Airlines in the agentic age Use cases and ideas for getting started with AI
Informed by airline input and supported by Microsoft, this Amadeus whitepaper outlines early value, where to start, and what to put in place for airlines looking to scale agentic AI safely, and unlock the full potential of this powerful new capability.
Why does agentic AI matter for airlines now?
Most airlines are looking to increase revenue, improve efficiency, and offer a better experience for passengers. Agentic AI can unlock significant gains in all three areas – when grounded in trusted systems, clear boundaries, and strong governance.
Agentic AI is emerging as a once-in-a-generation shift.
How do travelers use AI today?
AI is already mainstream in travel, with nearly eight in ten travelers using AI for trip planning – but its use today is mainly assistive, with only 6% relying on AI to handle ‘most’ of their travel planning.
*Figures based on Amadeus research conducted in March 2026
How can airlines boost traveler conversion and loyalty and improve operations?
For travelers
Create more attractive offers
Provide more personalized service
Enhance the customer experience at every stage of the journey
For airlines
Empower teams to make smarter and faster decisions by automating workflows
Enhance commercial performance
Support more informed, data‑driven operational decisions
Five practical steps to get started with agentic AI today
"Today, AI agents can execute predictable processes, and, in the future, I think they’ll evolve to become true digital co-workers."
“Today, we have a handful of agents handling discreet workflows… we can already see that agent-to-agent co-operation is the future.”
“One application under consideration is the use of AI to suggest, for example, seating passengers with short connections closer to the exit rows, which could help reduce missed connections.”
"2026 will be a defining year for agentic AI in aviation. Over the next 18 months, most airlines will move from exploration to real-world deployment.”
- Southwest
- Icelandair
- Azul
- Microsoft
What to expect in the whitepaper
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How AI will transform trip planning, airline direct and distribution touchpoints
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Practical airline use cases across customer, commercial and operations
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Foundations required to scale and how to govern Al agents
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5 recommendations to get started with agentic Al
AI for airlines
Discover how we approach AI—responsibly, at scale, and grounded in trust.
AI Glossary
Explore key definitions (e.g., agentic AI, agents, agentic flows, supervised autonomy).
Frequently asked questions
Agentic AI is emerging as a transformative capability, driven by rapid consumer adoption and increasing pressure on airlines to manage costs and offer travelers the efficient and user-friendly self-service options they expect today.
Unlike earlier versions of AI, agentic AI can understand traveler intent through conversational interactions, responding with highly personalized offers and services. By combining multi-source data monitoring and extraction with advanced reasoning and autonomous action, an AI agent can compress workflows for airlines - from weeks to minutes – while enabling faster decision-making, reducing manual effort, and creating new cross-functional opportunities.
Customer & servicing
Intent-driven self-service capability across web, app, chat and voice.
Resolution-first servicing (with smooth human handoff when needed).
Proactive disruption support with clear choices and approvals.
Commercial, Revenue & Marketing
More relevant offers and bundles—at speed and at scale.
Faster time-to-market: turn strategy into execution in minutes.
Always-on optimization using real-time signals.
Operations
Proactive monitoring of KPIs and emerging risks.
Scenario simulation + decision support in the OCC.
Cross-team orchestration across traditionally siloed functions.
What kind of risks does Agentic AI pose to airlines and what is Amadeus doing to overcome them? Agentic AI differs from earlier AI models by not just generating answers, but autonomously planning, taking actions, and completing multi-step tasks toward a goal. This creates new risks such as bias, data privacy, and error propagation.
The AI Compliance Program
Responsible AI Compliance framework
AI compliance processes
AI Office
More detail on these initiatives here.
Microsoft is a strategic partner that has supported Amadeus’ move to the Cloud and to advance new, AI‑enabled travel solutions.
In the Agentic AI space, Amadeus has developed an agentic commerce solution using Microsoft’s Azure Open AI infrastructure, Amadeus Max for Travelers, that airlines can use across their B2C touchpoints, to guide and assist travelers, within airline‑defined boundaries. Ultimately this partnership is key to delivering innovative, scalable technology across the travel industry.
