Pegasus Airlines transforms bookings and services with Azure OpenAI, doubling customer satisfaction scores

As one of Türkiye’s leading low-cost carriers, Pegasus Airlines flies over 37 million passengers a year to more than 140 destinations across Europe, Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia and Türkiye. “Our mission is very clear: we believe everyone has the right to fly,” says Yasemin Güngör Erdem, Senior Head of CRM Solutions at Pegasus Airlines. “Technology moves us toward that goal by making our operations more efficient.” 

Since 2018, Pegasus Airlines has positioned itself as a digital airline, striving to be one of the top three airlines globally utilizing technology most effectively. To gain a competitive edge, Pegasus turned to Microsoft for intelligent end-to-end solutions that enhance both passenger experience and employee satisfaction.

The airline was previously using traditional intent-based AI chatbots to answer customer queries on the company’s website. However, those previous AI agents could only deliver limited support to customers. This wasn’t optimal for users. “We knew that there was potential to significantly improve how we interact with our customers and how we process information,” Erdem notes. 

Wanting to serve customers better and make operations more efficient, Pegasus Airlines launched its FLYGPT Program. 

Building AI capabilities across teams

Leadership support was critical for success, so Erdem ensured buy-in at the highest levels. “First, we communicated our vision and goals to top management. Seeing the potential, our CEO officially launched the program company-wide,” Erdem explains.

With executive support in place, Pegasus Airlines moved forward with training and strategy. “We conducted strategic workshops with C-level management to set the right expectations in the company, communicate risks and benefits, and help leaders understand how the transformation aligns with their business goals,” recalls Merve Korukluoglu Bora, Innovation Tech Lead at Pegasus. To develop use cases, the team identified key personnel across departments who understood their domains but may have had limited experience with AI. “We provided them with specialized training, enabling them to identify relevant AI use cases within their areas of expertise,” explains Erdem.

Once ideas started flooding in from every department, Pegasus Airlines needed a strong technology partner to take them forward. “We had been working with Microsoft since even before our AI initiatives,” Erdem remarks. “After some exploration, we found that Azure AI Services provided all the essential tools we needed, including optical character recognition (OCR) and translation. Most importantly, the solution provided us with a secure environment for our company information, where confidential data is not shared with other customers or used to train AI models beyond our control.”

Doubling customer satisfaction rates with AI

Pegasus Airlines implemented some of the first ideas from its FLYGPT program. The company began training FlyBot (its virtual assistant available on the Pegasus website) using Azure OpenAI and Azure AI Services, expanding its ability to handle customer inquiries. “Now, customers can ask any question they have about their flights, flight rules, and more, and get an immediate answer,” Erdem highlights.

FlyBot became more than a customer service tool. Using the "Plan Your Travel with ChatGPT" button on flypgs.com and their mobile application, customers can ask for destination recommendations, and get options based on available routes and even weather conditions. “FlyBot then helps customers make the reservation by asking how many people will be flying and which dates they prefer,” Erdem explains. “Once details are confirmed, it generates a direct link for customers to make the booking, making it an easy process”.

Beyond reservations, FlyBot also manages operational requests. Because users may ask it for all sorts of information, from flight rules to baggage allowances and claims, Pegasus Airlines integrated the chatbot with internal systems, enabling customers to reissue tickets and handle various requests in one place. This creates a truly unified, seamless service that customers instantly value. “Since we integrated Azure AI Services into our FlyBot, customer satisfaction rates for our virtual assistant have doubled,” points out Bora.

Speeding up internal support 

Pegasus Airlines also enhanced an internal support chatbot, Hero, with Azure AI Services, connecting it with the human resources (HR) system to expand its capabilities. Employees can ask Hero any questions related to HR policies or employment and get an instant answer, without involving the HR team. “We have seen strong engagement, with about 3,000 employees using Hero every month,” Erdem explains. “Since the integration of Azure AI Services, employee satisfaction using Hero increased by 20%,” Erdem highlights.

For frontline teams, Pegasus Airlines developed another AI-powered assistant. “Agent GPT named Peggy is another Azure OpenAI-based chatbot integrated into our agent platforms,” explains Bora. The tool provides agents with quick answers to frequent customer inquiries, reducing waiting times. Previously, Pegasus Airlines’ global sales agents would have to contact its agent support team for information. “The goal of Agent GPT was to shift more of this agent-first support to a self-service approach,” she continues. Instead of relying on manual responses, agents now receive instant answers through the chatbot, streamlining their work. 

Expanding generative AI across roles and operations

Pegasus Airlines continues to grow its AI capabilities, with new projects in development and a focus on automation. “Right now, our AI portfolio includes almost 100 use cases, and 30 of them are active,” Bora shares. The company plans to launch dedicated chatbots for different roles, including crew, pilots, and operations teams, while also addressing repetitive and manual tasks. 

Pegasus Airlines remains engaged in the progress. “This is a journey. At first, we focused on increasing AI knowledge across the organization. Then, testing. Once pilot projects became ongoing projects, our focus shifted to gathering concrete results and finessing the outcomes. We have many more use cases in our portfolio, and we’re excited to explore what comes next,” Erdem concludes. 

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