I opened the United app yesterday to check my gate number. What should have taken 3 seconds took 90. I tapped through “My Trips,” scrolled past credit card offers, dismissed two promotional pop-ups, navigated to “Trip Details,” expanded “Flight Information,” and finally found my gate—buried four layers deep in an interface that seemed designed to hide the information I needed most.
This is not a United problem. This is an industry problem.
I’ve used Delta, American, Southwest, JetBlue, Spirit, Frontier, Alaska—every major U.S. carrier’s app. They’re all variations on the same dysfunctional theme: bloated interfaces optimized for everything except the actual experience of flying.
But here’s what’s fascinating: The solution isn’t complicated. We know exactly what makes apps intuitive. Airlines just refuse to implement it.
Let me show you what’s broken, why it’s broken, and what would happen if airlines actually designed for passengers instead of shareholders.
The Pattern That Breaks Every Airline App
There’s a predictable lifecycle to how airline apps become unusable:
Stage 1: Launch (Simple and Promising)
The app debuts with basic features:
- Search flights
- Book tickets
- View boarding pass
- Check flight status
Early reviews are positive. “Finally, a clean airline app!” Tech blogs praise the minimalism. Passengers appreciate the focus.
Stage 2: Feature Creep (The Rot Begins)
Marketing wants to sell ancillary services. Finance wants to push co-branded credit cards. Loyalty team demands prominent program features. Partnerships require integration with hotels, car rentals, vacation packages.
Each stakeholder has metrics to hit. Each feature seems reasonable in isolation. The app grows.
Stage 3: Optimization Hell (Death by A/B Test)
Product teams start “optimizing.” Every screen becomes an opportunity to increase conversion:
- Homepage gains promotional banners (ads perform well in testing!)
- Booking flow adds upsells at checkout (bags, seats, insurance increase revenue!)
- Notifications expand to include deals (engagement goes up!)
Each change moves a number. The app gets worse, but the dashboard shows “improvement.”
Stage 4: Complexity Lock-In (The Permanent State)
The app is now a Frankenstein monster:
- 8-12 tabs in navigation
- 50+ features across multiple categories
- Onboarding flows that require tutorials
- Critical functions buried under layers of menus
Nobody can remove features because each one has a stakeholder owner. Nobody can redesign from scratch because migration risk is too high. The app is frozen in dysfunctional equilibrium.
This is where every major airline currently lives.
The tragic part? Passengers just… accept it. We’ve normalized the fact that accessing a boarding pass—the single most critical function—requires navigation through promotional content and feature bloat.
When was the last time you opened an airline app and thought “this is delightful”? Never. You tolerate it because you have no choice.
What Actually Makes Apps Intuitive (And Why Airlines Ignore It)
Let’s talk about what intuitive actually means. Not “pretty” or “modern” or “feature-rich.” Intuitive means:
You know what to do without thinking about it.
This happens when design follows fundamental principles that airlines systematically violate:
Principle 1: Show People What They Need, When They Need It
Intuitive approach (context-aware):
The app knows where you are in your journey and shows the most relevant information:
- No upcoming trip: Search is front and center
- Trip booked, 3 days out: Trip details with check-in reminder
- 24 hours before: Prominent check-in button
- Day of travel: Boarding pass dominates the screen
- At airport: Gate info, security wait times, walking directions
- Post-flight: Receipt, loyalty miles earned
Airline approach (one-size-fits-all):
Same homepage for everyone, always:
- Promotional banner (credit card offer)
- Search widget
- “Explore destinations” carousel
- Vacation packages
- Trip details buried in “My Trips” tab
- Boarding pass hidden 3 taps deep
The airline shows you everything all the time, which means nothing is actually prioritized.
Why Airlines Do This
The honest answer: Different departments control different screen real estate. Marketing owns the banner space. Loyalty owns the program section. Finance owns the credit card promotions. Nobody owns the passenger experience holistically.
Each stakeholder optimizes their piece. Nobody optimizes the whole.
Principle 2: Reduce Decisions, Not Add Options
Intuitive approach:
Minimize choices until they’re actually needed. Default to the most common selection. Make the recommended path obvious.
Example—booking a flight:
- Search (From, To, Dates)
- Pick a flight (3-5 options sorted by “best value”)
- Confirm
Optional complexity available on request, not forced upfront.
Airline approach:
Maximize revenue by forcing decisions at every step:
- Search (From, To, Dates, Passengers, Cabin, Flexible dates?, Nearby airports?)
- Filter by 12+ criteria
- Compare Basic Economy vs. Main Cabin vs. Premium vs. First
- Select outbound flight
- Select return flight
- Upgrade to Economy Plus? ($89)
- Choose seats (map view, $19-$159 per seat)
- Add bags ($35 first bag, $45 second bag)
- Trip insurance? ($47)
- Priority boarding? ($25)
- Lounge access? ($59)
- In-flight WiFi package? ($19)
- Enter passenger details
- Payment
- Add car rental?
