Notes from the Field: the Airport Experience

Discoveries from an airport field trip

TRAINED BY DESIGNERS from some of the world’s foremost design schools and consultancies, the “design thinking” team I’m a part of at Booz Allen is a scrappy team with diverse backgrounds, attacking complex problems in the public sector from a “human-centered” perspective. We’ve tackled aspects of healthcare experience, immigration policy, sexual assault prevention, and disaster preparedness, among others, and we think there are huge opportunities to merge the design approach with Booz Allen’s deep institutional knowledge to set the stage for more meaningful innovation in high-impact areas.

Redesigning transportation experiences is one of the areas we’re interested in, so we decided to take a field trip to our local airports: Ronald Reagan Washington National and Dulles International. We couldn’t buy tickets and get into the secured areas that day, but we wanted to informally practice our observation skills, get a firsthand understanding of the airport experience from the traveler’s perspective, and look for potential opportunities for people-centered innovation. So we grabbed our notebooks and cameras, spent a day at the airports, and found some surprising things.

Greetings and Goodbyes

Some incredibly personal and emotional experiences take place in an airport. Soldiers meet their baby for the first time after a long deployment. People say goodbye to their elderly parents, sometimes for the last time. Old friends are reunited. And yet, nothing in the design of the airport experience seems to acknowledge this. You have to keep moving, or get out of the way. It’s like trying to have a street conversation during the running of the bulls.

Saying goodbyes.

We saw one couple saying goodbye to (presumably) their parent after a long process to get a wheelchair. It turns out there isn’t a specific place to go for help with a wheelchair; employees roam the airport looking for people who might need help. It’s well-intentioned, but there’s no predictable place to look, and once the passenger gets a wheelchair, it can take 10–15 minutes to fill out paperwork before they can use it. How would you feel if it was your parent, you weren’t sure when you would see them next, and as you say your goodbyes, an airport employee is standing right next to you—then immediately wheels them to the security line to take off their belt and shoes?

The new greeting area.

At Dulles, flowers at a small coffee shop were the closest thing we saw to supporting the “greetings and goodbyes” experience.

Another thing we noticed was that due to new security rules that keep non-ticket-holders away from gates, the baggage claim is effectively the new greeting area. And that area is even less accommodating for greeting a loved one: weary passengers wander in the dim light, trying to spot their bags in a steady stream of black nylon—interrupted periodically by the threatening alarm sound and orange glow of the conveyor belt lights.

What if the airport was designed to support people emotionally in the partings and reunions, giving people time and space to savor the moment and connect with loved ones? And what if the airports could take advantage of the new ways people are using the baggage claim area?

Wayfinding

In the parking garage, we noticed people taking pictures of their spot so they could find their car later. What if there was a way to make each area of the garage distinctive and memorable, or what if that information could be automatically recorded and added to an itinerary on your mobile device? We noticed the same thing in the terminal as people took pictures of arrival and departure screens. There are already smartphone apps that have this kind of information, but the fact that we witnessed someone taking a picture suggests an unmet need—maybe in the usefulness of the current tools, or the process of introducing a passenger to the airport experience prior to arrival and preparing them with the appropriate tools to manage it.

From the shuttle at Dulles, there’s little indication of where you need to get off or what to do next.

Where am I?

Taking the shuttle to the main terminal, there was little indication of where you were or where the entrances would lead to. The driver asked where we were going and told us he’d let us know when to get out, but over conversations in the shuttle and announcements over the speakers, it was very difficult to make out what the driver was saying. Once we got off, we found ourselves at “Curb 2F” with no indication of what that meant. Once inside, we wandered into a massive, empty room, still confused about where we were supposed to go (this led to the baggage claim area).

What’s this for?

The airlines’ ticketing counter signs all look very similar, and since they’re not far off the ground, they’re obscured as you look down the line to find another counter. Adding to the confusion, people tend to create lines straight to the doors, blocking the narrow walkway.

Notice the line blocking the walkway, and how difficult it is to make out what the ticketing counters are.

Near the security lines, we saw an elaborate video display with a virtual woman on a glass cutout explaining security procedures. While perhaps a step in the right direction (a more human face to the security experience), the general impression was unnerving.

Yes, that’s a real scarf, but it only made the rest of it feel more fake.

It wasn’t clear who she was talking to, and at a glance the display gets dangerously close to uncanny valley. When people stopped to look, it was more in puzzlement than anything else. However, it suggests a need that’s not being met. It’s a start, but why not have a real human that is better supported by technology ?

Between Reagan and Dulles, there wasn’t much obvious consistency at a glance in the signage. For passengers, that means you have to essentially relearn the system if you return to a different DC airport than you departed from. What if the wayfinding system was not only unified, but extended beyond the walls of the airport?

Retail

At Reagan National, almost all of the shops we saw were empty. We talked to a Brooks Brothers store manager, who told us that virtually all of their customers are impulse buyers who stay for no more than a few minutes. And yet, they said they carry the same inventory with the same prices as other locations. What if the airport retail experience could be designed to specifically meet the needs of busy passengers on their way to their flights? And why aren’t there retailers that are unique to the Washington area, thus creating an extension of or connection to DC culture?

The Gateway

Reagan, and especially Dulles, are the gateway to the United States for countless international travelers. But as people emerge from the airport, there’s no distinctive introduction to one of the most sophisticated countries on earth. At Dulles, a flag waving near a parking garage was the clearest indication. What if the airport could be a memorable welcome?

Welcome to the United States.

History

While following the outdoor walkway to the main terminal at Reagan, we stumbled across something we didn’t expect. There, between two parking garages, was the remains of George Washington’s stepson’s plantation home.

George Washington was here.

Just across the river (visible from Reagan and a short drive from Dulles) is the nation’s capital, with the vault containing our declaration of independence, the steps where Martin Luther King gave his famous speech, and the White House, to name a few. Arriving passengers are stepping into history, but you wouldn’t know it from the airports. But what if the airports could serve as an introduction to all that history?

The golden age of flight.

Hidden nostalgia at National Airport.

At Reagan, there’s a historic section built in 1940's. It feels like traveling back in time; everything seems just like it was then, complete with baby blue carpets and mid-century architecture. There’s even a small museum showcasing the airport’s history. But it was mostly empty. What if that section could become an attraction in its own right, a tribute to the golden age of flight, when air travel was glamorous and everyone wore their Sunday best? And what if the modern section could recapture something of that feeling in everyday flying?

Seating

At Dulles, small rows of leather seats line the main terminal in front of the ticketing areas. We noticed a number of “workarounds”—ways people were using the seats that went beyond their original intent. For example, at Dulles, parents were sitting in the seats near the ticketing area while their small children played. But the only place to play was the main walkway, hardly a safe area. Others slept uncomfortably, using their luggage as a footrest. We even saw someone sleeping next to their luggage behind a row of seats.

There’s a clue to a need here.

Opportunities

Despite myriad improvements over the past several years, we think there are meaningful opportunities to rethink the the systems and structures that shape the airport experience from a human perspective. According to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Annual Report (whew!), 19.7 million passengers on more than 288,000 flights arrived and departed at Reagan National in 2012. Dulles saw 22.6 million passengers, including 6.7 million international travelers. That’s 42.3 million people in one year—each with their own experiences, perspectives, and problems, waiting to be designed for.