Flights of the future will include AI assistants and wings that can fold like a birds’, according to Delta Air Lines.
The airline announced a host of new technologies, with announcements including major upgrades to the screens in seats and an option to get in a flying taxi to go to the airport. In the shorter term, it said it would open a new partnership with Uber and drop Lyft, as well as adding YouTube to its in-flight entertainment systems.
The announcements came as part of Delta’s presence at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, during which companies in the tech industry and outside of it promote new innovations. They were shown as part of a keynote at the Las Vegas sphere, the first of its kind.
Delta also highlighted the integration of its existing app with new generative artificial intelligence, a major theme during the week’s events. The new app will offer a “Delta Concierge”, a chatbot that has access to a traveller’s personal data and so can remind them about an expiring passport, encourage them to take a flying rather than road taxi to the airport if they are running late, or make bookings at their destination, the airline said.
The company also highlighted its work with plane manufacturer Airbus to improve the sustainability of air travel. Delta has committed to use 95 per cent sustainable aviation fuel by 2050, and the company pointed to new innovations being developed with Airbus including planes that can fly entirely with plant or animal material, wings that can fold like those of an eagle, and flying planes in formation so that they can save energy as they do, which will be tested this year.
More immediately, Delta pointed to a range of new innovations in the screens in the back of its seats. They included a partnership with YouTube so that travellers can watch the service without ads during flights, new 4K screens for more crisp film watching, faster WiFi connections in planes, and the option to use personal Bluetooth headphones while flying.
Despite its focus on technology and AI, however, Delta suggested there were limits on the use of technology in its flights and elsewhere. Delta chief executive Ed Bastion said that attempts to run virtual meetings and other events through the pandemic had shown the limitations of online technologies, for instance.
