Airlines have been experimenting with different boarding procedures for the past few years. However, American astrophysicists may have the best solution: an algorithm that has been shown to cut conventional boarding time in half.

In 2013, over 3 billion passengers took to the skies. As airlines aim to make flying as simple as taking the train, could everything people would normally associate with air travel – endless queues, bad food, cramped, uncomfortable seats – be about to change for the better?

To find out how their passengers feel in-flight, British Airways is experimenting with an unsual idea, a "Happiness Blanket". In the same way a mood ring can indicate your mood, the blanket monitors brain waves using a headband and changes colours to reveal a passenger's mood.

Following the pay-with-a-tweet trend, flight tickets have become shoppable through social media platforms. KLM has announced a service that lets passengers request a new ticket via Facebook and Twitter.