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SITA to double passenger capacity at Beijing Capital International Airport for the 2008 Olympics

Analysis

BEIJING (SITA) - SITA, the leading provider of IT applications to the air transport industry, today announced that it has been selected by Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) to equip the new Terminal Three (T3) with its passenger check-in platform which will see the capacity of the airport more than double in time for the 2008 Olympic Games.

This continues a long tradition for SITA of playing a vital role in helping Olympic Games host countries to gear up for unprecedented volumes of passenger traffic. BCIA's T3 will double the airport's passenger capacity from 27 million to 68 million, and will serve the several million visitors expected to travel to Beijing for the Olympic Games in 2008.

"As preparations for the 2008 Olympics intensify, we see a need to work closely with a partner who is experienced in handling such a large-scale project. We have worked well with SITA over the years and we are pleased to continue this partnership" said Mr. Chen Guo Xing, chief commander of BCIA Expansion Project Headquarters.

"We need a proven robust, reliable and secure system capable of handling the increased volume of passengers. Over the last few years, SITA's CUTE system has helped us to reduce check-in and boarding times in Terminal 2, and this has given us the confidence that their system is the best choice for Terminal 3" said Chen.

The $10.8 million contract covers the installation of SITA's renowned common use check-in platform AirportConnect CUTE, already installed in over 200 major airports worldwide, and will support up to 500 CUTE workstations at BCIA's T3A and T3B terminal buildings.

In addition, SITA will install and maintain BagMessage, the global message distribution system; and AirportConnect Platform Services, the next generation multi-purpose operating platform for airports that 'virtualises' the connection between workstation, application and peripheral.

This follows on a $5 million three-year contract signed last year whereby SITA was contracted to continue managing the CUTE check-in system for the 26 million passengers which pass through BCIA's Terminal Two each year.

"We are delighted to be involved in yet another key Olympic project and to be working closely with BCIA to deliver a world-class system that meets the needs of the airlines and the airport," said Elyes M'Rad, SITA Regional Vice-President for North Asia and China.

"BCIA's decision to choose SITA to deliver an integral part of their IT system is further testimony to our ability to provide airports and airlines with secure, profitable and innovative solutions," commented M'Rad.

SITA's AirportConnect CUTE system offers end-to-end connectivity from host to the airport desktop, providing airlines with access to their own systems on an open industry platform. Each CUTE workstation uses a pre-integrated browser and is connected over IP to support the individual airline needs. SITA developed the first shared-use workstations, and its terminals are now used by some 285 customers at over 200 airport locations worldwide, processing over 580 million passengers annually.

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