The aviation industry’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data. Good news for airlines, data has the opposite impact on their bottom lines.

By increasing the use of data, airlines become more efficient, increase utilization of their assets and consequently reduce cost and increase revenue. In addition, the amount of data is not becoming scarce over time, it is actually increasing, at an overwhelming rate.

The global commercial airline fleet generates 10 exabytes (or 10 million terabytes) of flight, maintenance and operational data. Needless to say, Big Data has landed in the aviation industry and is already generating a vast amount of value.

GE Aviation is well known for building engines and avionics for commercial airliners, business jets, helicopters, and the military. GE Aviation is now also known for its digital platform, solutions, and services. Today, GE Aviation is proud to call more than 130 airlines, MROs, OEMs, business jet operators, helicopter operators and more as its digital customers.

Check out how GE Aviation is linking pilots to their flight data with FlightPulse:

https://youtu.be/mlw2piQwOLE

GE is helping customers unleash the potential of their own digital transformation by leveraging the incredible transformation the industrial giant went through itself. In 2016, GE achieved $730 million in cost productivity by implementing digital solutions internally and is now helping its customers achieve similar success.

For example, GE90 operators in the Middle East achieved better predictability in a challenging operating environment through advanced analytics that resulted in a 56% reduction in unscheduled engine removals, 15% decrease in overhauls and added days of utilization.

Every airline is different and has different needs. This is why a “one size fits all” approach is very challenging. One of the most important decisions for long term success is picking the right platform that will scale with your operation and its ever expanding amount of data. The next question is, how will you deliver valuable insights to the various internal consumers (fuel managers, maintenance staff, pilots, operations management, etc.)? This is why GE not only built Predix, an industrial cloud-based digital platform, but has also been innovating digital solutions to help customers solve their toughest challenges.

Although data is the new oil for airlines, it could also become its number one challenge due to the increased complexity that can arise with growth and the pursuit of optimization. In the end, what will separate disrupters from service providers is the ability to simplify some of the most complex operations on the planet.

With GE Aviation as your digital trusted partner, what will you build?

Check out GE Aviation's Advanced Technology Center in the Middle East:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjTgRwA12y8