Etihad and Panasonic team up to offer passengers personalised jet lag reduction plan

3 April, 2019

Etihad Airways and Panasonic Avionics Corporation have partnered to jointly develop and trial wellness solutions aimed at enhancing the traveller experience. As part of the partnership, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) airline will be the first operator to trial Panasonic's new Jet Lag Adviser solution, which will be integrated into the airline's passenger app.

Whether we are travelling regularly on business or making that trip away with our families for a leisure break, one of the biggest challenges we face when travelling across multiple time zones is jet lag. Airlines have worked hard to minimise the effects with mood lighting, specially-designed menus and more, but Jet Lag impacts each of us very differently.

The new Jet Lag Adviser from Panasonic, has been developed in collaboration with Detalytics, a human analytics platform that already provides predictive smart data to pilots, doctors, athletes and soldiers, and works to develop a personalised solution for passengers based on a range of variables.

To help passengers combat the debilitating impacts of jet lag, the Jet Lag Adviser takes a range of passenger inputs including chronotype, circadian rhythms, height, weight, the nature of travel, and travel information such as flight times, routes and zones and uses its artificial intelligence engine to produce personalised jet lag plans with tailored advisories to help them reduce jet lag.

The system will provide passengers with a combination of generic route-based and personalised 'jet lag impact scores' which gives them a summary of how severe jet lag may be on that route in general and their own travel specifically. A personalised jet lag plan incorporates the pre-flight, flight and post-flight phases, and provides a schedule of different recommendations and tips for specific times in each phase on what to do to reduce jet lag, such as sleeping, exposure to light, exercise, hydration, and the type of food to consume.

Passengers will receive a combination of generic route-based and personalised 'jet lag impact scores' which gives them a summary of how severe jet lag may be on that route in general and their own travel specifically, while the personalised jet lag plan incorporates the pre-flight, flight and post-flight phases, and provides a schedule of different recommendations and tips for specific times in each phase on what to do to reduce jet lag, such as sleeping, exposure to light, exercise, hydration, and the type of food to consume.

During their itinerary, at each different phase of the travel experience, the Jet Lag Adviser will send reminders with recommended actions to passengers via the app. By following the recommended advisories, the Jet Lag Adviser passengers will "feel more energetic and ready for their activities at their destination", claims the partners.

Managing the potential impact of jet lag will be especially welcomed by corporate travel managers with staff wellness increasingly being ranked highly by staff as a key factor when travelling for business. With time and cost pressures on travelling staff, being able to better manage the potential impact of any jet lag could have a big advantages.

This will be the first of many wellness initiatives that Etihad is expected to explore together with Panasonic within their partnership. Other innovative wellness activities are expected to be revealed as the carrier readies itself to move to the new 'Midfield Terminal' at Abu Dhabi International airport, where new technology features are being incorporated to enhance the passenger experience.

Alongside the initiative with Etihad, Panasonic is enhancing its range of wellness solutions it offers to airlines and their passengers with the launch of Calm, an app for sleep, meditation and relaxation, and myNoise, a collection of soundscapes that passengers can listen to that aid relaxation, sleep, focus, and enjoyment.

These elements are part of a growing range of wellness solutions which are offered by Panasonic across three platforms: Digital, Hardware, and Lifestyle. These already include Active Noise Control, Premium Seat Lighting, and Panasonic's nanoe technology, along with a range of wellness applications developed in collaboration with Detalytics and Mimi Hearing Technologies.

At this week's Aircraft Interiors Exhibition in Hamburg, Germany, Panasonic also revealed its entry into the inflight map market with the launch of its Arc Inflight Map Platform - a 3D inflight map application and service for its NEXT and X Series inflight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) systems. It also added esports to its Sport 24 Extra's live inflight entertainment programming and added a gaming function to its Theatre inflight entertainment solution to introduce a premium game offer for travellers.