How Airlines are Leveraging Cloud Computing to Launch Routes Quicker

By Cloud Computing Outlook | Tuesday, October 13, 2020

Next time you see an airline launching a route in a snap of a finger, you can be sure that it’s the cloud that’s enabling them to do that.

FREMONT, CA: From accessing emails on the go to having the latest software update at our fingertips, cloud computing has transformed much of what and how we do things. Airlines are also getting leveraged from cloud-based software, helping them to launch routes much faster than ever before.

Passengers are familiar with the usual set up at an airport: a check-in desk with a computer, a printer, and perhaps some scanners. Each airline that uses a particular airport has to integrate its own Departure Control System (DCS) with the airport to print the correct boarding passes, luggage tags, and other peripherals. Before cloud computing, to get this integration, airlines would have to set up a physical connection to the airport. Although airlines still tend to allow several weeks, sometimes months, for planned route expansions, such a stretch in time is not always beneficial. In the case of an airline collapse, it can be advantageous for airlines and passengers alike if a new carrier can step in quickly and provide service.

Amadeus, a Spanish IT provider for the global travel and tourism industry, provides a cloud-based solution to fasten deployment on routes through its Amadeus Airport Common Use Service (ACUS). ACUS allows airports to connect with multiple airline DCSs through a single device without the need for installing additional physical lines.

The speed of deployment and the flexibility that cloud-based integration affords are not the only advantages of this technology. By removing the physical servers from the airport, it allows for significant carbon savings as well.

ACUS has been around since 2014 and is in use at several airports all over the world, supporting the operations of more than 140 airlines.