Airport Baggage Handling Systems Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Airport Baggage Handling Systems Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Airport Baggage Handling Systems Market is valued at USD 1112.57 million in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 2546.57 million by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 14.65% during the forecast period (2022 - 2027).

Following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, airport authorities and airlines have significantly increased their investments to make significant changes to the baggage handling processes. The demand for contactless and self-service technologies on arrival and departure is expected to reflect in baggage handling operations as well. Some airports have invested in the installation and testing of the new baggage handling systems such as self-service bag drops, RFID baggage handling and tracking solutions, disinfection of baggage either by aerosols or using UV light, and automated baggage handling systems.

As the passenger traffic recovers and the profit margins improve in the latter half of the forecast period, airport operators and airlines are expected to install advanced systems for efficient baggage handling and tracking to enhance passenger experience and ensure smoother operations, which is expected to drive the growth of the market during the forecast period.

Baggage mishandling has been one of the major challenges for aviation authorities over the years. However, focus on better baggage tracking procedures and the introduction of the recent IATA’s Resolution 753, which requires airlines to track bags at the four main touchpoints (make-up, loading, transfer, and arrival) across the journey, have helped reduce the number of mishandled bags over the last few years. Companies are investing in developing better baggage tracking technologies to obtain the data to comply with Resolution 753. Such investments are expected to drive the market growth in the years to come.

There is a significant increase in the number of airports entering the above 40 million passenger handling capacity segment. This is primarily due to the growing investments in expansion by major airports to cater to future passenger traffic and reduce congestion. For instance, Narita International Airport Corporation announced that the expansion of terminal 3 of Narita International Airport was completed in April 2022. The expansion began in 2018 with an investment of JPY 14 billion (USD 111.7 million). The passenger handling capacity of the terminal increased from 7.5 million passengers per year to 15 million per annum. Similar projects are ongoing in several other countries in different regions. Such airport expansion projects are anticipated to generate demand for new baggage handling systems that will allow efficient processing of passengers and baggage in the airport. Large airports that were existing in this segment are also trying to increase their efficiency to reduce delays due to airport operations and congestion. In this regard, for instance, in January 2022, Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) began the installation of an integrated cart system (ICS) at Terminal 1 of Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport. The new baggage handling system is capable of processing up to 6,000 bags with a speed of 2.1m per second. Such similar developments in larger airports may propel the growth of this segment during the forecast period.

The Asia-Pacific region held the largest market share in 2021. There is a rapid increase in the investments in airport infrastructure to cater to the growing passenger traffic in the region over the past few years. The airports in countries like China, India, Japan, and South Korea have witnessed exponential growth in passenger traffic in the past few years. As a result of this, the airport authorities have increased their investments in the expansion of existing airports and the construction of new airports in the region. As part of China’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the country plans to increase its civil aviation capacity with accelerated investments towards airport construction. Under this new five-year plan, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) plans to open over 30 new civil airports and increase the civil aviation capacity by 43%. Likewise, in March 2021, Vanderlande Industries (VI) Australia was awarded a contract to supply a new baggage handling system (BHS) to Western Sydney International Airport (WSIA). The BHS will utilize digital technology to track, load, and move baggage more efficiently. The new airport is expected to enter operational readiness and acceptance trials (ORAT) in late 2024 and begin operations for international and domestic services in late 2026. With such robust expansion plans, the demand for new airport baggage handling systems in this region is expected to grow during the forecast period.

Some of the prominent players in the airport baggage handling systems market are SITA, Vanderlande Industries, BEUMER Group, Leonardo SpA, and Siemens AG. These companies have been expanding their presence in various regions through partnerships with various airport authorities and airlines. For instance, in April 2021, Siemens Logistics, a subsidiary of Siemens AG, received a contract from Incheon International Airport Corporation to expand the baggage handling system at Terminal 2 of Incheon Airport. In addition to the installation of baggage conveying and sorting technology, the company will also provide technical project management, layout design, and software solutions and integrate the new equipment into the existing system. Also, the companies have been investing in the research and development of new automated baggage handling solutions to enhance their sales and net profits. In June 2022, SITA launched Swift Drop, a self-bag drop solution that will reduce the baggage check-in time by allowing the passengers to print their own bag tags and directly load their baggage onto the accessible conveyor. The self-bag drop solution is part of SITA’s Smart Path passenger processing portfolio. As the market demand improves with the growth in passenger traffic, it is expected that the smaller players will be acquired to gain a competitive advantage to cater to customers’ needs.

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