enhancing the passenger experience at milan malpensa and linate

Giorgio Medici

Customer Care ManagerSEA Milan Airports, Italy

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Passenger Flow Management to Enhance Passenger Experience at Milan Malpensa

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In 1988, The author Douglas Adams once wrote*:

“It can hardly be a coincidence that no language on earth has ever produced the expression As pretty as an airport.Airports are ugly. Some are very ugly. Some attain a degree of ugliness that can only be the result of a special effort. This ugliness arises because airports are full of people who are tired, cross and have just discovered that their luggage has landed in Murmansk (Murmansk airport is the only exception of this otherwise infallible rule) and architects have on the whole tried to reflect this in their designs”(*The long Dark Tea-time of the Soul – 1988)

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1988 - 2013

25 years have passed since then and arguably, ugliness is no-longer the principle feature of any single airport, but finding the correct answer to the

recurring question:

‘what really makes an airport a great airport?’

is still no trivial matter.

Hence Improving Passenger Experience is developing into something of a ‘mantra’

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The role of Passenger Flow managementin Passenger Experience Improvement

• Milan Malpensa has a history of customer satisfaction analysis which clearly states that on the whole we offer our passengers an ‘acceptable’ experience.

• Milan Airports’ performance indicators (flight punctuality, baggage delivery, mishandled baggage rate, etc.) place Malpensa amongst the better performing European Airports which encourages us to invest even further in Customer Satisfaction.

• queuing times at check-in, security and passport control undergo strict supervision: and we know that long and unpredictable waiting times translate into a worrying and stressful experience for the passenger.

• We also like to reduce stress for our commercial directors who are delighted when good time management and communication skills leave passengers with plenty of time to spend (time and money) in the retail areas prior to boarding.

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Passenger flow Management: a strategic issue

E.R.A. and Airport Passenger Service Charter make Passenger Process measurement mandatory .

Standards for queuing time at check-in, security and passport controls, are set and controlled by National Civil Aviation Authority

Aviation Business evolution, Airports compete to provide better Passenger Experience. Improved Passenger Experience means increased commercial revenue and improved Company reputation. Resulting in greater potential appeal for traffic.

Good Passenger Experience is strongly based on service time reliability and feeling comfortable whilst using terminal facilities, from curb to gate.

Commercial Directors are happier when passenger can spend more time in commercial areas, without hurrying to reach gate.

So queuing time management and good communication skills (re terminal crossing time) are strategic issues

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The actual tracking in Malpensa

Check-in• Manual sample queuing time tracking

Security Lane• Bluetooth sample queuing time tracking• 2D Bar code readers Boarding card data (check-validity and time stamp)

Passport control• Manual sample queuing time tracking

Boarding control• Open – close boarding time log

Sibyl by

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The data tracking in Malpensa final configurationCheck-in

• Automatic sample queuing time tracking (image processing or wireless device tracking )

Security Lane• BlueFi sample queuing time tracking• 2D Bar code readers for Boarding card data (check-validity and time stamp)

Passport control• BlueFi sample queuing time tracking• 2D Bar code readers for Boarding card data (check-validity and time stamp)

Boarding control• 2D Bar code readers for Boarding card data

?

Sibyl by

Sibyl by

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Sibyl by

On Passenger side - Up-date time-to-gate information

Improving the process, data collected automatically 24/7 weekly, collected data used to inform passengers on real-time to gate from any given point inside the terminal.

• Peripheral FIDS will produce time to gate from any point where they are installed along the passenger path.

• Automated info points will provide flight status information and time-to-gate, by simply scanning the boarding bar code of any media the passenger uses.

QUEUING TIME AT

CHECK-IN

WALKING TIME FROM

CHECK-IN TO SECURITY

QUEUING TIME AT

SECURITY CHECK POINT

WALKING TIME FROM

SECURITY TO PASSPORT

QUEUING TIME AT

PASSPORT CONTROL

WALKING TIME FROM

PASSPORT CONTROL TO

GATE

MY TIME TO GATE

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The challenge: expected queuing time calculation

Assuming that technology can provide reliable queuing-time to match passenger expectations and cater for the Airport’s needs, we are left with the following issues:

When I leave check-in to go through security and passport control, technology tells me the current queuing time

Similarly to Zurich and Copenhagen Malpensa will have a SINGLE common shopping area (after security controls, prior to passport control and gates). Covering a walking distance of 200 m. In order to relax whilst in the retail area I need to know what the queue situation will be like

in 15 or 30 mins time when I will have finished shopping! The queue may be increasing rapidly due to two or more large aircrafts boarding in the following half hour (an A380 combined with a B777 can create quite a queue!). Such precise queuing forecast serves to a) speed passengers along to gate or b) encourage

them to spend their time and money in shops and restaurants.A reliable and accurate “My Time to Gate” forecast should create a comfortable sensation for passengers prior to boarding.

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The approach: evaluating queuing at passport control

SibylTime Stamps

Data(Security)

PassportControl

WorkstationShifts

ChromaACDB Queuing Data

(Passport)

ChromaACDBQueuing data

(Passport)

ProcessBehaviour

Traffic Data

SibylTransit Time

Data(Security toPassport)

PassportControl

WorkstationShifts

MyTimeTo Gate

Real-TimeData

HistoricalData

Move to Gate

My Positionin the Terminal

Estimated queuing times

from now to boarding

Move to GateIn XX Min

Traffic Data

OR

My Flight

What isthe time?

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What Airport asks to Technology providers

Accurate information about passenger flows is based on these essential aspects:

• Reduced detection costs • Increased sample rate• Precise data to comprehend passenger behavior (without violating privacy

constraints)

As the project develops these goals are more and more realistic.Now the real challenge is to develop tools able to predict precise passenger flows useful for both planning and time management.

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At the gate; flight closure.Missing passenger times can be estimated using boarding card data scanned at security filters.

For example:

If a passenger has not yet passed security control and queuing time is short

airlines can decide to close boarding presuming that the passenger was not sufficiently

punctual to make the flight; this is even more accurate for LCC WEB checked passengers

If a passenger has not yet passed security control and queuing time is lengthy

last call and attempts to get in touch with the passenger at security lanes could be evaluated

before closing the flight.

Combining queuing time data with checked boarding passes at security filters will provide precious information for operational and commercial purposes

Immediate benefits from the Airport point of view

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Immediate benefits from the Airport point of view

Planning commercial offer.Accurate data about how many passengers walk through a specific retail area can help

structure a more effective offer.

Data generated by scanning boarding passes gives precise number of

passengers per flight entering commercial areas

Detailed queuing time data can support decisions to invest further on security process leading to increased airside

shopping time.

Combining queuing time data with checked boarding passes at security filters will provide precious information for operational and commercial purposes

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Data analysis at Terminal 2 in Malpensa

Tuesday 24thJuly Terminal 2 Malpensa

One Bagcontrol

17 passengersTracked.Av 9 mins

Max 34 mins

EasyJetFirst Wave

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Monday 23rdJuly Terminal 1Malpensa

Lunch breakwrong shift planning

Charter FlightsOK

IntercontinentalFlight departures:

wrong shift planning

28 passengersTracked.

Av 18 minsMax 28 mins


Av 20minsMax 34 mins

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Sunday 29thJulyTerminal 1Malpensa

Lunch breakAcceptable

shift planningCharter Flights

IntercontinentalFlight departures:

Acceptableshift planning


Av 12minsMax 17 mins

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We are confident that sometime soon passengers departing from Malpensa will sit back in their plane

seat, buckle up and exclaim:

‘Ah Malpensa , what a pretty airport!’

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