The future of aircraft turnaround is becoming increasingly connected, data-driven, and automated.
At Future Travel Experience (FTE) Global 2026, Synaptic Aviation’s Justin Kester, VP–Global Sales, will join aviation industry leaders for the Future Airports Conference session “Towards the Smart Apron: Automating the Turnaround Process.”
The discussion will explore how automation could reshape ramp and below-the-wing operations over the next decade—and what airports, airlines, and ground handlers need to make that transition successful.
Building a Smarter Apron
Aircraft turnaround remains one of aviation’s most complex operational processes. Between arrival and departure, numerous activities must take place safely and within a tightly coordinated window, from baggage handling and fueling to catering, boarding, ground support equipment movements, and pushback.
Automation has the potential to make these operations safer, more consistent, and more efficient. But greater automation also requires a clearer understanding of what is happening across the apron in real time.
That is where operational visibility becomes critical.
AI-powered computer vision can transform existing airport camera feeds into measurable operational events and accurate timestamps, helping stakeholders understand when key activities begin and end, identify delays and bottlenecks, and measure turnaround performance more consistently.
For Synaptic Aviation, this operational intelligence represents an important foundation for the smart apron, giving people and systems better information to support faster, more informed decisions.
Continuing the Conversation at FTE Global 2026
Justin will bring Synaptic Aviation’s perspective to the FTE Global discussion alongside leaders from across the aviation industry.
The session will examine the opportunities and challenges associated with bringing greater automation to the apron, including how emerging technologies can improve operational performance and how airports can prepare for increasingly intelligent ramp operations.
As airports look toward the next generation of automation, we believe the path forward begins with visibility. Understanding what is happening across the operation today creates the data foundation needed to make the airport of tomorrow smarter, safer, and more efficient.
Future Travel Experience Global 2026
September 8–10, 2026
Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas
Session: Towards the Smart Apron: Automating the Turnaround Process
Date: Wednesday, September 9, 2026
Time: 2:30–3:30 PM
