Have you ever wondered what IT makes your flight holiday possible? The CIO of Brussels Airlines gives a unique look behind the scenes of the Belgian airline.

Brussels Airlines transports millions of passengers to all parts of the world every year. Organizing all of these flights requires complex logistical planning. From checking in at the counter to landing at your destination: IT plays an invisible but crucial role in your journey. If IT fails in aviation, the world literally comes to a standstill.

The man at Brussels Airlines who makes sure your next flight leaves on time is CIO Mark Van Geertruyen. Van Geertruyen can now call himself an IT expert in aviation. He is split between Brussels Airlines and its sister company Eurowings and now has ten years of experience as an IT manager in the aviation sector. He gives us a unique insight into the IT behind your flight.

ITdaily: What does the IT environment you are currently responsible for look like overall?

From Geertruyen: “Brussels Airlines is a Belgian company and a member of the Lufthansa Group. That’s why we always think carefully about what things we should do locally in Belgium and what things we should organize at group level. At Brussels Airlines there are still many specific systems that are not always compatible with those of the group. We have to maintain it and keep it running. We are also preparing a transition for many of these systems.”

“The focus in recent years has been on accommodating as many mission-critical systems as possible in the Lufthansa Group’s shared cloud environment. This has many advantages for us; 24/7 support and security can be organized at group level. This means we are better protected against cyber attacks.”

“We also have our own platforms that we maintain. One example is SN Digital, a platform that our crews use to prepare their flights, with specific information on Brussels Airlines flights. Of course, there is also the traditional End-user computing“The focus in recent years has of course been on facilitating hybrid working and we are currently focusing on zero-trust networking.”

“Brussels Airlines has a very strong presence in sub-Saharan Africa. We currently fly to 18 destinations in this region. We often have our own office in the city there, and there is more IT involved than, for example, an office in Europe. Although we are seeing progress in connectivity in Africa, it remains a challenge in some regions with frequent power outages, unstable connections, etc. Cable cuts. Over the last few years we have focused on a combination of SD WAN and various forms of connectivity across different vendors.”

What are the current priorities and challenges?

Van Geertruyen: “It is a challenge to find the right balance between things we organize at group level and certain tasks we want to continue to do locally. There will always be local needs, so a strong IT department at Brussels Airlines remains important.”

“Incidentally, these are interesting times. We are digitizing many processes. One example is the planning tool for our pilots and cabin crew. Creating a workable schedule with a good work-life balance is an incredibly complex puzzle. Thanks to digitalization, this puzzle is not only easier to solve, but we can also respond more to the wishes of the crew. In this way, we ensure that people can travel to their favorite destination more often or be at home at the times that are important to them.”

“We will continue to expand this tool through monitoring so that we have a better overview of where our crews are at certain times. For example, if a flight is delayed, it is best to inform our pilots and cabin crews in the hotel rather than in the van to the airport. With such digital applications, we can make their work much more pleasant.”

“Another priority, of course, remains cybersecurity. Here it is very useful to be a member of a large group in order to be really strong together. Digital applications can also help to make certain processes more efficient throughout the company. That is also a challenge for us: to achieve as much as possible with the resources we have.”

Are priorities understood and shared across the company? Do you agree with management?

From Geertruyen: “I have fewer problems there than before. IT is involved in many advisory committees at Brussels Airlines. As CIO, I am a member of the extended management team, so I really have something to help shape. I also feel a lot of support from my colleagues and the other managers in the company. There is great enthusiasm for working with new tools and making our processes more professional and efficient.”

“The importance of cybersecurity has permeated all levels of the company. In addition, there are mandatory cybersecurity courses for everyone who works here.”

It is useful to be a member of a large group in order to be strong together in the areas of IT and security.

Mark Van Geertruyen, CIO Brussels Airlines

Do you have enough people and resources to preserve the environment and successfully overcome the challenges?

From Geertruyen: “Thanks to the fact that we are part of the larger Lufthansa Group, you have access to workers and resources that Brussels Airlines alone would not have access to. The challenge is to recruit enough colleagues. We are an airline, not a classic IT company. Aviation is also a very special industry, its own biotope, so to speak. The number of people who have the right combination of interest and knowledge of the aviation sector as well as IT skills is limited.”

“We therefore try to invest fully in the people we have and ensure that they can develop to their full potential. Many of our colleagues have a passion for aviation. When we invest in them, you get employees who are very committed to the company and would not want to work anywhere else.”

“A good example: We have two pilots who started their IT training during the Corona crisis. They completed their internship in the IT department of Brussels Airlines and developed an app for pilots that supports them in creating a flight plan. The app is currently being fully tested and the first results are promising. We are very excited about such projects that reduce the distance between our operations and IT.”

ITdaily: Is the future of your company’s IT environment in the cloud, on-premises or a combination?

From Geertruyen: “A combination, with a focus on the cloud. We have a strong preference for the cloud for all the applications we need in our operations, so you have to come up with a really strong argument for keeping something on-premises. But of course the cloud also comes with costs, especially for heavier and/or older systems. So sometimes it’s still possible not to put certain things in the cloud.”

ITdaily: What impact will the upcoming NIS2 program have on politics and business?

From Geertruyen: “We are working hard to see what measures we need to take. But all in all, the impact is not too bad. Security at Brussels Airlines is already very strict. Together with the Lufthansa Group, we have had very strict rules for years. The new regulations will therefore not bring about any major changes for us.”

Aviation is also a very special industry, a biotope of its own, so to speak.

Aviation is also a very special industry, a biotope of its own, so to speak.
Mark van Geertruyen, CIO Brussels Airlines

ITdaily: What impact does AI have on IT policy?

From Geertruyen: “They are also for us early days of AI, but it creates some opportunities. As an Office 365 customer, we have Microsoft Copilot in the Office apps and are busy teaching our employees how to write prompts and identify use cases in their area.”

“But there are other possibilities too. Our crews create a report at the end of a flight in which they include, for example, feedback from our travelers. This feedback can be about safety, cleanliness on board, food, punctuality, etc. Thanks to AI, we can also partially automate the processing of these reports and ensure that the right department receives the right feedback more quickly.”

“Finally, AI also offers many possibilities when it comes to contact with travelers. Thanks to AI, we can simplify many processes, both for the chatbot on our site and for telephone customer service.”

ITdaily: What important trends will you observe in the next three years?

Van Geertruyen: “Cybersecurity will remain just as important as AI. We will of course continue to keep an eye on the cloud, especially in the area of ​​data and BI. We also see many interesting opportunities in 5G solutions to replace radio connections. For example, we are currently thinking about replacing the classic walkie-talkie and WiFi in our hangar with 5G solutions. Aviation never stands still, and many interesting opportunities will certainly arise.”

Aviation never stands still.

Mark Van Geertruyen, CIO Brussels Airlines