Aviation’s Highs and Lows: Adapting Customer Support to Volume Spikes
Customer support in aviation is seasonal by nature, but that doesn’t mean it has to be chaotic. With the right structure, the right people, and the right mindset, it’s possible to keep service levels high while keeping costs under control.
Key findings
of Southwest Airlines' flights canceled over a 10-day period during its December 2022 "holiday travel meltdown"
flights canceled by Delta Air Lines in July 2024 after a global cyber outage disrupted operations worldwide
the typical time before an agent reaches burnout under sustained peak-season pressure without relief
how far in advance refund inquiries typically spike ahead of major holidays
How to handle demand surges without overstaffing, service disruptions, or missed revenue opportunities?
Holidays, school breaks, and major events create predictable demand spikes in airline customer support. These peaks boost revenue but strain support teams with soaring volumes and tight response times.
In this whitepaper, we unpack the impact of seasonal surges and share how top airlines stay prepared. With insights from CX leaders, we outline proven ways to keep support teams flexible, scalable, and cost-effective.
What's inside
- Why seasonal peaks are predictable, but still disruptive
- The overstaffing vs. understaffing trade-off, and why agent burnout can set in within two months under sustained peak pressure
- A three-layer forecasting model: historical data, real-time monitoring, and macro/external indicators
- How to build flexibility into workforce management, automation, and outsourcing before high season hits
- Simply Contact's blended model: how it keeps agents fully utilised (not idle) through low season
- The bilingual staffing trade-off: coverage and scaling speed vs. cost and agent fatigue
- Full Wizz Air case study: approach and measured impact
Contributors
Tamara Maleta
Project Lead in Airline Customer Support, Simply Contact
Tamara draws on Simply Contact's operational model for airline clients including the blended support system and bilingual staffing approach.
Jerry Angrave
Customer and Passenger Experience Specialist, Virgin Atlantic and Heathrow Access Advisory Group
Jerry contributed on forecasting beyond volume and on how AI-assisted triage can pre-empt call center contact.
Joan Martínez Merino
Head of Customer Experience, LEVEL Airlines
Joan's contribution focuses on the practical side of managing simultaneous contact spikes.
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