- Add hotel?
- Final confirmation (price has increased by $200)
By step 17, you’ve made 30+ decisions and forgotten what you’re even doing.
Why Airlines Do This
The honest answer: Each upsell increases average transaction value. Someone in finance calculated that forcing users through 17 steps with 12 upgrade opportunities increases revenue per booking by X%.
That X% matters more than passenger satisfaction because passengers have to fly anyway—switching airlines for app experience alone is rare.
Principle 3: Communicate Proactively, Not Reactively
Intuitive approach:
Tell people about changes before they have to check. Notify when action is needed. Stay silent when nothing has changed.
- Gate change → Immediate notification with walking directions
- Delay → Notification with updated time and reason
- Cancellation → Notification with rebooking options
- Check-in available → Reminder (optional, user-controlled)
Airline approach:
Notifications fall into two categories:
Over-communication (spam):
- “Your flight is on time!” (I assumed it would be)
- “Earn 3x miles on our credit card!” (I don’t have your card)
- “Flash sale to Cancun!” (I’m not flying to Cancun)
- “Download our new app feature!” (I don’t care)
Under-communication (when it matters):
- Gate changes mentioned in tiny text on departure board
- Delays not pushed to app, discovered by checking manually
- Cancellations announced at gate, not via notification
- Rebooking requires calling customer service (not handled in app)
Why Airlines Do This
The honest answer: Marketing owns the notification channel and uses it to drive engagement metrics. Operational teams (who control flight changes) don’t integrate with the app teams effectively.
So you get 10 promotional notifications per month and find out about your 3-hour delay by asking a gate agent.
The Specific Changes That Would Transform Airline Apps
Let’s get tactical. Here’s exactly what needs to happen:
Change 1: Burn the Homepage and Start Over
Current state:
┌─────────────────────────────────┐│ [Credit Card Banner - 30% of screen] │├─────────────────────────────────┤│ Book a Flight ││ [Search widget] │├─────────────────────────────────┤│ Explore Destinations [Carousel] │├─────────────────────────────────┤│ Vacation Packages ││ Hotel • Car • Activities │├─────────────────────────────────┤│ [Tab bar: Home, Trips, Wallet, ││ Travel Info, More] │└─────────────────────────────────┘
Proposed change:
Make the homepage contextual. Show what the user actually needs based on their travel status.
No upcoming trip:
┌─────────────────────────────────┐│ Where are you going? ││ ││ [From → To → Dates] ││ [Search] ││ ││ Recent searches: ││ • LAX → NYC ││ • SFO → Chicago │└─────────────────────────────────┘
Trip in 2 days:
┌─────────────────────────────────┐│ Upcoming Trip ││ LAX → NYC ││ Friday, 8:00 AM ││ ││ [Check-in opens tomorrow] ││ [View trip details] │└─────────────────────────────────┘
Day of travel:
┌─────────────────────────────────┐│ BOARDING PASS ││ [QR Code - large, tappable] ││ ││ Gate C7 • Boards 7:30 AM ││ Seat 14A • Group 2 ││ ││ [Add to Wallet] │└─────────────────────────────────┘
Impact of this change:
- Users get what they need in zero taps
- Promotional content moves to dedicated section (accessible, not intrusive)
- Task completion time drops from 60+ seconds to under 5 seconds
- Customer satisfaction increases (fewer support calls for “where’s my boarding pass?”)
Why airlines won’t do it:
Marketing loses prominent homepage placement. Revenue from credit card signups (which rely on homepage visibility) might decrease. The stakeholder who owns that banner space would fight this change.
Change 2: Eliminate the Upsell Gauntlet
Current booking flow:
Search → Compare fare classes → Pick flight → Choose seats → Add bags → Add insurance → Add priority boarding → Add WiFi → Payment → Surprise fees → Confirmation
Average clicks: 25-40
Average time: 8-12 minutes
Abandonment rate: 40%+
Proposed change:
Search → Pick flight → Confirm
All extras optional, presented clearly after flight selection, no forced decisions.
Flight selected: $156What's included:✓ Carry-on bag✓ Seat selection✓ Free changes (24hrs before)Optional add-ons:☐ Checked bag (+$35)☐ Extra legroom (+$29)Total: $156[Book Flight]
Impact of this change:
- Booking time drops to 2-3 minutes
- Abandonment decreases (fewer decision points = fewer exit opportunities)
- Customer satisfaction increases (transparent pricing, no surprises)
- Conversion rate improves despite fewer forced upsells
Why airlines won’t do it:
Finance teams optimize for “revenue per booking” not “customer lifetime value.” Removing upsell screens might decrease ancillary revenue in the short term, even if long-term loyalty improves.
