Air Transport Communications and IT Solutions

Malaysia Airlines cabin crew today began using iPads* to enhance inflight services to customers traveling on the airline's A380 flights. The iPads are part of SITA's innovative digital cabin crew solution, CrewTablet, which will enable crew members to quickly and easily access passenger and operational data.

Malaysia Airlines crew members will trial the new solution – which the airline has branded MHcrew – for six months.  MHcrew is much more efficient than traditional paper-based processes, enabling accurate, timely and superior service delivery to passengers.

Malaysia Airlines Group Chief Executive Officer, Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, said: "Passengers spend more time with our cabin crew than other employees. As key front-liners, we rely on our cabin crew to provide an outstanding guest experience to passengers. The MHCrew solution will help our crew by providing lots of information at their finger tips so they can be more responsive to our guests."

Francesco Violante, CEO, SITA said: "Use of tablets is exploding worldwide and at SITA, we recognize that these new mobile devices offer airlines and airports a new way of working. But introducing this new technology in a secure way and integrating it into existing processes demands time, resources and specific skills that many IT departments cannot allocate. So, SITA, working with customers, developed a fully-managed system that includes device supply and management, global wireless connectivity and mobile applications tailored for our industry. The result is the single solution – CrewTablet – which allows airlines to harness the power of tablets quickly and securely."

Malaysia Airlines' in-flight supervisors will use CrewTablet on iPads that are fully integrated with the airline's operational systems and other business applications. The crew will be able to access a host of information, including weather reports, seat layouts, frequent flyer programs, flight connection information and safety manuals, with the touch or swipe of a screen.

Cabin crew processes are normally paper-based. With CrewTablet, a larger reserve of up-to-date information is available to the crew to deliver outstanding customer care, helping to better manage issues and improve service.

Cabin crew can be trained and up and running in less than one hour, so they can immediately work with more flexibility and efficiency.

CrewTablet will also enable Malaysia Airlines to conduct passenger surveys using iPads, rather than paper. Survey results and feedback can be derived daily, instead of monthly, hence providing the opportunity to quickly enhance or change service delivery accordingly.

With the use of digital forms and reports, CrewTablet reduces operational costs and improves in-flight preparations and onboard operations. SITA notes that the service creates fuel savings by reducing the weight of traditional paper reports and manuals carried onboard. Crews can also use aircraft downtime to access digital training and certification courses.

CrewTablet can be integrated with any airline reservation or departure control system. It is part of SITA's intelligent airline vision, which incorporates integrated technology, from passenger operations to aircraft operations and next generation communications and infrastructure to drive better performance and accelerate business growth.

Malaysia Airlines will use CrewTablet for its A380 services between Kuala Lumpur and the cities of London, Paris and Hong Kong.

*The iPad is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.