What Will Be the Key Airport Technology Trends and Challenges in 2025?

Airports are continuing to evolve in response to growing passenger expectations and shifting market dynamics. 

In this article, Martin Jones, CEO at CAVU, shares his perspectives on how personalisation, collaboration, and cutting-edge technology, such as AI and data analytics, will be pivotal in transforming the passenger journey in 2025. 

From the role of dynamic pricing to overcoming data fragmentation, Martin highlights the opportunities and obstacles airports must navigate to create a seamless, more connected travel experience. 

CAVU: Reflecting on 2024, what key trends or shifts do you think have had the most significant impact on the airport and travel industry? 

Martin: Passengers, certainly from an airport perspective, are largely unknown because they’ve booked with others. This makes it harder to personalise the travel experience. There’s been a shift towards personalisation and improving the customer experience in a more bespoke and personalised way. 

Airports are expensive places to own and operate, and the traditional three revenue streams of aviation revenues landing fees, retail, and car parking are increasingly difficult.  

The growth of low-cost carriers, which need to operate on a lower-cost model, adds to this challenge. Airports can monetise more of the customer journey, alongside dynamic pricing and revenue management.

CAVU: How do you think passenger expectations will evolve this year, and how can the industry keep up? 

Martin: Giving people choices as they travel is key. Instead of pushing everyone through the same funnel, passengers should have options, like how they want to get through security or whether they want to skip the main terminal experience entirely, with options like aether. It’s about giving people choices based on their trade-offs between cost and convenience—different people want different things. 

There’s also a need for better collaboration between airports, airlines, and other stakeholders to make the pie bigger rather than fighting over how it’s distributed. Collectively improving the passenger experience will benefit everyone, as the only person who misses out when there’s division is the passenger.

CAVU: What technological advancements will have the most transformative impact on the airport passenger journey in 2025? 

Martin: AI will drive greater business automation and improve customer experiences. But underpinning all of this is the need to be good at data.

Data is currently fragmented across many parts of the customer journey, and there’s a need to get a single view of the customer. Without this, none of these capabilities will work properly. 

AI can deliver greater insights into passenger preferences, enabling airports to offer tailored and personalised services. For example, it can support dynamic pricing, which considers price and quality to deliver good value to passengers. 

CAVU: Do you anticipate any major disruptions or challenges for the industry in 2025? If so, what are they, and how can they be overcome? 

Martin: Collaboration remains a challenge. Airports, airlines, and other stakeholders need to work together more effectively to improve the passenger experience and avoid fragmentation. Otherwise, the only one who loses out is the passenger. 

Another challenge lies in the need to balance cost pressures with rising passenger expectations. Dynamic pricing and innovative revenue models will be essential in addressing these issues. 

Finally, fragmented data continues to be a significant hurdle. Developing robust data-sharing frameworks and integrating data across the passenger journey will be critical to unlocking the full potential of technologies like AI. 

Ultimately, collaboration, innovation, and focus on the passenger journey are the keys to overcoming these challenges.