Charting the course: a resilient future for aviation

Aviation passenger numbers are bouncing back to pre-pandemic levels and the sector is looking to the future towards exciting developments in vehicles and technology. Yet the first half of 2024 has again seen adverse weather and operational issues affecting an ever-greater number of airports and airlines around the world and disrupting international air traffic.

Maintaining sustainable operations increasingly means navigating complex and pressing operational needs alongside major transformation that looms large on the horizon. The sector must balance rising passenger demand with a need for infrastructure upgrades; and how it delivers on decarbonisation goals and integrates clean energy, vehicles and fuels to embrace sustainable aviation whilst mitigating the impact of a rapidly changing climate.

Ultimately, providing a safe, secure, and seamless passenger journey and achieving sustainable growth relies upon resilience.

I spoke to Aerospace Global News recently about the need to future-proof today’s decisions for tomorrow’s technologies and climate realities. From airports to OEMs, long-term strategies are vital to ensure that infrastructure and system upgrades built and implemented over the next decade can withstand the stressors of the future, from climate change and cyber threats to operational issues, changing fuel demand and future aerospace technology.

It’s a topic that’s already front and centre of the sector’s collective mind, but three core components will help to streamline this international shift towards greater resilience: data, collaboration and a system-wide view.

Data-driven decisions

The power of data and technology in this future-planning can’t be over-stated. Leveraging AI and machine-learning in asset management can maximise the value of our existing assets across their lifecycle by identifying efficiencies in integration, predictive maintenance and management of critical assets, as well as pinpoint the most efficient roadmap to decarbonisation. Future energy demand from fuels and charging infrastructure can be modelled, informing plans for a clean and secure energy supply. ?Simulation platforms can even model the impact of extreme events such as flooding, storms, pandemics or cyber-attacks at city-level, on transport networks or even airports and individual assets, enabling us to consider multiple scenarios and providing insight to prioritise interventions, target capital investment and chart a sustainable course for the future.

Embracing a system-level view

Futureproofing strategies also means positioning for future opportunities. Strengthening the sector’s resilience will secure its place in a multimodal transport network of the future, but it requires a whole system approach.

Take the exciting developments in Advanced Air Mobility : integrating new modes of transport into our city infrastructure could transform urban connectivity and logistics, but it requires a masterplan: a ‘seamless passenger journey’ is only delivered through the seamless integration of city infrastructure, transport networks, operations and communications systems in real-time, navigating and integrating a complex web of interconnected systems. It’s one reason we’re working with a cross-industry consortium to build and test an Advanced Air Mobility ecosystem, and why we develop urban and airport-level masterplans for cities and transport hubs: developing plans for any aspect in isolation risks limiting inter-operability and ability to take advantage of future innovation.

Global collaboration

Aviation is a truly international sector. The interdependence of this global system – and the commonality of these challenges - calls for collaboration across the globe to build and share knowledge and solutions.

One example of this is World Economic Forum’s Airports of Tomorrow initiative. As one of its Knowledge Partners, AtkinsRéalis recently co-hosted a webinar where representatives shared three examples of resilience in action. We learned how Dubai Airport mobilised its immediate operational response to unprecedented flooding, how climate risk assessments informed future land use and infrastructure planning at Sofia Airport, and the resilient design measures incorporated into the new JFK Terminal One programme. Sharing this kind of knowledge and experience inspires and informs solutions at scale and at pace: the immediacy of impacts means building on best practice is essential.

Resilient by design

Aviation operates on tight ‘just in time’ windows from passenger flows to flight schedules and operations. The sector’s interdependence means operational issues in one location ripple across global networks and impact the movement of people and goods across borders and economies. This vital need to withstand stresses – to maintain safe, secure operations – means every system and touchpoint need to be resilient by design.

?As the sector navigates towards a sustainable future, understanding and acting on the implications and combined impacts of potential stressors and opportunities will not only protect the sector from the very worst effects of climate change; it will ensure that aviation continues to thrive as it successfully integrates the technology, energy sources, vehicles and infrastructure of tomorrow.