To set the stage, what are some of the current challenges that the aviation industry is facing? 
 

The airline industry is facing a number of challenges, varying from geopolitical issues in our increasingly interconnected world to currency exchange fluctuations and fuel price spikes. These factors, taken together, are impacting the bottom line. In spite of these challenges, we have managed to introduce efficiencies across our business and boosted demand to sustain a good seat factor.  

 

Moving forward, we need to continuously examine our operations and look at opportunities to enhance our business.   Fuel costs will remain the biggest portion of our operating costs, which we will need to closely monitor. In spite of all of this, we will remain focused on finding opportunities and introducing automation to our operations to enhance efficiencies and improve our customer loyalty base. 
 

What are your predictions for airline engineering in the Middle East in terms of growth, challenges and opportunities?
 

Middle East commercial airline engineering continues to expand due to a number of factors, which includes passenger, fleet growth and the growing average age of aircraft. As fleet numbers increase, many aircraft are due for major checks, repainting, or engine overhauls, keeping many MROs and engineering centres, especially Emirates, busy with the need to expand in capabilities. The challenge is the availability of adequate facilities and skills to support that growth whether it is done by the airlines or through third parties.  

What plans does Emirates Engineering have to address these? How much investment do you predict will be required to achieve this?
 

Emirates Engineering is tasked to maintain the world’s largest fleet of Boeing 777s and A380s, and over the years it has built the competency and infrastructure to create efficiencies and productivity gains across all lines of maintenance related to the airframe and engine. Emirates Engineering is the most experienced and equipped MRO provider in the world for the iconic A380 with over 106 c-checks completed to date, and we have extended our services to other airlines. We continue to expand our capabilities, develop our resources, relying on our in-house apprenticeship programmes, and adopting new data-driven technologies like aircraft health monitoring, predictive maintenance, 3D printing of parts, amongst others, to drive and optimise efficiencies. 
 

What technologies do you predict will impact the aircraft engineering and MRO industry most in the next five years?
 

Predictive maintenance in its various forms, powered by Artificial Intelligence and introduction of robotics will be business critical technologies for Emirates over the next few years. We have been moving towards streamlining our maintenance processes and driving efficiencies, and predicative maintenance will help us achieve these objectives by leveraging data from our aircraft, applying diagnostics filters to analyze the information and provide real-time solutions so we can troubleshoot early on. This in turn optimises activities across our supply chain, enables resourceful planning of aircraft parts inventory, and reduces our overall maintenance costs. 

What kind of innovations do you predict in the future given evolving customer preferences?

In the future, we will be looking to further adopt ways to make the passenger experience more streamlined at every touchpoint. From quick and efficient check-in, biometric screening, customised messaging directly on smart devices as passengers make their way along to their departure gate, to a more intuitive boarding process.  Customer facing robots will also provide on the spot assistance to passengers throughout their ground journey.  
 

During the flight, ultra-high speed inflight internet connectivity will be the norm. Augmented reality and predictive technologies are being explored to enhance the way passengers engage with Cabin Crew and select what they want from our broad onboard offering.  We will enjoy more spacious and open cabins, enhanced seating across all classes with embedded technologies, more IFE content options, amongst many other innovations. 
 

In terms of on board innovations and technologies, how do you see these impacting cabin crew’s ability to provide customer service? 

We want our customers to be more empowered throughout their journey and the role of our Cabin Crew will evolve, utilising smarter technologies that will keep them abreast of all requirements to serve our customers.  We are looking at ways to make the premium dining experience more personalised and seamless, and more is in store.  We recently launched playlist syncing through the Emirates App, so customers can begin enjoying their own personalised version of our ice entertainment system as soon as they board. Our cabin crew use technologies such as the menu ordering device in premium classes, which enables the teams to efficiently prepare orders so they arrive quicker. All of our onboard leaders are equipped with knowledge driven inflight service tablets, which provides them with all of the relevant information they require to ensure they are providing the best service possible to our customers.  As we expand our fleet, we will continue to explore ways to improve the service that our cabin crew provide, as we aim to recruit 4,000 cabin crew and 500 pilots every year for the next five years. 
 

