Christchurch International Airport has partnered with global travel tech giant Amadeus to upgrade its passenger service infrastructure to more efficient, flexible and sustainable ‘common use’ technology shared by multiple airlines.

The new system offers new opportunities for Christchurch’s airline partners.

It allows multiple airlines a simpler check-in process, more flexibility for seasonal operations, and to connect with passengers at locations away from the airport, such as Christchurch convention centre Te Pae, or Lyttelton Port, during the cruise season.

Doing so means the airport can unlock capacity ahead of demand from its airline partners.

Adopting the cloud-based common use infrastructure now, means Christchurch Airport is improving its check-in processes for both airlines and passengers – allowing as much time as possible to relax before boarding.

Working with Amadeus will enable future transition to more self-service kiosks and bag drops for all airlines and passengers.

Sarah Samuel, senior vice president, airport and airline operations, APAC, Amadeus, said: “We’re delighted that the team at Christchurch sees how modern cloud technology can support airports as they seek to lower their carbon impact and improve the passenger experience and offer their airline partners exciting new ways to serve travelers.

“With new flexible off-airport passenger services, we’re sure travelers at Christchurch will feel the impact of this IT modernisation.”

The move to cloud-based common use infrastructure means the airport will decommission 80 energy-intensive workstations and replace them with super-efficient thin client devices. 

Thin-client devices are simple, low-power, computers that provide an interface to the cloud, where computing tasks are undertaken by more efficient servers.

Craig Dunstan, head of customer and commercial, Christchurch Airport, said: “We are excited to team up with Amadeus to make the check-in process smoother.

“We are especially pleased to have this first upgrade in place ahead of our upcoming very busy summer season.

“We will see all our international airlines return, some with larger aircraft and more flights, as well as a new direct service between Christchurch and San Francisco.

“The transition to the Amadeus Cloud Use Service (ACUS) is another exciting step forward in embracing new technology to enable a more streamlined and frictionless journey for our passengers.”