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» HAS Newsroom
Houston Airport System
March 14, 2008
In this modern era of iPods and iPhones, the Houston Airport System (HAS) is taking a rather refreshing – if somewhat old-fashioned – approach to information technology. Their new flight information system is phone-based, rather than internet-supported, which means any old landline can access the service.
Personal digital assistants or BlackBerry phones need not be applied to connect to the new flight information hotline – although the airport system does provide internet-based information technology for these devices as well. In fact, the only thing required to connect to this service is a dial tone from which the telephone number 281.230.7000 can be dialed.
“Technology is great. It makes it possible for us to complete more work in a shorter amount of time, but it doesn’t always mean that doing things the old fashioned way is out of the question,” explains Frank Haley, interim deputy director of public safety and information technology for HAS. “For us it was a matter of making sure that everyone has access to the same information. If you don’t have an internet-powered phone, you can still find out what the status of your flight is by calling this hotline.”
At the Passenger Pickup Waiting Lot at George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) signs inform drivers of the new service. The intent is for those individuals who are driving to the airport to pick up an arriving passenger, to call the hotline in order to find out when they should head over to the terminal area.
In other words, the service indicates whether the flight is on time or delayed.
“If the flight is delayed, people can sit in the Passenger Pick Up Waiting Lot for free and wait for their arriving party to call them when they have their baggage in tow and are ready to be picked up,” adds Haley. “Even travelers headed to the airport can call the flight information system to see when their flight is scheduled to depart.”
The service is provided in both English and Spanish. Hobby Airport will also be incorporated into the hotline in the coming weeks.
For those who prefer a more high-tech approach, the airport system’s mobile flight information display service (FIDS) allows them to access the same information via their mobile devices. All they have to do is download the service from the airport system’s website – www.fly2houston.com.
Upon doing so, a flight number for a carrier at either Bush or Hobby is entered into the system, and the service populates the most recent flight status information. MobileFIDS is currently available for both of Houston’s two primary airports.
One additional amenity for travelers is the new Trak-A-Flight service on the airport system’s website. This feature allows travelers to access real time information about their flights. An ‘update now’ button refreshes the information at the user’s desire and allows them to view changes to their flight schedules.
For more information about the phone-based flight information system, please Click Here.
To download mobileFIDS to your internet-powered wireless device, please Click Here.
To access the new Trak-A-Flight service, please Click Here.
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