American Airlines (AA) has added a new app feature that lets AAdvantage® members choose their preferred seat characteristics when they complete their booking. Members can choose preferences such as aisle, window, or middle seats. If an eligible seat matching those preferences becomes available, the app updates the reservation immediately without the customer having to do it themselves.
American Airlines’ ADPT Program
This new feature grew out of the ADEPT programme on Sept. 28, with a 2-year guided development initiative designed to recruit early-career technology talent. The work began with the customer problem of finding a seat that matches their preferences. The ADEPT and Customer Experience teams translated that frustration into a digital experience that simplifies the passenger experience.
American’s chief customer officer, Heather Garboden, said:
“At American, we’re always looking for ways to make travel easier and more personalised for our customers.”
“This latest innovation proactively addresses customer preference. It is a simple experience that gives customers more control while asking them to do less.”
American’s chief digital and information officer, Ganesh Jayaram, said:
“The ADEPT team paired fresh thinking with the scale and experience of teams across American to build something practical: technology that removes work from the customer and makes the travel experience feel more seamless.”
“The project also reflects how we’re using AI to help our teams work smarter, accelerating development and allowing technologists to spend more time focused on innovation and delivering value for customers.”
American Airlines (AA) is developing technology talent and building a customer-focused innovation feature while using AI-enabled tools to streamline parts of the design process. The more premium economy options available, the more customers will want to select their own seats.
American Airlines’ technological growth
The seat monitoring feature is available up to 24 hours before departure for AAdvantage® members travelling on single-passenger reservations with an assigned seat. Seat changes are limited to eligible seats within the customer’s existing cabin, where customers set preferences that guide the feature and control seat changes.
The airline’s newest feature helps customers spend less time planning their trip and more time focused on the journey itself.
What do you think of this new feature? Share in the comments below!
Nice example of an app doing work so the passenger doesn’t have to. The catch is that it only covers the American leg: a traveler on a booked trip still has hotels, transfers and tours scattered across other apps and PDFs. I build an itinerary tool for small travel agencies, and we see the airline apps and the agency’s own trip app as complementary – the airline handles the seat, the agency’s branded app holds the whole trip, offline, in one place. Features like this one raise what travelers expect from every app on their phone.