Training for the Top
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This article originally appeared in The Education Issue of APEX Experience.
It’s been a hundred years since the first commercial flight, and much has changed for airline industry employees. Far-flung corners of the world are now intimately connected, and technology is changing in a way that extends the air-travel experience well beyond the confines of the airport and the airplane cabin. All of this means that how we train our airline industry staff is also changing.
Mona Aubin is a spokesperson for the International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade association representing over 240 airlines internationally. On the future of airline-industry job training, she says, “It is impossible to know what the future holds, but jobs are not necessarily phased out through automation, but evolve.” Remember how, in Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie’s father ends up re-hired to service the robot that originally took his job? Such is the true path of automation, and it’s happening now: Leave the drudgery to machines, and the humanity to humans. Aubin says, “For example, as airlines have introduced automated check-in kiosks and even self-bag check, airport customer service staff have been freed up to come out from behind the counter to help passengers in need of special assistance.”
As the industry grows, evolves and automates, so too must the education of the people who operate and manage the world’s critical air-transportation systems. “The general trend for training is to make training more available, using advancements in technology and innovation,” says Aubin. “In the next five years we will see a lot more true long-distance training using mobile applications, social media, and a lot more virtual classroom environments where training is administered remotely.” And it’s game on, adds Aubin: “Training programs will evolve into more hands-on, entertaining training where new generations utilize the modern tools they have grown up with. The gamification of training programs is now a reality, and the trend will continue.” Without cheat codes, one presumes.
Meanwhile, some sectors of the industry are facing a skilled-worker shortage that has been held at bay by past travel-disrupting events like the global financial crisis, SARS, and 9/11. Meeting that shortage is “issue number one, two and three.” So said Roger Cohen, president of the Regional Airline Association, at the 2014 IATA annual general meeting. Training that speaks the new generation’s language, says Aubin, becomes its own recruitment tool.
Channeling her industry insight, Aubin looks a bit further down the road: “Ten years from now, we envision an increase in the adoption of professional designations in the industry. As the aviation world becomes bigger, more complex, with wider scope for different business models, aviation professionals will be increasingly faced with multiple tasks in different areas of the operation.” An individual employee’s skill set will become deeper instead of wider: “As the industry diversifies, new jobs will be created that will require a specific set of skills and competencies.” Competency – and, indeed, excellence – in these skills will have to be quantified, and a standard set accordingly.
The very first commercial pilot would probably not recognize the modern air-travel industry, but groups like IATA are making sure that future employees will be ready for the changes tomorrow will bring.
IATA, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and similar organizations already assign professional designations from excellence in pharmaceutical cargo handling (to prevent World War Z) to travel agency accreditation (so Brad Pitt gets a direct flight to the premiere of World War Z). Aubin predicts more of these standards are on the horizon.
Automation and streamlining will also allow – or perhaps necessitate – the combining of once separate jobs. Rohit Talwar, CEO of Fast Future, reckons flight attendants are better situated to handle customs and border security than the systems we currently use: “They’re in a better position to form intelligence about whether you’re a risk or not, because they see more of you than a customs officer. Now, that’s a radical piece of thinking for most people, but it would suddenly cut the cost of doing customs clearance quite dramatically.”
The horse has fled the barn, leapt into the air, and reached cruising altitude: Fully networked air travel is now a reality. There’s plenty of time during the trip from Singapore to San Francisco to figure out who might be a risk, and those edge cases can be interviewed in greater depth upon landing. Overall, Talwar believes that we’ll eventually let go of the redundancies in our customs and security processes. Such a major shift would radically impact training and certification.
A physically changing airport ultimately affects training, but the relationship between education and airport design goes even deeper: Training establishes best practices, and best practices inform how a space is laid out to accommodate the people who bring it to life. Meanwhile, airports are growing ever more complex and multifunctional. Wouldn’t you love to watch Tony Jannus, the first commercial pilot, as he tried to navigate the halls of labyrinthine hubs like Heathrow or Narita?
Airports are no longer just where you board an airplane, but integral parts of their urban and suburban environments – if not small cities unto themselves. Commercial revenue from beyond the actual movement of aircraft is now a given. This affects decision making around how an airport will look and feel, says Aubin. She diplomatically adds, “It’s fair to say that the level of engagement varies among projects.”
Training is part of a complex push-me-pull-you relationship that entangles everyone from airport maintenance crews to the local mayor. Aubin points out, “Airports are a long term capital investment for a city or cities using the facilities. At different levels, depending on what area of the world we examine, a large number of relevant stakeholders will be involved in the Master Plan, including airport staff.” So, while airport employees’ voices may be part of the design process, they’re part of a very loud and somewhat disjointed chorus.
The very first commercial pilot would probably not recognize the modern air-travel industry, but groups like IATA are making sure that future employees will be ready for the changes tomorrow will bring.