< Previous2019, more than 40% of all travel is booked wholly online. 5.4% of global travel sales goes towards paying third- party payment service providers. 5. Why old rules don’t apply to traveller loyalty Traveler loyalty will be a major bat- tleground in 2020, with technology a key diff erentiator. Travel brands will need to invest in technology to connect with customers to win their loyalty and lower acquisition costs. At the same time, big travel sellers are becoming ‘megas’, while smaller ones increasingly cover niche traveler needs. With so much choice out there for travelers, travel brands need to be smarter than ever about how they tar- get consumers, and technology will be absolutely key to their success. 6. Machines can’t replace the human touch While technology will provide un- precedented support for travellers, predicting behaviour, anticipating potential problems and providing solutions, people still prefer to deal with people. Consumer and business travellers’ expectations have been raised by their everyday experiences. The most successful travel brands will be the ones that can prove they under- stand their audiences inside out us- ing permissioned data and can build personalized, tailored off erings for them. Airlines (BA, Delta, Lufthansa) and companies (Vision-Box, Idemia) partner with airports to deploy biom- etric technology, especially at border control and boarding gates: over the next three years, 77% of airports and 71% of airlines are planning trials or full rollouts of biometric scanning sys- tems (SITA). Amadeus is working with airlines such as Lufthansa in this fi eld, and together managed to board 350 passengers on an A380 at Los Angeles Airport in just 20 minutes. 1. AI and machine-learning to communicate with customers As carriers strive to grow their foot- print while delivering fast service for customers, many have been trialing direct bookings and communica- tion with AI via text and WhatsApp. Mobile has transformed the way in which companies communicate with consumers and AI & ML are helping to improve this communication even further. Malaysian Airlines, with Amadeus, has launched MHchat, a new feature which helps travellers book fl ights and pay through Facebook Messenger (using AI). 2. If it’s not online, it never happened Instagram has more than 500 million active users daily sharing an average of 85 million photos a day (National Geographic). Travel photos incite new wanderlust in viewers, so much so ac- tually that 40% of Instagram users un- der 33 voted that ‘Instagrammability’ was one of their top factors in selecting a vacation destination (Travolution). With social media tak- ing an increasing hold on society, in- dustry players are working to provide a similar experience. Among younger generations and emerging economies, the smartphone has usurped the lap- top as the travel research, booking and content sharing platform of choice, so travel companies must think mobile- fi rst throughout the user experience. 3. More conscious travel Sustainability has become a deciding factor for individuals purchasing trav- el, and travel companies are adapting their off ers to refl ect this. From reduc- ing plastic in hotels, to the creation of sustainably-focused package holidays, consumers are off ered a wide choice when it comes to an eco-stay and are starting to hold companies account- able if they don’t meet requirements. 71% of travellers think travel compa- nies should off er consumers more sus- tainable travel choices. Dubai Airports recently announced that it will soon be free of single-use plastics in a bid to manage environmental impact. 4. A million ways to pay With the growth of on-the-go destina- tion driven purchases and the focus on in-destination support, the travel industry is ripe for payment innova- tion. Global fi ntech innovation is hap- pening at a rapid pace and there are now more than 300 diff erent ways to pay for travel across the world. As of Travel companies must think mobile-fi rst. Maher Koubaa, EVP Amadeus, META SIX TRENDS TO LOOK OUT FOR IN 2020 MAHER KOUBAA, EVP AMADEUS, META 2020 OUTLOOK 40 www.aviationbusinessme.com January 2020 · AVIATION BUSINESSto be a market challenge however that is out of our control. As with any market it is essential to do your research and keep up-to-date with local regulations. This is a very dynamic region and our local team of expert staff help to keep our aircraft owners fl ying on time. Examples include our UAE and Saudi licensed dispatchers who monitor the most ef- fi cient fl ying routes everyday (not an easy task given regional politics) and our maintenance team who are well versed with customs rules for expedi- tious delivery of aircraft parts. We are fortunate to have experienced fl eet growth in the Middle East with an Embraer Praetor 600 and Airbus 319 Corporate Jet soon joining our Saudi GACA Part 125 operation in 2019. The Praetor is the fi rst to be delivered to the region. We have also enhanced our mainte- nance capabilities with G650 coverage and off er wheel and battery servicing and overhaul from our FBO at Sharjah International Airport. Overall, 2019 brought a small increase in traffi c compared to 2018, despite geopolitical issues such as the Qatar embargo and a decrease in private fl ight activity out of Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia we expect more private aircraft to require aircraft management expertise for remaining compliant with the new GACA Part Rules. We have had a Saudi GACA part 125 operating certifi cate since 2017 and can help clients with turnkey aircraft management and op- eration in the Kingdom. There are still many foreign charter and aircraft management operators fl oating in the region competing with local operators such as ourselves, especially in high season during the winter. The increased supply with transient aircraft here tends to drive down charter rates to a point where it barely makes a return for the aircraft owners so we avoid the ‘race to the bottom’ approach and position our prices responsibly. I think by giving continued support to our industry as- sociation, MEBAA, and working with the local regulators, we can work to- wards protecting the local operators’ businesses, as is done in Europe and the USA. The Qatar embargo continues Oliver Hewson, commercial manager, Gama Gama expects growth in Saudi. