aircraft testing and subsequently implement improved standards coming from rigorous testing. By 2023, the aerospace testing market will reach an estimated $5.4 billion. Here are some trends in aerospace testing:
- The creation of new materials. The aerospace testing market should constantly improve material testing capabilities.
- Compliance with required standards. There are strict aviation safety and certification regulations around the world that airlines must adhere to. Airlines should continue to work with aerospace experts to update testing practices to the latest safety standards.
Partnering with aerospace experts has never been more important to the aviation industry than it is today. It’s about aviation event prevention.
To summarise:
Given the extraordinary “post-crisis” period that has affected aviation and all related industries, major forecasts have adjusted.
However, a window of opportunity always appears in times of crisis, and industrial businesses and organisations are rushing to adapt. Thanks to aviation industry experts, it is already possible to understand today what the demand for certain services and products will be, as well as what will happen to personnel and what the global trends are.
Author Taylor Brouwer is an experienced author, majoring in transport and economy. Used to work in transportation companies across Virginia, USA. Currently works at Writemyessay.nyc as a content writer.- buy essay papers .
Photo by Luka Slapnicar on Unsplash
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