Airlines to ramp up tech, training to handle customers during flight disruption
call centres are some of the steps Indian airlines are looking to implement to regain flier confidence following recent flight disruptions that caused significant inconvenience to passengers.
Airlines are also calling for changes in security rules which mandate a passenger to undergo airport security checks again if they are disembarked in case of a delay.
Thick fog and a non-operational runway in India’s busiest airport at Delhi severely disrupted flight schedules this winter as airline crews struggled to deal with passengers upset with delayed or cancelled flights. For instance, a passenger on-board an IndiGo airline aircraft pilot punched the pilot after the flight was delayed by over four hours.
Following the incident, civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia warned airlines to improve their efficiency or risk losing customers.
Budget airline Akasa Air has built-in technology features in its app which gives real time information on flight changes to passengers.
“As we scale up, we are ensuring that we leverage technology for information like flight delays, gate changes immediately and transparently to our customers,” said Belson Coutinho, co-founder and chief marketing and experience officer at Akasa Air.
Coutinho said Akasa Air is analysing the recent incidents at Delhi Airport to improve the airline’s SOP and incorporate the learnings into its own training module.
Vimal Kumar Rai, managing partner at Commercial Excellence Partners which advises organisations on customer experience said that airlines need to set up a process where crew has a mindset of ownership and accountability.
“Passengers need to be treated like adults and given the reason for delay transparently and with empathy. Airlines should