Change 3: Offline-First Architecture
Current state:
Most airline apps break when connectivity drops. Exactly when you need them—in flight, in basement terminals, in international roaming.
Try to view your boarding pass offline: “Cannot load. Please connect to internet.”
Proposed change:
Core features work offline:
- Boarding pass (always accessible)
- Trip details (cached)
- Previously loaded flight status (with “last updated” timestamp)
When connection returns, silently sync in background.
Visual indicator when offline:
⚠️ Offline ModeShowing last updated info (2 hours ago)Boarding pass still works
Impact of this change:
- Zero anxiety about connectivity
- Boarding pass always accessible (the ONE critical function)
- Fewer stressed passengers at gate asking agents to print passes
- Reduced server load (not constantly querying for already-loaded data)
Why airlines won’t do it:
Engineering complexity. Offline-first architecture requires rethinking data sync, caching strategies, and error handling. It’s technically challenging and offers no immediate revenue benefit.
Most product teams prioritize features that move revenue metrics over infrastructure improvements that reduce user anxiety.
Change 4: Honest Pricing (Revolutionary Concept)
Current state:
Flight to NYC: $89**Excludes taxes, fees, seat selection, bags, booking fee, and carrier surchargeFinal price at checkout: $247
This is legal. It’s also deliberately deceptive.
Proposed change:
Show the actual price upfront. Explain what it includes.
Flight to NYC: $189 total priceIncludes all taxes and feesWhat's included:✓ Carry-on bag✓ Seat selection ✓ Snacks & drinksOptional:- Checked bag: +$35- Extra legroom: +$29
Tap for breakdown:
Base fare: $142Taxes & fees: $47Total: $189Why this price:- Peak travel time (+$23)- Booked 2 weeks in advance (saved $34)- 12% below average for this route
Impact of this change:
- Trust increases (no surprise fees)
- Comparison shopping becomes easier (customers can make informed decisions)
- Abandonment at checkout decreases (price is what they expected)
- Brand perception improves (seen as honest, not manipulative)
Why airlines won’t do it:
Behavioral economics. Showing “$89” gets more clicks than “$189” even if the final price is identical. Lower anchor pricing drives higher initial engagement, and by the time users reach checkout, they’re already committed (sunk cost fallacy).
Airlines optimize for click-through rate, not customer satisfaction.
Change 5: Intelligent Notifications (Only When It Matters)
Current notification patterns:
What you get:
- “Your flight is on time!” (10 notifications for 10 flights that didn’t change)
- “Earn 3x miles with our credit card!” (spam)
- “Flash sale!” (spam)
- “Rate your recent flight” (spam)
What you don’t get:
- Gate changed from C7 to D24 (found out when you arrived at C7)
- Flight delayed 2 hours (discovered by checking board)
Proposed change:
Notify ONLY when:
- Something changed (gate, delay, cancellation)
- Action is required (check-in available, boarding soon)
- User explicitly requested (price drop alerts for saved searches)
Never notify for:
- On-time confirmations (assumed default)
- Promotional offers (separate opt-in channel)
- Surveys (email only)
Example of good notification:
✈️ Gate change: C7 → D24Your flight now boards at gate D2412-minute walk from current location[View map]
Impact of this change:
- Notification trust increases (users don’t ignore/disable them)
- Anxiety decreases (proactive info when it matters)
- App engagement increases (people check app because notifications are useful)
- Customer service load decreases (fewer “I missed my flight because I didn’t know the gate changed” scenarios)
Why airlines won’t do it:
Marketing departments use notifications as a “free” channel to drive engagement. Promotional push notifications show positive ROI (some users do click). Restricting notifications to only critical updates means giving up that revenue channel.
The Real Reason Airlines Won’t Change
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: Airline apps are bad by design, not by accident.
Every frustrating pattern—buried boarding passes, upsell gauntlets, confusing pricing, spam notifications—exists because it optimizes some internal metric that matters more to the airline than your experience.
Let me break down the actual incentive structure:
Metric 1: Ancillary Revenue Per Booking
Airlines track how much extra revenue they extract from each ticket through seat fees, bag fees, upgrades, insurance, etc.
Impact on design:
- Booking flow must include multiple upsell opportunities
- Default selections favor paid options (middle seat free, window seat $19)
- Pricing must be opaque enough that add-ons seem reasonable in context
User experience cost:
- Longer booking flows
- More decisions
- Higher cognitive load
- Increased abandonment
Airline’s calculation: Even with 40% abandonment, the 60% who complete booking generate enough ancillary revenue to offset the loss.
Metric 2: Credit Card Signups
Co-branded credit cards are enormously profitable for airlines. A single signup can generate $200-$500 in revenue from the issuing bank, plus ongoing revenue from swipe fees.
