KUCHING: Late arrivals, bad weather and the domino effect of operational inefficiencies are some of the reasons behind flight delays at airports, but technology is fast becoming the solution behind minimising delays to ensure smooth travels for both airlines and passengers alike.
According to Honeywell Aerospace’s senior director for Asia Pacific commercial aviation Sathesh Ramiah, late arrivals typically top the list because of the ripple effect – a flight that departed behind schedule will likely arrive behind schedule as well, and that will in turn delay the aircraft turnaround time, causing the next flight to depart late.
“Inclement weather is also usually the culprit, though congested air traffic, security related delays are frequent causes as well,” he told The Borneo Post in an interview.
“According to a statement by Malaysia’s Department of Civil Aviation, airspace constraints and large-scale weather anomalies were the cause for frequent flight delays from Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 in 2017, which typically happened in the morning, evening, and night.
“Airlines do try their best to plan for this, but given that any flight consists of an entire connected “ecosystem” of interdependent and interconnected functions such as pilots, flight crew, flight dispatchers, catering and cleaning crews, maintenance workers and so on out there, one problem in the flight planning process can have a negative domino effect and cause delays.”
Sathesh said flight delays are not only common in the region, they also affect all airports and airlines alike, regardless of location, and will likely increase in the near future.
“This is because Asia Pacific is forecasted to become the biggest driver of passenger demand for air travel over the next two decades, and this will only add to the congestion in the skies and airports, while putting pressure on current aviation infrastructures,” he added.
“On top of that, Asia Pacific is home to some of the most treacherous flying and landing conditions in the world with climates that take a huge toll on aircraft, unpredictable extreme weather conditions, and varied geographical limitations demanding full attention and careful precision from even the best pilots.”
He gave an example of Malaysia facing monsoons whereby during the season, heavy rain and dark clouds obstruct pilots’ vision making it more difficult to navigate, while flying through strong winds and heavy clouds may also result in turbulence.
“Landings can be especially difficult in a monsoon since it can be difficult for pilots to see terrain and other obstacles surrounding the runway,” he said. “Combined, these factors pose a huge challenge to all carriers servicing the region, premium or low cost,” he added.
“Technology is amazing in what it can help us to achieve, whether it is helping the airline communicate better with its passengers, or pilots to the ground crew and airport operators.
“At Honeywell, we help create new technologies and applications that airlines can incorporate to improve flight efficiencies. We’re talking safer flight operations, faster aircraft turnarounds, optimisation of fleet availability, and much more, by using data in smarter and more impactful ways.”
As two of the biggest contributors to flight delays are inclement weather and unforeseen maintenance issues, Sathesh opined that airlines should focus on using the right technologies to address these problems.
“Honeywell has been developing technologies that make flying safer and more efficient for more than 100 years. Our goal is to help airline operators and their teams maintain flights that are perfectly in key.
“To help give pilots a clearer view of their flight path, Honeywell is able to equip aircraft with an advanced IntuVue 3D Weather Radar that shows a 3D display of the weather and scans the skies around the aircraft up to 60,000 feet.
“This technology helps predict developing hail and lightning in a storm five to 10 minutes before they occur, with more than 90 per cent accuracy — giving pilots ample time to reroute for a safer and smoother flight.
“It is also able to reduce turbulence-related incidents by more than 45 per cent, through providing pilots enhanced turbulence detection, so that they can make quicker avoidance decisions.”