Over the past few years I have had the pleasure of traveling globally with multiple airline companies.
For the sake of numbers: 220 Airports touched down in 4 continents; Average 45 flights a year: kids first flight at 3 months.
Passengers' discomfort & Airplanes Defects: Disruption in the Air!
Independently of how we travel, the experience usually presents unpleasant features, unless traveling on a private jet from door to door.
In the news, we constantly read of incredible stories that passengers have to endure while trying to get from place A to place B.
Usually this level of customers’ discomfort is prone to open for new players to take on the incumbents…..but those in this industry are focusing mostly on lowering prices!!!
Well, I do not believe that disruption of the airline industry will come from that perspective…..it will be originated by equipment availability.
The two main producers of aircrafts (Airbus and Boeing) are surprisingly enough in dire waters due to two symbolic products: A380 and 737 Max (as a pilot of a major US Airline told me: "We don’t want to be on that s..t!").
Recovering the confidence of all the key stakeholders (leasing companies, airlines personnel, passengers etc) after these mishaps will entail a tremendous effort.
Who could fill the gap?
In other moments, 2 companies such as EmBrAer and Bombardier could have taken the lead….but one is owned by Boing and neither product portfolio offer alternatives.
Let’s push our thoughts then:
"It is time for the suborbital flights to become available!!!
courtesy of Pedro J. Llanos via Researchgate.net
At this time, we see three main players, named the "The Space Barons" with key differences and positioning: Virgin Galactic, SpaceX and Blue Origin.
All of them, want to go to Space to improve life for the Humans here on Earth or beyond....and they are all being lead by very successful entrepreneurs.
Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic after selling Virgin Atlantic to Alaska Airlines is going full steam on the new travel mode: "A Concorde on Steroids" (R.Branson) They know how to manage an airline and understand the complex customer’s requirement once onboard. Indeed they are going to impact all the surface infrastructure specifications; not by chance they are moving from Mojave, CA to Spaceport America, NM
"We are at the vanguard of a new industry determined to pioneer twenty-first century spacecraft, which will open space to everybody and change the world for good."
Sir Richard Branson
Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin announced on May 9th the plan to land back on the Moon by 2024 according to VPOTUS, Mike Pence's vision. At present they are bringing humans as close as possible to the Karman line…and then come back. In this case, they can leverage the tremendous quantity of information on customers collected by and through Amazon and a powerful engine...which could equip others' vessels, like ULA.
BLUE'S MISSION : BUILDING A ROAD
We're committed to building a road to space so our children can build the future.
Gradatim Ferociter
Elon Musk’s Space X is targeting going to Mars, but at the BFR presentation EM mentioned that the new vessel could reach any point on Earth in 30 minutes. Combine that with the autonomous landing ship we can imagine a complete new ecosystem in traveling. And we do not have doubts on their knowledge of customers expectations? Nah!!
"SpaceX's goal is to make humans a multi-planetary species"
Elon Musk
In order to support the out-of-space endeavors, one of the main revenue drivers will be for all of them to shorten time traveling on Earth, before going further out. But to achieve that, their goal and targets have to be more ambitious and grand.
The Value Proposition
If we were to compare the Total Cost of Ownership equivalent (TOCe) for the present traveling solution and the future one....it would be obviously totally incomparable!!!
But if we consider the value of Time and the stress of going through major airports today....there is definitively room for an appealing Value Proposition, don't you think.
Needless to say that the lack of innovative vehicles seems like having set a plafond to the incumbent industry players.
Fasten your seat belts.
Doesn't this remind you the arrival of the iPhone?
Everyone was fighting for cheaper prices and here comes something outrageously expensive that everyone wanted!
The Airline industry is prone for disruption and the solution might come from "beyond the box"!
