Aero Introduces Mobile Scanners to Eliminate Long Queues During Boarding

Chinedu Eze

Nigeria’s foremost carrier, Aero Contractors, has scored another first by introducing the latest technology for quick boarding process, known as Pro-Ranger Boarding Pass Mobile Scanners.

The airline in a statement explained that mobile scanners would expedite the boarding procedures, “thereby enhancing On Time Departure (OTP) and the scanners would allow passenger data gathered at the check-in counter to be verified at the boarding gate, thus reducing time spent to board passengers and prevent passengers with invalid boarding pass access to the aircraft.

“It will also enable production of valid and comprehensive passenger flight manifest in addition to enabling remote check-in (Mobile check-in device). This enhances efficient passenger facilitation. Aero Contractors known for its safety record and on time performance, is introducing the latest technology to improve service delivery to her customers. “ 

Meanwhile, as Aero Contractors expands its operations since resumption of service last year, it has introduced new schedule to take cognisance of adjustments on existing destinations.

Reacting to the development, the Managing Director and CEO of Aero Contractors, Captain Ado Sanusi said: “Aero strives to remain ahead by always finding ways to make its customers comfortable through easy facilitations, hence the introduction of the Pro-Ranger Boarding Pass Mobile Scanners. This is a new technology recently introduced in the industry in Nigeria. It will enable passengers; especially light travellers to avoid long stay on queues during boarding process. It will also reduce the pressures encountered during boarding.

“In addition, we have introduced new flight schedule putting into consideration the preferred travel times by our customers. We have over the years built invaluable goodwill with our customers who enjoy our high safety record and derive comfort in our flights. We are poised to render the most efficient service and urge our customers to always take advantage of our enviable in-flight service.”

Explaining how the device works during a press conference held at Aero headquarters at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, the company’s Head of Ground Operations, Mr. Peter Omata, said: “This is one of the products that will enhance our mode of operation. As you are all aware, one of the cardinal things in aviation is passenger facilitation. So, we acquired the mobile Pro-rangers to improve our facilitation.It is a device that aids facilitation and it has other functionalities that make the working process seamless and will make passengers enjoy their stay or their travelling through Aero Contractors. And one of the important functions of this software is that it quickens the boarding procedures. And once the boarding procedure is enhanced, invariably our on-time performance will be efficient and there will be no delays. And it also allows the company to capture passengers’ data from the checking point at the boarding gate in an on-time manner and aggregate information.”

According to him, “The security aspect of it is that it will detect passengers if they are avoiding passes at the boarding gate; thereby enabling us to have appropriate profile for our passengers.

It also enables us also to produce a comprehensive manifest. As you all know manifest is a key part of aviation and one of those things required. So, the total number of passengers onboard must tally with what we have in the document checked in; so one other key functions of this product is that you can check-in remotely. You can check-in from any part of the airport.

“So, you mustn’t go and stand at Aero counter, we can take people off line, especially people without baggage and check them in, it makes it faster. So, by doing that we are making facilitation seamless for the traveling public. And we have started using the product, we have commenced the usage and it is user friendly and we will look at other products that will enhance the success of Aero Contractors.”

Omata said the device remained very reliable, noting that it is a web-based device. “So, if you login, once you login with your code, you can open up any flight wherever in the country.  So you will get the list of flights and the passengers on it. So, by the time we simulate it, you will see if it is 121 passengers leaving Lagos for Abuja, you will see passengers who are booked on it. And so, as you assign the seat, you will see the seat there and all the information.”

Omata further said: What this device does is that at the boarding gate, the boarding pass has a barcode, so you scan the barcode and it captures it on this system. So, you have authentic boarded passengers are the boarding gate. Like for airports like Abuja where you don’t have a definite boarding gate, you see people coming from the presidential wing, from the VIP.”

We have designed it in such a way that if you do the boarding, we swipe it at the foot of the aircraft, so we have a central point rather than staying at the foot of the aircraft and people coming from several areas to board and at the end you keep on trying to reconcile your passengers. By the time they do that at the foot of the aircraft, the manifest prints itself out,  Omata explained.

On adjusted flight schedule of the airline, the Head, Commercial Department, Aero Contractors, Mrs. Chika Ubendu said: “For the schedule, it is not that we increased frequency; it is just that we have made it more in tune with what the passengers should have. I will give you an instance as a listening airline. Asaba for instance is one destination that we had late afternoon flights. We listened to the customers who said that they prefer morning flights, so we had to tweak our schedule to sooth that. So, we might not necessarily have more frequencies or more destinations but what we want to achieve is that whatever we have is what passengers will be comfortable with. Our interest is the customers’ interest.”