BOSTON -- JetBlue Airways is hoping ClimaCell's "HyperCast" forecasting software can help it save thousands of dollars in operating costs, following wider implementation of the technology after a year-long pilot program.
HyperCast Aviation is measurement and forecasting software already in use in many industries, but with additional features geared toward use in the aerospace sector.
ClimaCell's products put an emphasis on what it calls "microweather" which, in this instance, refer to precise location-specific, short-term forecasts. The technology relies on technologies including wireless networks, proprietary "Internet of Things"-based sensors and others to provide insight into weather patterns not usually monitored by other systems.
"While a typical radar can only sense precipitation above roughly 1,000 feet up in the atmosphere, ClimaCell technology sense weather that is both above and below 1,000 feet," the company said.
HyperCast Aviation has been in use by JetBlue at Boston's Logan International Airport since June 2017. JetBlue said the pilot program showed the potential for tens of thousands of dollars in savings each month, leading to an investment in ClimaCell via its investment arm, JetBlue Technology Ventures.
"We've personally witnessed ClimaCell pick up ground-level weather systems that no one else could observe," said Ian Deason, Senior Vice President of Customer Experience at JetBlue. "Since we've put the ClimaCell tool in the hands of our Boston managers, we get non-stop requests from other leaders who want access.
"From the operations teams keeping the planes moving to de-icing and ground operations crews who are outside ensuring safe and on-time departures, this tool was designed with an understanding of the decision-making pressure airport leaders face every day."
For more information about ClimaCell Hypercast, visit the company's website here.
