Home Knowledge Airport Preparing for disruptive events of the future with data

Preparing for disruptive events of the future with data

The Covid pandemic has been an incredibly disruptive event for airports and many are still feeling the ramifications of its impact. How can airports be better prepared for disruptions of the future?

Disclaimer: This text was originally written in English and translated using AI.

Article summary

The Covid‑19 pandemic revealed how vulnerable airports are to major disruptions, highlighting the need for better preparation through technology‑driven and data‑enabled operations.
Isavia argues that airports must use data analytics more effectively to take timely action, manage limited staffing and improve asset utilisation and maintenance.
Extending automation across all airport processes — from check‑in to apron activities — is essential, with existing intelligent technologies needing better adaptation to the airport ecosystem.
A positive post‑pandemic development is stronger stakeholder integration through connected systems, increasing airport agility and resilience against future disruptive events.

By BEUMER Group

For Isavia, the owner of Iceland’s Keflavik Airport, the answer lies in technology and data use. Automating all processes and sharing data among stakeholders, will enable airports to better sustain disruptive events.

According to Isavia’s Director of Assets and Infrastructure, Maren Másdóttir, data will assist airports in issues such as limited staffing during upheavals. Másdóttir says:

“We’re gathering data but we’re not necessarily utilising it correctly or as much as we should. We need to be using data analytics to ensure we’re taking the right action at the right time, with the right people and that we’re getting the right information from our assets to utilise and maintain them as efficiently as possible.”

Furthermore, says Másdóttir, airports need to extend automation to all their operations – at check in, prior to check in, after sortation, on the apron. The intelligence exists but needs to be adapted to the airport community.

Másdóttir notices a welcome development that has come from the pandemic – stakeholders are connecting through integrated systems, making airports more agile than before.