COVID-19 has turned the aviation world on its head. GHI’s Annual Conference programme is out now and will address the seismic issues facing handlers, airlines, airports and suppliers if they are to thrive in the post COVID-19 landscape.
Should irregular restart schedules trigger automatic rises in handling prices? Who foots the bill for heightened COVID complexity at stations? Are we about to see the dawn of a more dynamic SLA?
The 22nd Annual Conference is the aviation community’s first opportunity to come together and tackle these fundamental questions, and many more besides, which are facing our industry after a traumatic 2020.
Confirmed sessions include:
• The GHI Big Debate:‘Where do we go from here?’: Establishing a blueprint for aviation’s recovery from the COVID-19 crisis
Fleets grounded, mass redundancies and our faith in the unstoppable rise in passenger demand shattered. This has been a uniquely devastating year for the aviation community, but what lessons can we take out of the crisis to deliver a more sustainable, resilient and equitable industry in the future?
• Finance: Who is going to pay? Finding an equitable agreement between aviation stakeholders for funding the COVID-19 crisis response
Volumes are inefficiently low, process complexity has gone off the scale and everybody is trying to keep hold of cash. But if a handler raises prices too high, too soon, then will it prove counterproductive by damaging the financial future of airline customers? How do we address the hugely complex and sensitive issue of funding our industry through this tumultuous time in a fair and equitable way?
Panellists include Christian Bergfelder, Senior Director Network Airside & Airport Affairs – Europe, DHL; Thomas Konietzko, Global Sales and Marketing Executive Vice President, Celebi
• Stakeholder Collaboration: The end of OTP as we know it? Building the SLA, version 2.0
The coronavirus crisis has rendered most SLAs based on precision turn times and boarding passengers cheek by jowl untenable. This session will be an interactive discussion to explore how airlines and ground handlers should reimagine their business relationships to jointly prosper in the post pandemic age. We’ll examine flexible SLAs pioneered during the pandemic and their lasting impact..
Speaker: Peter Hewett, Aviation Consultant and former Airline Executive (Etihad Airways)
• Market analysis: The aviation market outlook for 2021
How quickly will volumes rebound next year? And, which global markets will lead the recovery? This session will analyse the most likely traffic scenarios in key markets and the impact different recovery rates may have on liquidity, M&A activity and investment across the supply chain.
Speaker: Chris Brown, Director, Global Strategy Group, KPMG
• Automation: Dawn of the great digital age: how automation and new tech can help your operation overcome the challenges of the pandemic
In a matter of weeks, COVID-19 shook up the tried and tested ground handling processes of the past 30 years. GHI brings together a panel of technology specialists to assess the opportunities for digitisation, automation and process innovation arising from unprecedented change at our stations. Which technologies (AI, robotics, contactless boarding, big data, IOT) can we turn to in order to help us manage the challenges of distancing, passenger/staff safety while maintaining expected OTP?
View the full programme here
