Ground handlers will now be able to update turnaround events hands-free and give ramp teams real-time voice alerts thanks to a new partnership between Assaia and Frontier Audio that brings the latter’s AI interface to aircraft turnarounds.
Ground crews already communicate operational facts throughout the turnaround, from pre-arrival briefings and safety checks to coordinating pushback with the cockpit. Frontier Audio’s platform, through its intelligent headset and handheld, captures and timestamps these operational events as they are spoken, then passes them to Assaia’s ApronAI system, alongside events independently detected by Assaia’s computer vision technology.
The integration also works in the other direction, with ApronAI alerts intelligently delivered to frontline teams as audio through Frontier Audio’s platform. Crews hear the information directly while continuing to work, without checking a screen or relying on an alert to be relayed by radio or telephone, shortening the communication chain and supporting safer work around a live aircraft, according to the companies.
Christiaan Hen, CEO, Assaia, said, “For several years we have given operators eyes on the turn, using computer vision to understand what is physically happening around the aircraft. Working with Frontier Audio adds another dimension: understanding what operational teams are communicating in real time.
“Bringing that human communication together with operational data and computer vision gives operators a more complete view of the turnaround. The teams working the aircraft benefit the most because information now reaches them directly via voice rather than through a relay.”
This technology has been trialled with major airlines and ground handling partners in live turnaround operations. According to the companies, participating teams reported clearer communication across the turnaround, better alignment with dispatch, and improved safety through better hearing protection. Their feedback has shaped the current phase of development.
Peter Moeckel, founder and CEO of Frontier Audio, added, “Frontline teams talk through every step of a turnaround, but the information they exchange rarely reaches operational systems in real time. The same is true in the other direction, where operational system updates do not always reach frontline teams quickly.
“With Assaia, we turn communication and updates into structured operational data and deliver intelligence to the people who need it, when they need it. The frontline should be the best-informed part of the operation, not the last to hear about it.”
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