Airports, Travel Depts. Lag Behind on Mobile Demands

Airlines, Airports Fail Tech Needs
Tech-savvy travelers have more to complain about than travel managers and corporate travel programs that aren’t keeping up with the flood of new apps and other mobile technologies. A survey by FlightView found that travelers are leaving airport and airline technology behind, too.

More than 80% of 2,600 travelers surveyed use a mobile phone during their trip and more than 35% use a tablet or laptop. Nearly 94% want flight status information pushed to their mobile devices before takeoff.  Almost 75% want a mobile alert when their flight is boarding and 57% want mobile alerts on upgrade opportunities. More than 35% want to use their mobiles to purchase ticket upgrades, book ground transportation and view coupons or specials for airport stores and restaurants. Two-thirds want to be able to rebook on another flight on a mobile and view terminal maps.

Airline and airport Wi-Fi offerings are not coming close to meeting travelers’ needs, according to the survey. Only 31% of travelers are satisfied with current in-flight Wi-Fi products and just 42% are satisfied with airport Wi-Fi.  They survey did not say how much –or if – travelers are willing to pay for better tech services.

Are Biz Travelers Using the Right Apps?
Almost 90% of business travelers are using mobile apps on the road to ease the frustration of travel, but findings from a recent survey conducted by KRC Research on behalf of Concur indicate they may not be using the right apps. Expense reporting was the single biggest travel pain mentioned by travelers, but only 43% said they use expense reporting apps.

Company rollout remains the key barrier to mobile expense reporting. Travelers can use apps in most other categories with or without company involvement. The other most popular app categories include airline (44%), map (41%) and hotel (30%). Nearly a third (32%) of travelers on the road at least three times per month said they use five or more apps, compared to just 13% of those who travel less than twice per month

Chinese Biz Travel a Family Affair
Travel managers with Chinese business units in their program may need to keep an eye out for family expenditures. A recent global survey by the Wyndham Hotel Group found that Chinese business travelers are the most likely to bring family members along on business trips. More than two-thirds (67%) of Chinese respondents said they invite at least one family member on business trips, the highest of any national group in the survey. At 52%, U.S. business travelers are the second most likely group to travel on business with family, according to the survey.  By contrast, just 33% of business travelers from the U.K. said they bring family members on business trips.

Tough Cuts Already Made
“I see business travel remaining quite flat next year. Businesses have a more balanced perspective than they did a few years ago. Those who made the tough cuts already made them. They know that face-to-face is important, that they need to see their customers.” – Jennifer Wilson-Buttitieg, co-president, Valerie Wilson Travel, New York

Worst and Best Places for Travel Taxes
Travel taxes can be an important consideration in picking destinations for meetings, events and other business travel with flexible destinations. A recent study by the Global Business Travel Association Foundation found major differences in taxes levied on travel services. Travelers to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., had the lowest tax burden, $22.21 per day, compared to $40.31 per day in Chicago, the city with the highest tax burden according the survey.

“Tax rates add another dimension for travel managers,” said GBTAF vice president for research Joe Bates. “If spending one night in Chicago is 81% more expensive than visiting Ft. Lauderdale, for example, it can have an effect on where businesses decide to meet, hold events and spend their travel dollars.”

Turtle Time
“We don’t have a booming economy; we have a turtle economy. Because of that everyone will be cautious. Companies, especially smaller ones, will keep things close to the vest.” – Paul Seiferth, President, Terra Travel, Phoenix.

Frequent Fliers Fail TSA
With the 10th anniversary of the Transportation Security Administration this month, frequent business travelers are giving TSA failing grades. The poll, by Frequent Business Traveler Magazine, contradicts a recent Gallup Poll that gave TSA good grades. The difference: Gallup surveyed a general sample of Americans, including those who do not fly. FBT confined its survey to frequent business travelers.

The results don’t look good. More than three-quarters of respondents, 76.1%, said TSA screening procedures are either ineffective or not too effective in preventing inflight terrorist activity. Most (56.4%) said they were not satisfied with their last security experience while just 18.5% said they were satisfied, somewhat satisfied or very satisfied. More than half (56.9%) is doing a poor job at airport security.

A quarter of respondents (26.3%) have used PreCheck. And while most (72.9%) were either satisfied, very satisfied or extremely satisfied with PreCheck itself, PreCheck users’ overall attitudes toward TSA procedures and effectiveness were just as low for as other frequent business travelers. Respondents took an average of 32 flights in the past year and 96% were members of at least one frequent flier program.

No Child Flying Zones Expand in Asia
At least one carrier has joined Malaysian Airlines in banning children from select portions of aircraft. AirAsiaX, the long haul arm of low cost carrier AirAsia, is banning children from the first seven rows of the economy section to create a “quiet zone” for adults. The new rules go into effect starting in February 2013. Passengers can pick a quiet zone seat for the carrier’s standard pick-a-seat fee. In April, Malaysian Airlines banned children under the age of 12 from the economy class cabin on the upper deck of its Airbus 380.

 Robin Amster and Maria Lenhart contributed to this report.