British Airways cabin crew are involved in a trial of the latest iPad as an aid to inflight service.
BA has distributed 100 iPads to senior crew members who are using them in place of the usual paper scrolls listing passengers on flights. With more than 300 customers on many services, these scrolls can be 10 metres long.
The iPads include passenger preferences, meal options, who people are sitting with, their Executive Club status and previous travel arrangements. BA said the technology allows crew to offer a more personalised service.
The iPad screens refresh with a full passenger list as soon as cabin doors close for departure. Crew can then filter the list, for example to see at a glance all the passengers who have requested a vegetarian meal.
Assuming the trial goes well, iPads will become the standards means of distributing passenger details to crew, with BA planning to hand out 1,800 iPads to senior crew from September – meaning every senior cabin crew will have one. The three-month trial was launched in June.
BA head of inflight customer experience Bill Francis said: “The iPad is already allowing us to offer a more personalised onboard service, but the possibilities for future development are endless.
“We are receiving great feedback from cabin crew and customers. It allows the crew to offer the thoughtful service they want to deliver.”