According to the SITA 2017 Air Transport IT Trends Insights report, airports and airlines are slated to spend nearly $33 billion on IT investments this year, with a focus on cloud services, mobile services, self-service and security. Spending is up 3.3 percent for airlines, and a little more than 5 percent for airports. When asked about future spending, the majority plans to increase spending or keep spending at the same level.

In regard to mobile services, most airlines currently provide mobile check-in, boarding and flight status notifications and, by 2020, the number is only expected to grow, until more than 97 percent of airlines offer these features. However, the most impressive growth for airlines is seen in those offering real-time flight updates via social media; currently, 31 percent of airlines offer this, but 92 percent plan to do so by 2020.

Meanwhile, 89 percent of airports are investing in IT features that improve the airport experience, such as self-service at check in, bag drop and boarding.

“The air transport industry is going through digital transformation and focusing its attention on protecting the business and passengers; making it more efficient; and improving the passenger experience. Cyber-attacks are a very real threat in the highly interwoven air transport industry so building solid defenses is essential. Cloud services provide important efficiencies which play a key role in keeping costs down. Investments in self-service improve passenger satisfaction as they welcome the independence and efficiencies it delivers,” said Ilya Gutlin, president, air travel solutions, SITA. “When it comes to IT investment, airports and airlines are aligned to provide better, more secure service to customers. The interdependencies built into air transport systems mean investments and improvements in all these areas, by airlines and airports alike, will continue to contribute to a strong global industry.”