Houston Airports manages services at George Bush Intercontinental, IAH, and William P. Hobby, HOU, airports with a vision to ‘establish Houston as a five-star global air service gateway where the magic of flight is celebrated.’ To best deliver on this vision, Houston Airports is partnering with Amadeus to create a next-generation airport experience.
Passengers flying from Bush Airport’s terminals A and D, as well as Hobby Airport, will soon have the option to check in, drop their bags, enter airline lounges, and board their aircraft without interacting with agents or providing paper documents. Instead, by enrolling for biometrics the passenger’s face becomes their boarding pass and passport, making their journey through the airport quick, simple, and smooth.
This robust transformation sees Houston’s airports upgrade from legacy on-site IT to Amadeus’ flexible cloud infrastructure. By moving to the cloud, Houston Airports simplifies how airlines connect to its biometric check-in desks, bag drops and boarding gates, which airlines can now achieve through a single integration to Amadeus. More than 230 check-in positions will be connected this way, with 110 of them offering biometric technology.
New check-in kiosks, Auto Bag Drop units, and e-boarding gates powered by Amadeus will be installed as part of the new single platform. This means passengers can choose the airport experience that’s right for them, from fully agent-serviced to a completely biometric self-service at every step, or a combination.
Darryl Daniel, chief technology officer, Houston Airports, commented, “Advanced technology equates to shorter lines, greater efficiency, and a vastly improved passenger experience. Using this innovative technology allows us to make the airport journey more seamless, touchless and intuitive and is of great value for our passengers, air carriers and airport partners.
Betros Wakim, senior vice president, Americas, Airport IT, added, “By placing the passenger’s entire end-to-end experience at the heart of its strategy, Houston Airports is applying new technology that puts Houston at the forefront of the industry. We’re pleased to help Houston Airports deliver on its vision for a simple and intuitive passenger experience, with flexible technology that automates services and drives efficiencies, benefiting airlines and their passengers.”
The initial phase of Houston Airport Services’ passenger processing transformation is already underway.
Amadeus has invested significantly in Amadeus Flow, which combines modern hardware and software services in a single cloud platform, significantly reducing the complexity of passenger processing technology for airlines and airports. By connecting airlines and airports more easily via a single platform, current and future innovations like contactless, integrated payments, biometrics, and off-airport services become much easier to deliver for passengers.
