To mark the 25th anniversary of Airline Business, 25 leading airline industry executives who have helped shape the sector over the last quarter century, give their reflections on the last 25 years and the challenges for the years to come.
IATA director general and chief executive Giovanni Bisignani paints his vision of how the industry can radically change over the years ahead. He writes:
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Passenger numbers increased from 900 million to 2.4 billion, driven by prices that are at least 30% cheaper. Paper tickets have disappeared and check-in is now as common online or at a self-service kiosk as it is at a traditional desk. On-demand in-flight entertainment has replaced videos, and we now see internet connectivity at 30,000 feet. Three of the top 10 airlines by passengers carried in 1985 have also disappeared. Four others are merging into two. And two Chinese carriers have joined the top 10 grouping. Over the same period, employee productivity tripled while global airline revenues grew from $112 billion to $560 billion."
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More on IATA and Bisignani |
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- Read all the news and analysis from this year's IATA annual general meeting in Berlin with the three Airline Business daily papers from the event
- Watch video interviews with leading airline executives from this year's IATA annual general meeting in Berlin
- From the archives, read the Airline Business cover interview with Bisignani from July 2005
More leader perspectives and anniversary content |
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- Read all 25 leader perspectives and messages and contributions from other senior figures
- Airline industry figures give their reflections on the last 25 years in our special video report
- Follow the ups and downs of the industry since 1985 with our interactive airline industry timeline
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Source: Airline Business