Impact on design:
- Homepage must promote credit card prominently
- Booking flow must include credit card offer
- Notifications can include credit card promotions
User experience cost:
- Homepage real estate goes to ads, not utility
- Booking flow gets longer
- Notification channel becomes spam
Airline’s calculation: If 0.5% of app users sign up for the card annually, that’s thousands of signups worth millions in revenue. Worth sacrificing UX.
Metric 3: Direct Booking Rate
Airlines pay commissions to OTAs (Expedia, Kayak, Google Flights). They want bookings to happen directly through their app/website.
Impact on design:
- App must be “good enough” to compete with OTAs
- But doesn’t need to be better than mediocre (switching costs are low, but so is competition)
- Investment in UX capped at “functional” not “delightful”
User experience cost:
- App gets just enough features to be viable
- Innovation stops once direct booking rate hits target
- No incentive to exceed “good enough”
Airline’s calculation: Improving UX from “mediocre” to “excellent” might increase direct bookings by 5%. But that 5% doesn’t justify the development cost when the app already captures 60%+ of bookings.
Metric 4: App Engagement
Product teams measure daily active users, session length, and engagement rate.
Impact on design:
- Notifications increased to drive opens
- Features added to increase session time
- Gamification elements (loyalty progress, achievement badges)
User experience cost:
- Spam notifications
- Feature bloat
- Distractions from core tasks
Airline’s calculation: Higher engagement correlates with higher revenue (more opportunities to sell). Even if individual sessions are frustrating, aggregate engagement is what matters.
What Would Actually Force Change
Market forces won’t fix this. Airlines operate in an oligopoly where competition is limited and switching costs are high (people choose flights by price and schedule, not by app quality).
So what would actually work?
Regulatory Pressure (The Nuclear Option)
The Department of Transportation could mandate:
- Total price disclosure (no hidden fees)
- Offline boarding pass access (required functionality)
- Accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.1 AA minimum)
- Notification standards (no promotional push without opt-in)
Likelihood: Low. Regulators focus on safety and competition, not UX.
Impact if it happened: Massive. Airlines would have to redesign apps to meet compliance, likely resulting in cleaner, simpler experiences.
Competitive Disruption (The Long Shot)
A new airline launches with a genuinely great app as a core differentiator. Markets heavily on experience. Captures enough market share to force incumbents to respond.
Historical precedent: Southwest did this with baggage fees (first to offer free checked bags). Virgin America did this with in-flight entertainment.
Likelihood: Medium. Requires capital and risk tolerance. But customer satisfaction in airline industry is so low that there’s real opportunity.
Impact if it happened: Incumbents would be forced to match or lose market share.
Consumer Revolt (The Grassroots Movement)
Passengers organize campaigns:
- App store review bombing
- Social media pressure
- Congressional letters
- Class action lawsuits (deceptive pricing)
Historical precedent: United’s “passenger dragging” incident forced policy changes after viral outrage.
Likelihood: Low. Individual frustrations with apps don’t generate enough collective anger.
Impact if it happened: Airlines PR departments would push for UX improvements to manage reputation.
Internal Champion (The Optimistic Scenario)
A product leader inside an airline gets executive buy-in to redesign the app with user experience as the primary metric. Demonstrates that customer satisfaction drives long-term loyalty and revenue.
Historical precedent: Rare, but happens. Some companies do prioritize UX (Apple, Airbnb post-redesign).
Likelihood: Low-Medium. Requires unusual alignment of leadership, budget, and timing.
Impact if it happened: One airline improves, others potentially follow if results are dramatic.
The Uncomfortable Conclusion
Airline apps are bad because they’re optimized for airlines, not passengers. And that’s not changing anytime soon.
The metrics that matter to airlines—ancillary revenue, credit card signups, direct bookings—all benefit from confusing interfaces, buried features, and manipulative design patterns.
Your frustration is a feature, not a bug. If you’re spending 90 seconds finding your boarding pass, that’s 90 seconds where you might see a credit card offer, a vacation package upsell, or a promotional banner.
The genius of it is that you can’t opt out. You have to fly. And all the apps are equally bad, so there’s no competitive pressure to improve.
We’ve normalized dysfunction because we have no alternative.
But here’s what keeps me up at night: We know exactly how to fix this. The principles are obvious. The design patterns exist. The technology is trivial.
The only thing stopping airlines from building great apps is the fact that bad apps are more profitable.
And until that equation changes—through regulation, competition, or consumer revolt—we’re stuck with interfaces that feel like they were designed to make flying as stressful as possible.
Your boarding pass will continue to be buried four taps deep.
The price will continue to mysteriously inflate at checkout.
The notifications will continue to spam you with credit card offers.
And we’ll all continue to tolerate it, because what choice do we have?
The next time you’re standing at the wrong gate because the app didn’t tell you about the change, remember: this isn’t incompetence.
It’s a conscious design decision.
And it’s working exactly as intended.