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX SHOULDER-TO-SHOULDER WITH INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS OLIVER HEWSON, COMMERCIAL MANAGER, GAMA AVIATION I think by giving continued support to our industry association, MEBAA, and working with the local regulators, we can work towards protecting the local operators’ businesses” SAFETY FIRST Gama Aviation’s Middle East HQ made a signifi cant contribution to the group recently with a new hazard and risk reporting database. The team in the quality and safety department developed a hazard and risk register database, which allows for the analysis and continued monitoring of risk related to Gama’s activities. The database has been shown to GCAA inspectors as part of their assessment of Gama’s safety management system. The database has played a signifi cant role in the GCAA’s acknowledgment of the improvements made in the last year, to the extent that it will be using Gama’s eff orts in this area as an example of what is needed for other operators during their assessments. Safety risk management is centred on a systematic approach to hazard identifi cation and risk management, assessing the potential severity and likelihood of those hazards occurring and then implementing appropriate control measures to mitigate the risks to an acceptable level. As part of its initiative, Gama created a proactive safety risk management system, using the tools of hazard identifi cation, risk assessment and risk mitigation, across all functional areas of its FZC’s operations. Through the use of these tools it is possible to identify issues with potential to be harmful to Gama. It also details the need for investigation of incidents and occurrences and any deviation in expected and delivered service in order to further identify and resolve identifi ed hazards and risks. 2020 OUTLOOK 41 www.aviationbusinessme.com January 2020 · AVIATION BUSINESSfrom a very strict model to a very agile costing model. That has an impact on everything, even on maintenance. The other challenge will be the intro- duction and growth drones. Whether that will have a major impact on the industry, nobody knows yet. Bahrain has historically been a very small market but the big thing that it has is its location. We’re very well placed for the private aviation market. It makes us uniquely set. But Saudi Arabia is coming up and Saudi pretty much has everything that we have to off er today and it is a hugely growing market. We will of course be target- ing Saudi. Our shareholders are partly Saudi. But what we are doing is a little bit diff erent in that we are providing a platform for international players. We provide our own capabilities and then we link them with the capabili- ties of international partners. Then we do the local investment in terms of opening up the offi ces, so our interna- tional partners benefi t from that. We are looking for hangar operations in Saudi this year and that is where we are expanding. At the Dubai Airshow, the part I felt very proud of was the Saudi and UAE move into aerospace manufactur- ing. These are very high-end, niche markets. That will defi nitely attract investment. To be honest, the move there has been quite phenomenal. We have been working on developing our- selves as a local part- ner for global players. In the past, the relationships were totally diff erent and international players were looking at joint ventures in the region so they have a base here. This has changed dramatically be- cause a lot of the international players saw that doing business in the Middle East region requires a diff erent kind of legal structure that could cost them a lot of money. So a lot of them are looking for alternative structures. And that is what we provide. What I think is going to happen in 2020 is that the market will shift from the southern end of the Gulf to the mid-north; basically Saudi. I think that Saudi Arabia is opening up. The growth there is quite exponential in terms of aviation infrastructure. They know that aviation is very important, they know that it will take time to develop, so for the foreseeable future, aviation will be there. The other thing that we see is that the private and general aviation sectors are growing. To be honest, the biggest market shift is to the north. And that is where we are placing ourselves as MENA. In regards to the set-up of our servic- es and the opportunities we are look- ing at, our focus has moved from the conventional business aviation model to a model that is a hybrid between general aviation and business avia- tion. We think that the business avia- tion cycle, the second cycle that came in over the last 10 years, is coming to an end. People are not looking for pure ownership anymore. The ultra-high wealth individuals, that market is changing dramatically right now. So that is where we are placing ourselves. It’s quite a niche market on the busi- ness aviation side. Our focus has been on the eastern side of the Gulf but we will be focusing heavily on Saudi Arabia now. We’ve also seen technology on the IT side disrupting the market quite a lot, especially on the AI side. Businesses are changing their costing model Dr Mohammed Juman, MD, MENA Aerospace. MENA Aerospace invests in infrastructure so partners do not have to. MIDDLE EAST AVIATION TO MIGRATE NORTH DR MOHAMMED AHMED JUMAN, MANAGING DIRECTOR, MENA AEROSPACE What I think is going to happen in 2020 is that the market will shift from the southern end of the Gulf to the mid-north; basi- cally Saudi” 2020 OUTLOOK 42 www.aviationbusinessme.com January 2020 · AVIATION BUSINESSIt’s what’s inside that counts 25-26 February 2020 Dubai World Trade Centre, UAE FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @AIMIDDLEEAST CO-LOCATED WITH WWW.AIME.AERO ENTERTAINMENT TEXTILES LIGHTING FLOORING SEATING LAVATORIES CABIN TECHNOLOGIES WI-FI PASSENGER EXPERIENCE CHEMICALS GALLEY POINT CAMERA TO REGISTER THE MIDDLE EAST’S ONLY AIRCRAFT INTERIORS EVENTTHE HOME OF PRIVATE AVIATION AT THE SPEED OF BUSINESS T: +971 (0)4 870 1800 | www.dc-aviation.ae | An Al-Futtaim Joint Venture Al Maktoum International Airport | DWC | Aviation District | Dubai, UAE Passion for excellence is our trademark. In everything we do, our goal is to meet and surpass your expectations. Our highly trained staff are always on hand to ensure your complete satisfaction, both on the ground and in the air. Our unrivalled facilities located at Dubai World Central guarantee your utmost discretion, comfort and convenience every time you fly. AIRCRAFT HANGARISATION AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE AIRCRAFT MANAGEMENT CONSULTING SERVICES EXECUTIVE CHARTER FBO & HANDLING SERVICESNext >