The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has shared some good news regarding the further facilitating of contactless travel for all.
In the past, it has introduced a couple of initiatives for travel verification and documentation systems solely to facilitate the ease of contactless travel.
These initiatives have also gone a long way to improve the passenger experience in the countries where they are being tested.
Where the document checking process is concerned, it has been fully automated and offers tailored instructions to each traveling passenger.
Timatic
In order to facilitate the personalized instructions, Timatic’s structure was designed once again from scratch.
Consequently, it was updated to reflect a couple of automation and other relevant changes and is now known as Timatic AutoCheck.
As per IATA, the new and improved system is going to set a new standard for travel compliance.
Thus, it will provide a user-friendly experience to all for the purpose of accurate information regarding immigration.
As a result, the stakeholders likely to benefit from the introduction of Timatic AutoCheck are industry professionals, as well as travelers.
The IATA went on to disclose the projections made while researching on the new product, saying that passenger traffic has been forecasted to go up by 100% in 2040.
It further emphasized that there is a dire need to optimize and enhance airport procedures due to the evolving digital landscape.
IATA
On this note, the organization took to stating that verifying the travel documentation of passengers is one of the most time-consuming processes in the industry.
Thus, travelers going to and from airports are likely to benefit the most from additional automation.
In addition, the new features introduced as part of the AutoCheck are hoped to bring about a significant change and help move in the direction of contactless travel.
Moreover, a survey was recently conducted by the travel association, which revealed that 87% of passengers are willing to share information regarding immigration if it will help speed up the process of being able to board.
This figure shows an increase of 4%, as compared to the one taken back in 2022.
The survey further unveiled that in case of obtaining necessary visas, 66% of the respondents prefer to get them online before they travel. Meanwhile, 20% wish to obtain their visas by visiting an embassy or consulate.
Lastly, 14% of people tend to go to the airport and get their visa before they board.
Travelers
Frederic Lager, the Senior Vice President of Commercial Products and Services at IATA, stated that Timatic AutoCheck capitalizes on the willingness of travelers to share information in advance and use online processes.
Consequently, this allows the organization to enable ground handlers, airlines, travel agents, and departure control systems, the chance to enjoy an online and customer-friendly solution.
This allows travelers to check that they are compliant with all relevant immigration requirements before they take off for the airport.
Lager further believes that Timatic AutoCheck can go a long way in boosting convenicne and efficiency in the travel industry.
