About Client
Akasa Air is an Indian low-cost airline operating domestic flights across India. Akasa Air began its commercial operation on the 7th of August 2022. With over 500 weekly flights and 15 routes across 12 cities, Akasa Air is one of the world's fastest-growing low-cost carriers
“Launching a new airline is a race against the clock, and every second counts. We needed a high-performance website that could handle massive amounts of traffic without compromising security - all within a tight timeframe. We had multiple systems to integrate, a seamless user experience to ensure, and a wall of security to construct. The task seemed daunting, to say the least. But when CodeWalnut joined us, it felt like a fresh gust of wind. They brought not just technical knowledge, but also a solution-oriented mindset that made the difference. With them, we transformed challenges into stepping stones, shaping the digital face of India's youngest airline.”
Highlights
Challenges:
- To build an advanced ecommerce website from scratch, with no roadmap, in just 5 months.
- Choosing the right technology under time constraints, without compromising on user experience or functionality.
- Handling sudden COVID-induced business logic changes and late CRM system finalization.
- Preventing potential cybersecurity threats, specifically avoiding price manipulation hacking that could lead to significant brand and revenue damage.
Solutions:
- Pioneered a new design validation process that anticipated 60% of issues before they occurred.
- Chose GraphQL over REST APIs, resulting in the fastest loading mobile site in the country.
- Employed AWS Cognito for user registration & authentication before the CRM decision was finalized.
- Practiced 'unhappy paths' analysis for error handling, and real-time User Acceptance Test to accelerate development and testing.
Results:
- A fully functional, high-performing website launched within the tight deadline.
- India's fastest loading mobile site, offering seamless user experience on the first day of launch.
- Over 5% consistent conversion rates achieved, a first in the aviation e-commerce industry, surpassing industry norms.
- 5X peak in traffic handled with ease, allowing our tech support team to relax
Impact:
- Positioned Akasa Air as a digital pioneer, receiving widespread customer appreciation.
- Rapidly monetize the website within a month of going live, driving substantial traffic and fostering a loyal customer base.
- Offered significant learning opportunities for the team, pushing the boundaries of what's possible in tech solution development.
Challenges
In the world of aviation, where dreams fly high and competition is fierce, our newest client, Akasa Air, was attempting to accomplish what some would consider a daring feat. Their challenge?
To launch a comprehensive online booking portal in an astonishingly tight time-frame of five months, while navigating the tumultuous landscape of an industry reshaped by the global pandemic.
Akasa Air approached CodeWalnut with a vision rather than a traditional, detailed blueprint. Their ambition to carve out a digital niche was evident, but the path to achieve it seemed laden with hurdles. The complex interplay of diverse elements such as shifting market dynamics, cybersecurity concerns, and the unavailability of their CRM systems till the later stages, painted a daunting picture. It was like trying to assemble a jigsaw puzzle without having all the pieces at hand.
"Think of it like threading a needle in the dark while being chased by a ticking clock," quips our project manager, recounting the initial scenario. "Akasa Air didn't just want a website. They were striving to craft a holistic digital ecosystem, that too, within a time-frame that would make most flinch." With their significant ambition came significant risk.
But as a team driven by challenges and the thrill of innovation, CodeWalnut saw an opportunity to defy the odds and help Akasa Air chart a course towards their ambitious destination.
Solution
When we at CodeWalnut started working with Akasa Airlines, we knew immediately that their existing content management system needed an overhaul. The key was to create an optimal tech stack that would serve their business and technical needs.
In the early stages of the project, CodeWalnut insisted on sitting with the designers. We believe in the importance of mapping out all the unhappy paths a customer might encounter, not just the happy ones. "It's easy to create a seamless journey when everything goes right," our project lead explains, "but true craftsmanship lies in anticipating, identifying, and gracefully handling potential errors and problem conditions."
