SITA research finds aviation’s record technology investment hinges on one thing: data coordination

Report finds a consistent pattern across AI, cybersecurity, digital identities and sustainability: sharing and coordinating operational data across systems and partners is a key focus for the industry.

Record Investment
- Aviation spent $50.8 billion on IT in 2025 — the highest ever.
- Airlines: $36 billion (3.6% of revenue).
- Airports: $14.8 billion (7.3% of revenue, up from 6.4%).

Central Finding
Across every domain — AI, cybersecurity, digital identity, sustainability — the same barrier emerges:
Data does not flow freely across systems and partners.
Without coordination, investments cannot deliver their intended impact.

Operational Reliability
- Flight delays cost the industry $30 billion annually.
- Nearly half of airlines are upgrading operations systems to unify flight, crew, aircraft, and passenger data.
- Still, 49% cite data integration as the biggest barrier to early disruption management.

AI Deployment
- Early AI was siloed (maintenance, routing).
- Now, 63% of airlines use AI in operations control to manage disruption, crew, and aircraft simultaneously.
- 79% prioritize generative AI/LLMs for the next year.
- Limitation: AI impact is capped by fragmented data — e.g., only 17% of airlines use AI for real-time turnaround monitoring.

Cybersecurity
- Focus has shifted from protecting single platforms to safeguarding shared operational data.
- 71% of airports rank cybersecurity as their top IT priority.
- 64% already use AI in cybersecurity, up from 51% in 2024.

Digital Identity
- 64% of airlines plan to issue their own credentials (up from 32%).
- Biometric border control: 54% of airports today → 83% by 2028.
- Constraint: 57% of airlines say airport cooperation is essential for scaling digital IDs.

Sustainability
- Strongest progress where operators control data directly:
- 83% fleet renewal, 67% sourcing SAF, 75% airports using energy monitoring systems.
- Weak adoption (< 20%) of emissions tracking requiring cross-partner data sharing.

Bottom line: The industry’s record IT spend is not limited by technology, but by data coordination. Progress is fastest where operators own the data; slowest where multiple partners must align. As SITA’s CEO David Lavorel put it: “Data coordination is not a future priority. It is what is limiting outcomes today.”