Great mobile apps by airlines that are combining the power of mobile and social to offer new experiences to their customers. If you work in an airline or airport organisation and wish to download the slides, please email contact@simpliflying.com

1. Top 10 Airline Mobile Apps
that engage the Connected Traveler
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2. Case-study 1
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Delta: Glass bottom jet

3. Making the most of WiFi
At SimpliFlying, we have long talked about the implications that WiFi
availability on-board aircrafts will have, and how it will transform the
future. Today we’ve decided to open this Top 10 with an app that uses
in-flight WiFi to deliver a unique experience to its users.

4. Glass bottom jet
By connecting to the plane’s WiFi network, users of this iPad app will be
able to see an interactive map of exactly what they are flying above. The
app also features the “traditional” destination guides and flight booking,
as well as the possibility to scroll back and forth along the flight path to
see what’s coming or what they might have missed.

5. The social layer
Interestingly, amongst the place marks users
can explore and interact with, there are also
some social ones such as the location of
their Facebook friends and images that have
been uploaded on social networks.
The social layer is also further integrated
into several elements of this app and, for
example, allows users to see what their
networks are saying about a destination.

6. Case-study 2
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AA: Know it all

7. Gamification + connectivity
Gamification and In-flight
connectivity are two of the biggest
trends in customer engagement and
American Airlines cleverly managed
to merge the two in its latest
app/competition.
To promote the initiative AA
launched a simultaneous draw that
will allow entrants to win up to
100,000 miles by liking the “know it
all page”.

8. P2P in-flight entertainment
The most interesting aspect of this app however is that it introduces an
element of in-flight gaming by allowing users to compete against each
other using the plane’s in-flight Wi-Fi network.

9. Integration
One crucial element of
this app is its
integration with the AA
iPad app. Players
have access to their
AAdvantage account
information, one-touch
access for passengers
to check flight details,
get mobile boarding
passes and select
seats.

10. Case-study 3
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AirFrance: Music in the sky

11. An unusual app
AirFrance recently created one of the most unusual and interesting
apps we have seen in a while. Its main function is not to book flights or
check miles but rather “finding music in the sky”.

12. Catching songs around the world
As the airline puts it, they have
“scattered hundreds of songs
through the skies around the world”
and users can find them by pointing
their phone to the sky and “catching”
them. There are different songs in
different parts of the world meaning
that users will be able to “catch” new
songs when travelling.
To incentivize usage, the airline has
also hidden a series of games in the
app that allow users to win prizes, if
they first manage to find them.

13. Brand association
The app provides an interesting way to link a lifestyle element like music
to the brand. At the same time it also favors the association of the idea
of exploration and discovery with the brand.

14. Case-study 4
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Lufthansa: Anywake

15. Waking up to SimpliDream
Lufthansa is another airline that decided to apply an unusual twist to
one of its apps and target the SimpliDream stage in a “literal” way.
(This app is only available in Sweden as of now.)

16. An alarm clock
This new app allows Swedish users to
wake up to the sound of a randomly
selected city, and asks them to guess
“where they are” . If the answer is
correct, the user receives a discount
code to book a flight to that city.

17. Travel inspiration
This app, while providing a
different way to wake up every
morning, also targets the very first
stage of the connected traveler
lifecycle, the SimpliDream stage.
In this stage the user has not yet
made a decision to travel and can
be inspired to do so by external
factors like hearing the sound of
an exotic destination while waking
up to go to work or seeing travel
pictures posted by a friend.

18. Case-study 5
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Jet Blue

19. Instant on-the go
This app seems to have understood the
on-the-go nature of today’s connected
traveler and provides a very interesting
home screen that changes based on
the user’s position on the travel cycle.
This allows users to access all the
information they need without having to
navigate the app. .

20. In-flight
The app also offers interesting
functionalities for the in-flight part of
the trip by allowing user to set and
receive notifications for the airline’s
DirectTV schedule. At the same time it
also offers more traditional tools such
as the possibility to check the in-flight
menu.

21. A pinch of social
A somewhat unexpected, but
interesting, social feature of this
app is its ability to create
“customized postcards” that can be
shared on social media

22. Case-study 6
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United Airlines: a practical app

23. To the point
Even though it does not
feature any unusual or unique
function like many of the apps
in this presentation United’s
app seems to be enjoying
quite a bit of success.
According to data published
by Tnooz, it is the most used
airline iPhone app in the USA

24. For the connected traveler
Although this app lacks the social
element that we would like to see
in new apps it does feature
virtually all the practical features
needed during travel from mobile
boarding passes to push
notifications on flight status.

25. Case-study 7
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KLM Tripshake

26. Think different, have fun
In 2011 KLM took a radically different approach compared to
United’s app, and a quite profitable one. According to our sources
the company managed to cover the cost of this unique app in just
one month.

27. Shake for inspiration
Like Lufthansa’s AnyWake, this app
also targets the SimpliDream or
travel inspiration stage of the
Connected Traveler Lifecycle.
However, rather than offering once a
day inspiration, it asks users to be
proactive and (literally) shake their
phones to obtain inspiration.

28. Find and Share
Through this app, users will automatically be
presented the lowest price for each
destination and be able to share it on social
media. It is also possible to limit the search
by selecting travel dates and geographical
area.

29. Case-study 8
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Virgin Atlantic: Family of Apps

30. A family approach
Virgin Atlantic is another airline that has decided to offer a “family” of
apps rather than a single one-size-fits-all app. The company does offer
a central “virgin Atlantic app” that serves the most common travel needs
but complements it with “sister apps” that focus on a specific
theme, such as fighting jet lag or overcoming the fear of flights.

31. Main App
The main app is clearly designed to fulfill the needs of today’s
connected traveler, offering features such as check-in, seat selection,
flight tracking. However it also includes a few quirky features such as
Richard Branson-focused games and the ability to see the position of
the entire Virgin Atlantic fleet at any given time.

32. Sharing Travels
One of the most interesting apps in the family
is the Travel Journal that allows users to
create a detailed account of their travels
including GPS enabled maps, images and
path followed. The Journal can then be
synced to Facebook and shared in real time
with friends.

33. Case-study 9
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Lufthansa: Miles and More

34. On-the-go networking
In December 2009, long before the introduction of Meet and Seat and
other social seating initiatives, Lufthansa created one of the earliest
forms of on-the-go networking for its Miles and More frequent fliers: the
member scout app.

35. Location based
This app leveraged on data provide by the members of Lufthansa’s
frequent flyers club Miles and More. It then merged the data with the
location provided by the Smartphone's GPS system to inform users of
any members who were available nearby.

36. Latest version
Today the functionality has been updated and includes a larger
Miles and More app that features many other SimpliTravel-oriented
services like the shop and lounge finder tools.

37. Case-study 10
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Cathay Pacific: CX Discovery

38. Engaging beyond the flight
Over the past year there has been a lot discussion over the need to
engage travelers beyond the traditional booking and flight cycle and
into their full lifecycle. Cathay Pacific took a step in this direction when
it decided to try engaging passengers even when they are away from
the airline and are not travelling.

39. A digital life for print
The company turned its traditional
in-flight magazine into a digital
experience that includes and online
version and an iPad app.
The iPad app in particular allows
users to receive the latest edition of
the magazine and works on the
SimpliDream stage by allowing
users to book flights to the
destinations they see featured.

40. Committed to iPads
In another iPad
centered effort, the
airline included in
its main iPad app
some well-designed
travel guides and a
Meet the Team
section where users
can learn more
about the people
behind the brand.

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