the airlines were very quick here to be able to right size their operations, to be able to handle the excessive demand but we were very fortunate. we did not have too many cancellations are too many delays here during even the peak times. one area during the pandemic that came on in leaps and bounds was the use of technology and new technology. what sort of technology are you using today and going forward to better the experience, airport experience for passengers? we are in the process of developing what we call a digital marketplace and that is giving the passenger the ability to plan and control theirjourney from their mobile device even before they get to the airport. when they get to the gate the gate opens up automatically because they recognise the car. they re guided to a space, and the same when they leave. we enhance our food and beverage offering online so that people can order food and beverage before they get to the airport at the airport and just pick it up or even have i
for the unintiated, they are lighter so there s less weight on the plane, better fuel efficiency. less carbon dioxide emitted and this is the biggest step change with scene in the industry, 30% weight reduction in the new system. isn tjust a chance for the airlines, there is more connectivity, to make more money from the passengers and get more of our data? perhaps, but the way that we think about these seat backs is it as a complement to the way that the airlines are interacting with their passengers today so they got their mobile device, they have got the web, they might book a flight on the web, might use a mobile device to check in and they view the seat back as the opportunity to have a consistent experience across the entire flight. customers are beginning to expect more and more, particularly after the pandemic. on that note, the future looks exciting. good luck with these and i will check in with you soon. before you can enjoy any of that in flight food and entertainment,
to air travel and according to the global trade body, four and half billion passengers flew in prepended 2019 and that is the yardstick many still measuring against as numbers fell 60% during the pandemic. things are recovering. the latest data shows a total global passenger numbers, there are nearly 74% of pre covid levels in august of this year. and the world s biggest airline by passenger numbers, american airlines said recently. and that s despite a host of challenges such as the worsening economic outlook in many parts of the world, fuel costs that have scored because of the war in ukraine and ongoing problems across the industry in finding just enough staff. and that is crucial to making our journeys work smoothly and returning the airlines to profitability. so they can splash the cash on all the stuff that is here at the show.
is airlines move to offer more seat back. traditionally, seat back had been in wide body aircraft only flying long distances and now what we re seeing, many of the airlines want to create an incredible digital experience for customers. they are installing these systems on all aircraft. this is got to be expensive an airline to roll that out across, you know, their vast fleets. can i ask you, what is this going to set me back? it is a few million dollars per plane. it is a significant investment that the airlines make however, they provide service for ten or 15 years and what is really neat about this later solution is its modular architecture so the airlines, when they invest in a system like this, they re able to upgrade the system over time. that had never been the case in the past. and really the benefit is for sustainability.
you had to let go 4,500 staff? a third of our workforce. then we saw this booming demand and i ve said before to other ceos and airports, they can cope with the demand because you struggle to find the stuff, don t you? well, you have to work a bit harder but i go back to what i think is the most critical thing. that a leader in any business does. notjust airlines but any business. and that is creating a culture because i think, if you do create the right culture, you create the right engagement with your staff and you do get people wanting to come back. you know, when we let so many of our people go, about 75 80% are back with us. you mentioned expectations and how they changed because if you look at the world airline ratings, air new zealand fell ten places to number 30 on the 2022 ranking and i m just wondering if that smarts, that hurts you because you are, from your background, you are known as so customer focused, centric. does it sting a little bit? yes, for sure. you obviously w