We have also incorporated cutting-edge technology in our First Class fully-enclosed private suites on the Boeing 777-300ERs, introducing several world-firsts like virtual windows, a NASA inspired ‘zero gravity’ seat, and a personal video call service to our crew, making communicating with customers even more personalised. We are also always looking at ways to put information into our Cabin Crew team’s hands so that they can better anticipate the needs of passengers and add value to their experiences. 
 

What plans does Emirates have to utilize and implement these technologies? How much investment do you predict will be required to achieve this?
 

We have already implemented playlist syncing on the Emirates App and more is coming to further ensure that our customers can customize their experience before they even board.  Our new First Class product has been well received by our customers and we are working on further enhancements not just in First Class, but across Business and Economy as we begin receiving new types of aircraft. We will to continue to evolve our product to deliver a superior and comfortable inflight experience which is reflected in our investment in the latest state-of-the-art aircraft as well as technologies across our business to help us drive growth and keep us agile in the long term. 
 

Airport services on the ground are undergoing radical technological advances that can significantly improve the passenger journey before they reach the aircraft. Which technologies do you predict will be successful in this in the next five years?

Bringing new technology initiatives to life is critical and we have been working tirelessly with our aviation partners and stakeholders to fast-track projects that will enable us to overcome challenges and improve the Emirates customer journey at our Dubai hub, as well as select destinations within our network. Travellers have already begun experiencing a smoother airport experience with the implementation of several initiatives involving biometric technology and new automated border control gates. 
 

We are launching a new check-in and boarding application to enable our airport agents to provide multiple services to our customers, such as making changes on their travel itinerary, or to pay for upgrades and excess baggage. We will continue to develop our ‘One Stop Shop’ concept at our check-in counters to help improve the customer journey.
 

One of our newest customer-centric innovations is the launch of the Self Service Kiosks & Bag Drops, integrated with the latest technology to allow our customers to check themselves in and drop baggage without having to queue up at conventional check-in counters in our outstations. The kiosks have been successfully implemented in Singapore and trials are on-going in Riyadh, and we will be rolling out similar initiatives throughout our network. At the same time, we are also working with our partners at Dubai Airports to launch a ‘smart check-in zone’ with bag drop and biometric capabilities in Terminal 3. 
 

Beyond that, and in line with Dubai Government’s vision 2071, we are working with a consortium of partners in the industry to build the world’s first sector-wide Experimental (X) Lab to help build a new transportation paradigm, by co-creating solutions that will unlock new possibilities for the UAE’s aviation sector. 
 

Emirates inaugurated the Emirates Flight Training Academy at the last Dubai Airshow. Can you tell us how the facilities are developing? 
 

Since the last Dubai Airshow, our Emirates Flight Training Academy now has 253 cadets, a combination of UAE nationals and expatriates who have already commenced their ground and flight training. We also have 22 Cirrus SR22 G6 aircraft, 5 Embraer Phenom 100EV very light twin jet engine aircraft and 6 mini full-flight simulators, 3 for each aircraft type. The Emirates Flight Training Academy has also done over 2,500 training flights.
 

Why is it important for you to be at the Dubai Airshow?
 

The Dubai Airshow is a key event in the aviation industry and has now been recognized as one of the most highly regarded shows that brings manufacturers, suppliers and senior officials under one umbrella. It is a great event to be able to communicate and discover the latest innovation in technology as well as aircraft. 

It also provides the opportunity for market leaders to showcase their products to the rest of the world in one of the most prestigious aviation airshows.
 

What do you look for from suppliers at the Dubai Airshow?  

We encourage suppliers participating in the show to present their products, take this opportunity to interact with customers and work with us to enhance our offering and find more efficiencies when it comes to product. 
 

Are there any particular technologies you are looking forward to discovering more about at the Dubai Airshow?
 

We are looking forward to learning about solutions using machine learning as a means to predict our customer needs as well as maintaining our equipment.
 

What are Emirates Engineering’s in particular major upcoming procurement and service agreement plans that the industry should know about?
 

We are still in discussions with a number of suppliers and service providers regarding a range of products and when we are ready, these will be announced.