Aiming to streamline the travel experience of passengers when disruptions occur in flight plans, Turkish Airlines launched an important project to automate ticket transactions as well as to inform passengers instantly via SMS, e-mail, and other channels, and to encourage the use of self-service
(MOBILE - WEB) channels.
As the project came to an end successfully, the Interline Considerations on Irregular Operations (IRROPS) Plan was launched at the Hadımköy office with the participation of Mr. Bilal Ekşi, CEO of Turkish Airlines.
So, what is the scope of the Interline Considerations on Irregular Operations (IRROPS) plan?
The following are the prominent improvements aiming to streamline passenger experience in cases of flight disruption:
1) SMS and E-mail Standardization
The content of the SMS and e-mails sent to notify customers were standardized in line with the corporate parlance and now they are in use. Experience teams were responsible for preparing the texts, Technology teams built the infrastructure, and Online Sales teams were in charge of the designs.
In addition, automatic SMS notifications were introduced for flight cancellations after the departure time.
In our written communication, we replaced our call center number with links to our mobile and web channels, helping them complete the relevant processes much more quickly.
2) Ticket Process Automatization
Process automatization was launched to help our passengers easily make changes and refunds via our mobile application and website. Turkish Technology teams showed great effort in creating a set of rules and integrations in cooperation with the relevant units to automate processes, which would otherwise require manual labor. The success of automated processes in each channel is closely monitored.
New Process Functionality (Domestic & International TK, AJET, GDS Tickets)
3) Establishment of Istanbul Airport IRROPS Support Team
An IRROPS support desk was established at our Istanbul Airport (IST) hub in order to minimize customer dissatisfaction that may occur in case of IRROPS such as flight cancellations and delays as well as to perform ticket changes for our passengers with connecting flights in a fast and collective manner without reissue through the CMAN system in case of flight cancellations and delays. In case of disruption, our hubs can contact HUBIRROPS@THY.COM for support from the dedicated team working 24/7.
4) Delay Notification SMS Automatization
For delays of 30 minutes or more, we send an SMS manually in the first phase. For the second phase, we've launched an automated process along with the business rules to send the messages. We inform our passengers in real time about delays and post-delay updates, helping them plan their travels better.
