Samuel Ingalls, IAP, A.A.E., a leader at Barich, Inc., a Paslay Group Company, was inducted into the Future Travel Experience (FTE) Hall of Fame at this year’s FTE event, recognizing two decades of contributions to one of aviation’s leading communities for innovation and collaboration.
Ingalls co-created FTE in 2006, originally launching the event in Las Vegas as “disCUSS” to explore the emerging operational value of Common Use Self-Service (CUSS) kiosks. The technology gained momentum after Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) helped International Air Transport Association (IATA) establish technical standards for CUSS and installed the first worldwide system in 2003.
Ingalls and his colleagues created the event to address a challenge they saw across the industry: airports and airlines often operated in separate silos. The goal was to create a forum where those groups could openly share ideas, collaborate and explore how emerging technologies could improve the travel experience.
Over the past 20 years, that initial concept has grown into a global movement. What began as a single event has expanded into an international community connecting airports, airlines, technology companies and other industry stakeholders through events and innovation initiatives around the world. For Ingalls, the Hall of Fame recognition represents the impact of that collaborative approach.
“It has been gratifying to see this movement drive innovation in the aviation industry on a worldwide basis,” Ingalls said.
Today, he continues to help shape FTE through several initiatives, serving as a “Captain” for the Innovation and Startup Hub and the Baggage Innovation Working Group, and leads the Data Sharing Think Tank in collaboration with the ACI-NA Airport-Airline Data Sharing group. These efforts bring airports and airlines together to test new approaches, share results and advance solutions across the industry. That spirit of collaboration was also evident at this year’s FTE event, where Ingalls led a longstanding discussion with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), joined by the heads of security for American Airlines and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). Discussions highlighted the continued advancement of biometric technologies, including CBP’s use of biometrics for international entry and exit and TSA’s continued rollout of Touchless ID.
For Ingalls, the value of those conversations extends beyond technology itself.
“I loved the composure of this panel” he said. “It demonstrated something that should be occurring at every airport: collaboration across all of these entities.”
As passenger traffic is projected to continue growing worldwide, Ingalls believes innovation and collaboration is essential to helping airports accommodate that growth within existing infrastructure. FTE’s community of innovators is helping drive that effort of bringing industry stakeholders together to improve operational efficiency while elevating the passenger experience. That philosophy carries into the work Ingalls does at Barich, Inc., a Paslay Group Company, where bringing airports, airlines, agencies and technology partners to the same table is central to how the firm helps clients plan and deliver programs that work across organizational lines.
“I am appreciative of the opportunity I’ve had to help facilitate that brighter industry journey, in some small way.” Ingalls said.
