Microsoft (Japan) - Japan Airlines (JAL) is developing a new artificial intelligence (AI) application to streamline the creation of inflight incident reports, utilizing Microsoft's Phi-4 technology. The app, called JAL-AI Report, aims to reduce the time cabin attendants spend on administrative tasks and improve operational efficiency.

In unexpected situations, such as when passengers fall ill or flights experience long delays, cabin attendants are responsible for filling out detailed reports so that ground staff can take the necessary actions. These reports, which can take up to an hour to complete, need to be prepared to ensure, for example, that a wheelchair is available upon arrival or that the passenger's onward travel is rescheduled.

With the JAL-AI Report, cabin attendants can now simply input a few keywords and phrases and check off options to automatically generate the report. The app can be used even when flight connectivity is unstable, allowing reports to be created at any time during the flight.

The app also features a translation function, allowing reports to be translated from Japanese to English with just one tap, which is essential for international flights. According to Keisuke Suzuki, Senior Vice President of JAL's Digital Technology Department, the new tool makes cabin attendants' jobs more productive, enabling them to spend more time attending to passengers rather than administrative tasks.

The JAL-AI Report was developed using Microsoft's Phi-4 language model, a lightweight, optimized version of AI models that requires less computational power than traditional generative AI tools. This enables the app to work offline on cabin attendants' devices, even in areas with unstable Wi-Fi.

According to tests, the new app can reduce the time it takes to create reports by up to two-thirds, from one hour to 20 minutes for more complex cases or from 30 minutes to 10 minutes for simpler situations.

Additionally, the app helps improve the quality of reports by ensuring that essential information is recorded more accurately and without unnecessary detail. JAL plans to further expand the use of AI in its operations, with plans to include features such as voice recognition for creating reports from verbal accounts by passengers or cabin attendants in the future.

This development is part of JAL's strategy to integrate AI across various areas of the company. Since 2023, all 36,500 employees of the airline have had access to AI tools to enhance productivity in their administrative roles.

The JAL-AI Report represents a major innovation for the airline, improving efficiency and service quality, while freeing up cabin attendants from repetitive, time-consuming tasks.