Disruption handling and claims for an air transport operator

The problem

Demand in air transport is ordinary until it is not. A strike day, a weather event or a technical failure generate in a few hours a contact volume that bears no relation to any average. At that point two different needs coincide: the passenger standing in the airport who needs an immediate operational answer, and the compensation file that will be opened afterwards and that carries regulated deadlines. Handling both with one team and one queue lets the urgent crowd out the documentary, and the documentary returns weeks later as a formal claim.

What we did

• Separate the live disruption queue from the compensation file queue, because they run on different clocks and letting them compete harms both
• Contract a surge band that can be activated within hours, sized against disruption scenarios rather than a monthly average
• Cover the extended hours the operation requires, including the bands when disruption happens and the office is closed
• Handle the file to a documentary standard from first contact, so information is captured while the passenger still has it to hand
• Measure resolution against the applicable regulated deadline rather than a more comfortable internal target

What would be measured

The indicators the service would be run against, with their definitions. No values are attached: a numeric target set before anyone has seen the client's data is a promise, and the definition is the part that is true before the work starts.

• Time to first operational response during live disruption
• Time to activate the surge band from the declaration of disruption
• Share of files resolved within the applicable regulated deadline
• Share of files completed at first contact, without later requests for documentation
• Share of cases escalating to a formal claim before the competent authority