Expanding its two-decade long partnership with leading global private airport operator Corporación América Airports S. A. (CASA), SITA is bringing innovative, frictionless check-in processes to a key CASA airport: Seymour Galápagos Ecological Airport (GPS) serving the island of Baltra in Ecuador.
In a first for the region, GPS will introduce SITA FlexBox at the Baltra Island cruise terminal. SITA FlexBox is a compact device that empowers travelers disembarking cruises to swiftly check themselves in for their flights from the cruise terminal before transferring to the airport. This frees up space and resources within the terminal and enables more seamless interlinking of intermodal sea and air trips. All that is needed to set up the box is power and internet access, and it can be deployed anywhere.
This innovation joins a wider rollout of self-service check-in touchpoints at GPS. With SITA Smart Path TS6 kiosks, Scan and Fly units, and next-generation common-use platform SITA Flex, passengers can breeze through self-service check-in and bag drop, avoiding bottlenecks and long queues, while agents are freed up to assist with more complex matters.
SITA’s award-winning Smart Path TS6 kiosks represent the new standard in self-service, with a modular design customizable to each airport’s design and specific customer needs, which can also be adapted and upgraded over time. In previous implementations they have been shown to increase passenger processing capacity by 25%. Sustainability is also embedded in their design, which enables switching out individual components when needed rather than the entire unit.
Ezequiel Barrenechea, ECOGAL President & Regional Director, Corporación América Airports S. A., said: “We are delighted to be building on our longstanding partnership with SITA with the brand-new implementation at GPS. We are confident that the new check-in experience SITA is providing will have a significant positive impact on the passenger experience at this key Latin American destination. Connecting cruise passengers to their flights with greater ease is an especially exciting development for those travelers seeking to explore everything the beautiful Galápagos Islands have to offer by sea and air alike.”
Jorge Rosillo, CEO, Seymour Galápagos Ecological Airport, said: “As the world’s first ‘green’ airport, with fully carbon neutral operations and built with approximately 80% recycled materials, ensuring sustainability along with a first-class passenger experience is at the core of everything we do at Seymour. SITA’s offering allows us to use innovative technologies to enable further efficiencies. SITA FlexBox at the Baltra Island Cruise terminal streamlines off-airport check-in, freeing up terminal capacity while requiring only minimal resources beyond our current footprint.”
Matthys Serfontein, President for the Americas at SITA, said: “We are proud to continue our co-innovation with CASA and its key airports as a trusted technology partner. Working closely with the GPS has enabled us to explore what the check-in process of the future looks like, tailored to the needs of travelers in key Latin American destinations. Interlinking cruise trips more closely with flights enables more seamless and headache-free journeys, keeping passengers in the vacation spirit, while smart self-service check-in and bag drop technology avoids bottlenecks while freeing up staff in the terminals.”
About SITA
SITA is the air transport industry’s IT provider, delivering solutions for airlines, airports, aircraft and governments. Our technology powers more seamless, safe and sustainable air travel.
With around 2,500 customers, SITA’s solutions drive operational efficiencies at more than 1,000 airports while delivering the promise of the connected aircraft to customers of 17,700 aircraft globally. SITA also provides technology solutions that help more than 70 governments strike the balance of secure borders and seamless travel. Our communications network connects every corner of the globe and we bridge 45% of the air transport community’s data exchange.
In 2021, SITA became a certified CarbonNeutral® company in accordance with The CarbonNeutral Protocol – the leading global standard for carbon neutral programs. We are reducing our greenhouse gas emissions for all our operations, while also developing solutions to help the aviation industry meet its carbon reduction objectives, including reduced fuel burn and greater operational efficiencies. In 2022, we announced our commitment to setting science-based emission reduction targets aligned to the Science Based Targets initiative Net-Zero Standard.
SITA is 100% owned by the industry and driven by its needs. It is one of the most internationally diverse companies, providing services in over 200 countries and territories.
Featured image credited to Seymour Galápagos Ecological Airport
