LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As the summer holidays start and the travel industry grapples with continued disruption, a fundamental shift in travel disruption management is emerging.
Global communications platform Infobip has found that the airlines successfully navigating turbulence are replacing reactive broadcast communications with proactive, AI-first personalised omnichannel strategies.
A report from the UK Civil Aviation Authority found that over 60% of passengers cite airline communications as the number one area that could have improved their experience during disruption1. While disruption is often unavoidable, the communication gap has become a primary driver of brand erosion. Passengers who are dissatisfied with communication say they will actively avoid certain airlines in the future, if they have the choice.
Infobip points to a new standard in agentic AI and customer experience orchestration as the solution for preserving customer trust.
James Stokes, Head of Enterprise, UK & Nordics, at Infobip, said: “We’re seeing a move away from fragmented messaging toward coordinated, AI-driven ecosystems to resolve issues at scale. When a system can proactively offer a rebooking link or a lounge voucher via WhatsApp before a passenger even reaches the help desk, the disruption is managed before it becomes a grievance.”
Key pillars of this technological evolution include:
- Omnichannel approaches - moving beyond Email to high-engagement channels. With WhatsApp maintaining a 98% open rate compared to 20% for Email, airlines need to meet passengers on the platforms they use.
- Autonomous resolution - modern AI agents autonomously manage complex queries, such as rebooking flights or issuing hotel vouchers, allowing ground staff to focus on high-priority on-site logistics.
- Personalised context - by leveraging unified customer data, communication systems can segment outreach based on loyalty tier or connection urgency.
This strategy is already yielding measurable results. Infobip’s partnerships across the UK and Europe, including work with Virgin Atlantic, have demonstrated that proactive AI engagement can increase online check-in rates by 11% and reduce customer care workloads by as much as 50%. By streamlining operations through these intelligent messaging layers, the industry is effectively turning travel chaos into a manageable, data-driven process.
About Infobip
Infobip is a global cloud communications platform that enables businesses to build connected experiences across all stages of the customer journey, with AI as the driving force of innovation.
____________________________ 1 Airline Communication with Passengers During Disruption (https://www.caa.co.uk/publication/download/25554) |
Contacts
Highbury Communications
Sarah Penney
spenney@highburycomms.com
Infobip
Wendy Schellens
Wendy.SchellensEXT@infobip.com
