Sky’s the limit for use of customer information

Airlines are really good at some things, such as people movement, aircraft maintenance and keeping passengers safe. They’re also experts at collecting customer data, including what sorts of credit cards and computers you use, how often you fly and where and how much you spend on all the extras.

If you’re stressing over a tight connection, flight attendants can usually tell you which gate to run toward, how much time you have and whether your next flight is on time.

The swankiest hotels have long employed this strategy. Now the airlines have jumped on the bandwagon.

The industry has long envisioned a day when it could make use of all the information it’s accumulated on you. That information has traditionally been segregated in various IT systems, but now many airlines are gradually funneling it into a customerservice strategy — with flight attendants becoming the face of hyper-personalized service.

“We have enough data about who you are, where you fly, and more importantly, over the last period of time when we’ve delayed you, canceled you, made you change your seat, spilled coffee on you. We have the points of failure and the points of success,” Oscar Munoz, chief executive of United Continental Holdings, said Nov. 9 at a conference. “I think our customers need better service and better personalization today. And that’s what we’re focusing on.”

In April, Delta Air Lines’ 23,000 flight attendants began using software called SkyPro on their Nokia Lumia mobile devices to keep tabs on some basic customer information. Each seat of a flight is color-coded. You’ll get an apology if your flight last week was delayed, for example. Or a thank-you if you just hit 200,000 miles for the year. Or, say, a flight attendant spills some coffee on your skirt: The tools will allow him to award you some frequent flyer miles or a future travel voucher on the spot.

American Airlines, the world’s largest carrier, equips its 24,000 flight attendants with Samsung Galaxy Note devices. Early next year, American will release a new app called iSolve to let flight attendants dispense frequent flyer miles or a travel voucher to help resolve customer service issues. United’s flight attendants also track tight connections, mileage milestones and other customer matters with company-issued iPhones.

“We want to stay one step ahead of them, if you will, by using our big data when things go wrong or when things are going great,” said Allison Ausband, Delta’s senior vice president of in-flight service.

Like other carriers debating how to employ “big data” through digital tools, Delta is exploring where the creepy factor lies in all this customer insight. For example, should a flight attendant wish you a happy birthday? What about appearing with a bloody mary because you ordered the drink on nine of your last 10 flights? What if you’re sitting beside your boss this time?