Six Sigma in the Aviation Industry

A delayed flight causes many problems, particularly if

passengers are trying to make connecting flights.

Moving thousands of passengers every day through

ticketing, security, lines at the gate and while boarding
involves a series of interlocking tasks.

One hiccup, and people end up with delayed flights or

missing baggage.

 According to numbers from the Federal Aviation Administration

(FAA), there are 5,000 flights in the air at any given time every day.
Other statistics that offer insight into the scope of the aviation
industry include:

• There were 15.6 million flights handled by the FAA in 2016,

about 42,700 flights per day

• There are 65,000 aviation-related pieces of equipment and

systems operating every day


• There are more than 2.5 million airline passengers every day in
and out of airports in the United States

• There are 26,527 average daily scheduled passenger flights

 Six Sigma focuses on eliminating defects in both existing
processes and designing new ones as error-proof as
possible.

The goal is to eliminate variation, add flexibility and set up

systems that maximise the use of human talent.

All of this gives an organisation more control over the quality

of the final product or service.
 Collecting Data

Both Lean and Six Sigma methodologies is to gather data on

the current operation to determine areas that need
improvement and identify wasteful process steps.

Monitoring passenger traffic flow, the number of delayed and

cancelled flights and the instances of lost luggage is key
 Wasted Employee Time

One of the eight wastes identified in Lean is employee time.

Airlines have an abundance of this, according to McKinsey &
Company. Part of the issue is not accurately determining the
right level of staffing both in customer service and in
maintenance despite the often-routine nature of tasks.

This can lead to a single clerk checking in hundreds of

passengers, an understaffed baggage carousel and mechanics
trying to find a part rather than working on a plane.
 Delayed Departures

Getting hundreds of people down the walkway and into a

plane is what typically causes delays.

The application of Six Sigma can reduce and eliminate

many of the duplications, delays, redundant actions and
misapplied rules that lead to these delays.

Six Sigma tools break the process into individual sub-

processes, identifying the details of each operation as
well as the time each takes.
 Baggage Handling

There’s simply no good reason why an airline cannot get a

bag from the airplane to the baggage carousel in the time
it takes a passenger to walk from his or her gate to the
baggage carousel – much less lose bags.

Much like with moving passengers onto planes, Lean Six

Sigma can identify the areas of waste in the process,
streamline workflows and create standards for the time
spent accomplishing tasks
 Customer Service

Some airports now have automatic check-in procedures where

passengers can print their boarding pass and baggage ticket.

This helps speed up the process, but it also puts the work on
the customer, some of whom may cause long delays simply
because they have never done it before.
Southwest Airlines is perhaps the best example. The company has applied Lean Six
Sigma, particularly in the area of customer service. The airline frequently requests
feedback from customers.

It was the first airline to use ticketless flights. They use adequate staffing and self-
check-in terminals to speed up check-in. Onboard, they offer free Wi-Fi, free eBooks
and video on demand.

Southwest has the lowest number of passenger complaints among any airline,
according to the Department of Transportation.

The company also has a “no layoff” policy with employees and managed to create
jobs even during last decade’s recession.
 Other aviation industry companies have also instituted Lean Six
Sigma. American Airlines used Lean techniques to streamline their
passenger claims process. The International Air Transport
Association offers Lean Six Sigma classes that are aviation
focused, as does process improvement specialists ACCLINO.

More jobs also are beginning to appear in the aviation industry that
require Lean or Six Sigma training.

All this adds up to an aviation industry that is beginning to turn to

Lean Six Sigma. That’s a good thing for airlines who need more
efficient operations. And, most importantly, for their passengers.