6 Ways Technology Is Redefining Ground Support Operations
From artificial intelligence and digital twins to wireless charging and shared electric fleets, innovation is reshaping how ground support operations are designed, managed, and executed. Technology is no longer just improving efficiency, it is actively changing safety culture, operational models, and long-standing assumptions about how work gets done on the ramp.
The following stories highlight six examples of that shift in action. Together, they show how data, electrification, and new ways of thinking about equipment ownership and infrastructure are pushing ground support toward a more connected, safer, and more resilient future.
1. Alaska Airlines Uses AI-Driven Technology to Transform Ramp Safety Culture
Through the innovative use of Samsara's artificial intelligence and in-cab coaching technology, Alaska Airlines is cutting unsafe driving behaviors by more than 70% and transforming its ramp culture in the process.
2. JFK Terminal 6 Ushers in First-Ever Pooled Electric GSE Fleet in North America
With the first gates set to open on John F. Kennedy International Airport’s new Terminal 6 (T6) in 2026, the facility will debut as the first North American terminal to operate a pooled, all-electric fleet of ground support equipment (GSE). The plan, developed by JFK Millennium Partners (JMP) in partnership with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) and operated by Fortbrand Services, reimagines how airlines and handlers interact with the very tools that keep aircraft moving.
3. Revolutionizing Aviation Ground Support with Digital Twin Technology
Aviation ground support operations demand precision, efficiency, and safety. Technology offers transformative solutions to these complex challenges. Nick Karakulko, senior director of critical infrastructure projects & transportation with Hexagon, talks about how their digital twin and LIDAR capabilities are set to reshape ground handling, moving toward a more automated, safer, and data-driven future.
4. Wireless Charging Brings a New Layer of Safety to Electric GSE
As the aviation industry moves steadily toward electrification, one challenge continues to surface across airports, ports and industrial operations: how to charge growing fleets without adding clutter, safety hazards or downtime. WiTricity, a company that has spent more than a decade advancing wireless power transfer, believes it has the answer.
5. Ingenext Electrifies Ground Support Equipment Using Repurposed EV Motors
A new approach to electrifying aviation ground support equipment (GSE) is being brought to the industry by Canadian engineering firm Ingenext and U.S.-based distributor True North GSE are teaming up to retrofit baggage tractors, belt loaders and other airport vehicles using salvaged electric vehicle (EV) components, giving both the GSE and the EV motors a second life.