NetForecast, the independent provider of internet quality monitoring is pleased to introduce the new QMap Airport solution at APEX/IFSA Global 2023. QMap Airport empowers airlines to confidently solve the challenge of poor cellular performance at airports, which can interfere with ground operations teams’ ability to do their work, causing slower turns, late departures, and lost revenue.
Poor cellular performance is more than just a frustration for airlines, it can crop up at any time and create havoc on the ground, impeding ground operations and pilots’ ability to communicate with internal systems and one another. With QMap Airport, a simple, transparent app continually measures network performance in the background, collecting real-world data from employee digital devices, giving airlines a clear and accurate performance view.
A simple, standardised, scoring and reporting mechanism called Apdex (Application Performance Index) allows easy interpretation of the aggregated data, while a powerful dashboard offers at-a-glance reports to expose service quality by carrier and by airport, over time throughout airport work areas. Beyond looking at speed alone, QMap Airport tracks key metrics that affect the user experience. Effective bandwidth, network latency, DNS lookup time and packet loss are translated into user satisfaction ratings, reported through the management portal. The service also monitors RF signal strength and quality. In addition, the service supports Wi-Fi coverage monitoring.
“You cannot manage what you cannot measure,” explains NetForecast’s CEO Rebecca Wetzel. “Built on the technology foundations of our QMap Inflight platform, which measures and reports passenger connectivity experience, our powerful, lightweight QMap Airport solution helps airlines keep ground operations humming and ensures cellular service suppliers are delivering as contracted.”
Now broadly available, a pre-release version of QMap Airport was successfully used by one US-based airline to document service shortcomings and justify switching its cellular provider at a busy airport in the Pacific Northwest.
Because QMap Airport operates as a cloud hosted platform, deployment is incredibly easy. Airlines can begin monitoring cellular performance at an airport in a matter of hours. The app deploys to phones, tablets, and any other cellular-connected smart devices in the airport operating sphere, without inconveniencing users or slowing productivity.
“We are excited to be launching this innovative technology at the APEX/IFSA Global event, co-located with Future Travel Experience Global, in Long Beach California,” adds Wetzel. “With some of the world’s top airlines, airports and inflight connectivity providers in attendance, this is the perfect venue to demonstrate how powerful a tool QMap is both in the air and on the ground.”
About NetForecast
At a time when digital connectivity matters more than ever, NetForecast helps its clients ensure the best possible user experience across an increasingly complex ecosystem of network partners. Headquartered in Charlottesville VA, NetForecast leverages proprietary technologies and industry expertise to measure end-to-end broadband performance in the residential and mobility markets. Our work helps network service providers and their customers detect and resolve network performance issues for improved end-user satisfaction and productivity.
Featured image credited to NetForecast
