Frequently we hear about the importance of technology adoption, innovation and using data to improve business efficiency. 

Certainly, digitalisation has infused every industry. From healthcare and manufacturing to sustainability and travel, the use of data, technology and now, AI, has become pivotal to a business's success.

Digitalisation makes a substantial difference to how well all sectors operate and how effectively they can serve their customers.

A recent story really brought the point home in a unique way, with South Africa's leading low-cost airline, FlySafair, being named the most on-time airline in the Middle East and Africa region in the 2024 Cirium On-Time Performance Review.

The airline was lauded for its impressive score of 93.82% of its flights arriving on schedule.

Enabling business resilience

It is a feat of note, not only because the airline distinguished itself and the country in international aviation. It is also notable because the airline flexed its operational excellence while having to contend with upheaval in South Africa’s aviation sector, where persistent disruptions tested the resilience of even the most established players.

At the heart of these challenges were infrastructural failings. The suspension of over 400 flight procedures following the failure of Air Traffic and Navigation Services to have then renewed, devastated national airline performance. Late last year a catastrophic fuel infrastructure crisis at OR Tambo International Airport, led to widespread delays across the industry.

Further testing the resilience of the airline was the rising operational costs. Despite a slight reprieve in global oil prices, South African airlines grappled with high jet fuel prices, exacerbated by the country’s reliance on imports following the closure of local refineries.

Making the right investments

But what does that have to do with using technology to boost business and triumph in the face of industry-wide crises?

 Kirby Gordon, Chief Marketing Officer at FlySafair, explains that the airline's reliability and ability to score the top nod for punctuality was enabled by its investment in a new advanced scheduling system.

This system is designed to optimise efficiency throughout the day by aligning crew sign-on times, scheduled take-off and landing slots, and departures. It integrates a complex mix of input parameters, including flight and duty hours, buffers for potential delays, refuelling times, and the coordination of airport ground equipment to ensure seamless operations.

''This technology represents a significant investment, and while we are still in the process of recouping the costs, we are confident that it will deliver strong returns over the next year or two, depending on the pace of growth. By enhancing operational precision and minimising delays, the system has already played a key role in helping us achieve our accolade for punctuality,'' he elaborates.

 And what about saving lives?

That story is even more poignant. One of the many initiatives that FlySafair is involved in a partnership with Wings & Wishes. The NGO helps critically ill children in desperate need of life saving treatment, and in some cases, organ transplants, get from where they live to cities around the country that can provide the medical treatment they require.

For many of these patients, these flights would otherwise be beyond their means, forcing them to go without the treatment they need, to the detriment of their health or at the cost of their lives.

To address this, Gordon explains, the airline works with Wings & Wishes, and sponsors flights for children and an accompanying parent every day.

In the case of organ transplants, punctuality is paramount, as there is a slim window where a patient must get to the hospital in time, when the donated organ is still viable. Also essential is that there are a plethora of flights between South Africa's cities, so that a child in need of a transplant can be placed on the first available flight when an organ suddenly becomes available.

The fact that FlySafair holds the largest share (60%) of the domestic aviation market benefits both Wings & Wishes, and the children it helps.

Enabling efficiency

But managing a plethora of daily flights and ensuring that these have a high rate of punctuality consistently, is not a simple endeavor.

Gordon explains that the airline addresses this challenge by integrating data driven decision making into its operations in a variety of ways. These include: 

• Operational Efficiency: Flight schedules are meticulously planned using a wide range of data inputs, including available slots, block times, ground equipment availability, and crew flight and duty requirements, crew fatigue parameters.
• Fuel Management: Fuel burn is continuously monitored to determine the most efficient flight levels, taking into account seasonal and weather variations. Data also guides decisions around optimal landing parameters, routing efficiency, and the best combination of speed arresting techniques, such as flaps, reverse thrust, and braking, ensuring both safety and efficiency.
• Commercial Insights: On the commercial side, data is leveraged to predict passenger volumes, optimise baggage handling, and improve overall passenger management, and of course to monitor customer feedback to surface any problem areas quickly so that they can be addressed.

“Our team’s unwavering commitment to operational excellence and customer satisfaction ensured we didn’t just survive but thrived in one of the most demanding periods in South African aviation history,'' notes Gordon.

The result of using technology and data to these ends isn't just winning a coveted industry award, or being able to ferry travelers, businesses or tourists around our country, or making travel more accessible to locals and tourists alike, as valuable as those benefits are.

The most far-reaching real-world effect is that it has enabled FlySafair to play a part in helping saving the lives of the most vulnerable members of our society.

And that is the best argument for adopting digitalisation into one’s business operations that I have heard to date.