Accra, Sept. 29, GNA - Kotoka International Airport (KIA) has joined the league of major airports worldwide using passenger facilitation technologies from SITA.

It joins airports in Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Atlanta and Toronto as well as South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, Burkina Faso and Guinea who are using these SITA systems.

SITA is the world's leading specialist in air transport communications and information technology (IT) solutions. It delivers and manages business solutions for airlines, airport, governments and other customers.

Speaking at the inauguration at KIA in Accra on Thursday, Mr Sam Munda, Sales Director of SITA in-charge of Sub-Saharan Africa said management would provide the KIA with Common Use Terminal Equipment (CUTE), Common-Use Self Serve (CUSS) check-in kiosks, Baggage Reconciliation System and Airport Management Solutions worth 15 million dollars.

He said these technologies, which were pre-financed by SITA, would help to increase efficiency at the airport and also reduce congestion at the terminals.

The CUSS allows passengers to check themselves in before departure electronically, thus reducing congestion at the check=97in desks during peak hours.

The baggage reconciliation system also tracks out-going baggage from the airport until it is loaded onto the aircraft. "This system would solve the problem of misplaced and mishandled baggage because it ensures that the right baggage is on the right aircraft for the right person," he added.

SITA's suite of airport management solutions integrated with a new airport data base and Airport vision, which ensures passengers a real-time view on flight changes and a resource management system also help management of the airport to bill accurately and quickly, enhance allocation of resources (gates, check-in desks/kiosks etc) to airlines and give them an information base as well as reduce costs and create revenue for KIA.

Mr Munda said SITA would recoup its investment over a 10-year period from the airlines operating at KIA through passenger charges. Mr Twumasi Ankrah Selby, Chief Director of Planning, Ministry of Transport, who inaugurated the equipment said the Ministry would soon present a petition to Parliament for approval to allow revenue from the Airport Passenger Service Charge (APSC) be given to GACL for the development of airport infrastructure.

He urged SITA and airline representatives to be patient with travelers who did not know how to use the self-serve check-in kiosks but want to use them.

Mrs Doreen Owusu-Fianko, Managing Director of GACL, expressed the hope that Parliament would allow all or a large portion of the APSC revenue for GACL.

"We want 100 per cent of the money to be ploughed back into the airport or at least a reasonable amount," she said. Mrs Tosan Woode, Chairperson, Board of airline representatives and Head of Sales and Marketing, Virgin Atlantic Airways, said the airlines were pleased with the partnership with SITA to provide the technology saying it would in addition to improving customer experience allow due diligence especially in billing.

"Modernity is the way to go, technology is the way to go, this would simplify safety and security and the billing system would allow diligence to be done. We are happy about it," she stated. However, Mrs Woode expressed the hope that this would take some of the burden off GACL to address other infrastructural issues at the airport such as water shortages, dysfunctional baggage belts and leaking. So far, 10 CUSS check-in kiosks have been installed and are currently being used by passengers of SKY Team airlines: Delta, Air Namibia, Ethiopian Airlines and Brussels airlines. 29 Sept. 11