FTE Global – the “CES of Aviation” which took place in Long Beach on 28-30 October 2024 – concluded with the FTE Americas Innovate Awards. These landmark awards are truly unique and are the industry’s definitive innovation platform. Airlines and airports competed head-to-head with their peers, shining a light on their latest innovation efforts. There were three awards categories: Alaska Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Envoy Air/American Airlines Group were shortlisted for Most Innovative Airline Initiative; Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and Tampa International Airport were shortlisted for Most Innovative Airport Initiative; and Aurrigo International, Gameway, Foundations Worldwide, DataArt and Kquika were shortlisted for Best New Transformative Concept. Each of the shortlisted entrants pitched on-stage in Long Beach in an effort to impress our judges – Raza Ali, VP Innovation, International Airlines Group (IAG); Manuel van Lijf, Director Aviation Innovation, nlmtd; and Steve Armitage, Head of Technology Design & Innovation, Heathrow – and our audience, whose all-important votes decided who won.
Most Innovative Airline Initiative – Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines – a Partner of the FTE Baggage Innovation Working Group – received the Most Innovative Airline Initiative award, which was collected by Bernadette Berger, Director of Innovation, Alaska Airlines, after delivering a pitch on the carrier’s world-first Generative AI flight search tool – Alaska Inspires.
Drawing from Alaska Airlines’ rich customer data, destination recommendations are synthesised and hyper-personalised, as a key tool in the airline’s drive to proactively improve the complete customer journey. Alaska Inspires is also driving new revenue, with email campaigns promoting the tool generating $1million in revenue within one month. Alaska Airlines is moving ahead to the Proactive Era of AI, developing guest-facing AI-powered tools. As the first airline to launch a Gen AI flight search tool, Alaska Airlines sets itself apart in the industry, signalling a commitment to providing experiences that are truly tailored to its guests.
Most Innovative Airport Initiative – Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) – a Corporate Partner of the FTE Digital, Innovation & Startup Hub – was recognised for its unique in-house innovation lab and custom hardware solutions, with Christian Kessler, Airports Transformation & Innovation Division Manager, MWAA, and Patrick Skelton, Innovation Research & Development Program Manager, MWAA, collecting the Most Innovative Airport Initiative award.
In their pitch, Kessler and Skelton explained that MWAA’s in-house innovation lab creates custom sensors and other electronics tailored to its airports’ specific needs. MWAA focuses on rapid prototyping, hands-on testing, and real-world application, with a priority on low-cost development with big returns in terms of operational efficiency, customer experience and commercial performance. The innovation lab puts the power to solve problems back in the operators’ hands. However, the success is more than just the individual projects and the cost savings over the traditional approach that they have created. The innovation lab has energised an existing, but underutilised, reservoir of talents and ideas from MWAA’s own employees.
Best New Transformative Concept – Aurrigo
Tenille Houston, VP Public Relations and Communications, Aurrigo (a Partner of the FTE Baggage Innovation Working Group), collected the Best New Transformative Concept award. Aurrigo was recognised for its Auto-DollyTug smart airside solution leveraging the latest autonomous tech.
Auto-DollyTug is a zero-emission, all-electric, autonomous baggage and cargo tractor. In the Aurrigo pitch, Houston shared that, with its robotic arms, Aurrigo is the first company to offer automated loading and unloading of a unit load device (ULD), delivering a fully autonomous solution. The vehicles are currently on the ground and being put through their paces at six airports, enhancing operational efficiency, customer experience, commercial performance and sustainability. Feedback from the live trials is proving that the Auto-DollyTug can operate in the demanding and complex environments of some of the busiest airports in the world and will deliver on the promise of boosting efficiency, reducing accidents and solving labour shortages.