There’s a moment of quiet irony every traveller knows too well. You can order dinner, pay your mortgage, or video-chat with your vet all from your mobile. But try checking in for a flight and you’ll likely find yourself wrestling with a paper boarding pass, a passport queue, and a machine that insists your face doesn’t match your photo.
Welcome to the great paradox of modern travel: passengers have gone digital, but the industry serving them is still shuffling through its paperwork.
That’s the blunt message of SITA’s latest Passenger IT Insights Report 2025, aptly titled The Travellers’ Voice. This study gathers the honest thoughts of more than 7,500 passengers across 25 countries. And what is their collective verdict? They’ve had enough waiting for aviation to join the digital century.
“Passengers aren’t resisting change. They’ve already changed,”
said David Lavorel, CEO of SITA.
“They’ve gone digital. Now it’s our turn. The future of travel isn’t just about adding tech. It’s about removing friction.”
A Queue Too Far
According to SITA, nearly two-thirds of travellers want faster airport processing. One in two dream of an end-to-end trip managed entirely through their phone, and 42% would prefer a single ticket linking air, rail, and road. The message is unmistakable: travel must become as seamless as Spotify and as innovative as their smartphones.
Mobile usage for travel management has jumped by 20 percentage points since 2020, and for many younger travellers, it’s the only acceptable option. The report notes that digital-first generations are “setting the baseline for what travel must deliver next.”
Yet, the industry remains bogged down by manual checks, paper documentation, and inconsistent systems that frustrate even the most patient flyers. The technology exists. What’s missing, says SITA, is the urgency to deploy it.
Biometrics: From Sci-Fi to Boarding Gate
Remember when facial recognition seemed futuristic? Those days are gone. Biometrics are no longer optional; they’re expected. Today, most passengers prefer biometric gates over staffed counters, and nearly 80% are ready to store their passport digitally—on their phone. Remarkably, two-thirds would even pay extra for the privilege.
SITA’s report shows that global adoption of digital identity is projected to soar from 155 million users today to 1.27 billion by 2029—a figure that would make even the most reluctant border officer raise an eyebrow.
The technology isn’t just about shaving minutes off security queues. It’s about creating trust and transparency. When passengers feel their data is secure, their luggage is traceable, and their journey is predictable, their loyalty follows.
Trust Is the New Currency
Trust, in fact, is emerging as the most valuable currency in travel. While mishandled baggage rates are now at historic lows, 78% of passengers would still pay for end-to-end baggage tracking. Not because they expect bags to vanish, but because they crave control. They want reassurance, visibility, and accountability.
The desire for trust doesn’t stop at baggage. Around 70% of travellers plan at least one intermodal trip this year, combining flight with rail, road, or ferry. They expect their data and tickets to travel with them across each mode without friction or fuss.
“We’re asking passengers to adapt to travel,” Lavorel observed.
“But they’re asking travel to adapt to them.”
That statement, while simple, captures the revolution underway. Travel is no longer about movement alone—it’s about empowerment.
Sustainability Takes Centre Stage
If the pandemic taught us anything, it is that travellers are more conscious than ever of their impact. SITA’s findings are unequivocal: nearly 90% of passengers say they’d pay more to reduce emissions. Many would fly slower, pack lighter, or choose sustainable airlines if given the choice.
What’s changing is that passengers expect the industry to match their commitment with slogans and measurable action. Airlines and airports are accountable for everything from carbon output to single-use plastics.
While sustainability might once have been a footnote in aviation briefings, it’s now a front-page expectation. The modern traveller doesn’t just want a window seat; they want a cleaner conscience to go with it.
The Future of Flight: Urgency Required
SITA’s Travellers’ Voice sits alongside its long-running Air Transport IT Insights and Baggage IT Insights reports, forming a decade-long benchmark for the aviation sector. Collectively, they show a world where passengers are already living digital-first lives, while the industry trudges behind, clipboard in hand.
Biometrics, digital IDs, real-time data, and smart baggage solutions are all tools on the table. What’s missing, SITA argues, is a sense of urgency. The aviation industry must stop admiring the problem and start solving it.
Passengers have spoken, clearly and consistently:
They want simplicity, trust, and, above all, a journey that reflects the pace of modern life.
If air travel doesn’t evolve, it risks losing time and relevance.
Final Boarding Call
One veteran traveller in the SITA survey said, “I can unlock my car, turn on my lights, and pay my bills from my phone but I still need a piece of paper to board a plane.”
It’s a sentiment that rings true from Sydney to Singapore.
In its race for innovation, the aviation industry doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel; it simply needs to catch up with its passengers. Because as SITA’s research makes clear, the future of travel isn’t waiting in line. It’s already on its mobile.
By Alison Jenkins
BIO:
Alison Jenkins has spent much of her career at thirty thousand feet or at least close to it. Having worked in several sales roles with several airlines, she built a reputation for knowing her clients and flight schedules. Quick with a smile and sharper still with a deal, she became one of those rare people who could charm passengers and partners without losing her professional edge.
Trade shows and FAMILS were all part of the territory, and Alison became a regular on the circuit, with suitcases, smiles, and a notepad never far from reach. Somewhere between airport lounges and hotel lobbies, she discovered she loved telling the stories behind the journeys. Her post-FAMILS reports, meant for internal newsletters, began to take on a life of their own, lively, observant, and unmistakably hers.
That’s when Alison realised she wasn’t just selling travel, she was meant to write about it.
