Cathay Pacific to take cloud journey to new heights

Aryaka’s SASE will replace a myriad of legacy networking technologies used by Cathay currently, including Cisco Viptela SD-WAN service, Symantec Web Security Service (WSS) proxy for internet browsing, zone-based firewall for security control, Meraki corporate WiFi service for staff, its VPN for remote working, and the CX business partner network via SITA network to connect to its business partners, such as Amadeus, Champ Cargosystems, and The HAECO Group.

As the threat landscape expands in its airspace, the need for networked infrastructure has increased, including the “amalgamation” of connectivity, network functionality, and security, claims one IDC report published in December.

“The cybersecurity threat landscape in the Asia-Pacific region is worsening progressively,” IDC India research analyst Sakshi Grover says in the report. “To address these challenges, enterprises are integrating crucial security technology under the SASE/SSE framework.”

Finetuning for agility

For Cathay, security is a key concern, but cybersecurity can be a roadblock to agility if not designed effectively, Nair points out. Cloud optimization also entails finetuning capacity allocated for each workload. The goal to reduce overprovisioning not only reduces costs but aids in meeting Cathay’s sustainability goals and being “greener,” Nair says.

“We have a particular day of the month when rosters are published for the cabin crew and flight crew and during this period of time there are capacity issues and we will have teams working behind the scenes just to manage that particular moment,” Nair explains. “The cloud has helped us to be more scalable and agile.”

Cathay is also an early innovator in making use of blockchain’s digital ledger technology. Nair claims that in 2019, Cathay Pacific Cargo became the first airline to use blockchain to manage custody of its stock of Unit Load Devices (ULD), applying the technology in its own Cargo Terminal at Hong Kong International Airport.

“The second phase included Hong Kong cargo agents,” Nair adds. “Previously when drivers delivered or collected pre-packed shipments or empty ULDs, they would write down the ULD numbers and manually exchange the paperwork at the Cargo Terminal. Under the new system, they can enter the ULD number into a dedicated smartphone app that logs the transfer of custody in a blockchain ledger, so both parties — agent and airline — know who has custody of which ULD.”

According to Nair, the blockchain solution ensures ULD ownership is tracked at every phase of delivery to help Cathay assign ownership and inventory across 200 ports in real-time.

Gen AI on the horizon

Airplane manufacturers employ sophisticated automation technology that takes full control of an aircraft in flight. This is helpful in an era in which airliners are having difficulty finding pilots to hire. But behind the scenes, another type of copilot is on the rise, with an eye toward helping business users better navigate their workdays, and Cathay Pacific Group is among the many enterprises exploring where use of these emerging generative AI copilots might lead.

An early user of Microsoft’s recently released Copilot, which automates many tasks and enhances employee productivity, the carrier is also using machine learning models “more frequently” of late, with more sophisticated use of generative AI on the radar, Nair says.

Still, Cathay is in the very early days of development and testing, and it remains unknown how quickly adoption will change business on a grand scale, Nair says, noting that there’s no doubt that digital transformation has already had a major impact on corporate and consumer culture in less than a decade — and that is only accelerating.

Once viewed as a supporting function of business, IT has become the biggest game changer in business, Nair says. “Technology is becoming the backbone of an organization,” Nair says. “If you’re not embracing technology, you are losing. Even though gen AI is in its early days, you’ve got to understand it and think through all the possibilities.”