One case that always comes to mind is the less-than-intuitive handling of online check-ins within the two-hour flight window. "It's all about communication," says our project lead. "Instead of displaying a 'PNR not found' error, a simple message letting the customer know they've missed the web check-in window would suffice. At CodeWalnut, we see these unhappy paths as opportunities to enhance the user experience."
By employing this proactive approach to design validation, we were able to uncover 60% of potential issues in the design phase itself. This not only improved our estimations, but it also meant a smoother User Acceptance Testing phase, helping us stick to our schedules more effectively.
As we navigated this journey, we realized that agility wasn't just nice to have—it was essential. Agile methodologies allowed us to adapt rapidly to evolving requirements and unexpected challenges.
One of our biggest technical pivots involved transitioning from traditional REST APIs to GraphQL. "It was a bold move, but it allowed us to aggregate multiple requests into single data fetch calls, improving mobile device data loading times significantly. Furthermore, GraphQL offered us the advantage of defining the data schema upfront, leading to more predictable performance.
Delays with the CRM system could have slowed us down, but we came up with an innovative solution: mock interfaces. "By creating these," says the project lead, "we were able to carry on with development, avoiding the trap of external dependencies." Alongside, we implemented AWS Cognito for user authentication, substantially enhancing system security.
One of our most innovative practices were the 'sprint clinics'. "These were brainstorming sessions where the entire team would come together to tackle technical issues," recalls the project lead. "They fostered a creative problem-solving environment, accelerating our delivery."
Our partnership with Akasa Airlines allowed us to push the boundaries of what we could achieve. Not only did we meet their requirements, we surpassed their expectations. It's a testament to what CodeWalnut can accomplish when we're presented with a complex challenge.
Impact
The dawn of July 22nd, 2022, signaled more than just another day. It marked the successful maiden flight of Akasa Air, showcasing the fruition of an ambitious digital transformation led by CodeWalnut. A venture that began with a blank slate in March had come to life in under five months. The seemingly impossible had been achieved.
Applause for Akasa: Delighted Travelers Praise Our Tech Platform
In this digital age, social media has become the town square where people share their joy and express their appreciation. With tons of commendation pouring in from platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, we couldn't be prouder of the impact our platform is making.
Notably, one American tech entrepreneur who experienced Akasa Air firsthand in India shared his delightful journey on LinkedIn. His words speak volumes about the seamless digital experience we offer.
Our mobile app, too, has been receiving showers of praise. We crafted this app from scratch using Flutter, and we're thrilled to see it make a difference.
These words of appreciation inspire us to keep soaring to new heights
Akasa Air's triumph wasn't only confined to the successful launch; they continued to redefine the digital landscape in the aviation industry. Merely three months post-launch, they had the fastest Page Speed Score in the industry, a remarkable feat that underscored their commitment to providing an optimal user experience. A significant promotion saw a surge of 50,000 visitors in a single day, a test the system passed with flying colors, much to the delight of the CIO. The real delight, however, was the resultant confidence, which led to a flurry of marketing campaigns.
The numbers were impressive, but the qualitative triumphs were equally noteworthy. In the words of the CIO, "With CodeWalnut, we didn't just evade potential catastrophes, we forged a path to become India's youngest and most digitally advanced airline."
Turning Launch Challenges into Learning Opportunities
While our launch was a significant milestone, it wasn't without challenges. Initially, time constraints led us to sidestep test automation and unit test cases, a move that caused unexpected hurdles in production. However, these issues highlighted the value of diversified test data, prompting us to build a larger test data set in the development environment. This change not only improved our ability to simulate real-world conditions but also enhanced the overall quality of production. Ultimately, our journey has affirmed that in software development, unexpected hurdles can often lead to valuable learning opportunities and growth.
From crisis to success, CodeWalnut's journey with Akasa Air is a tale of digital transformation that would pique the curiosity of any industry observer.
Key Takeaways for an enterprise CIO
A treasure trove of strategic insights gleaned from our partnership with Akasa Air. If you're a CIO looking to navigate the complex waters of digital transformation, these distilled nuggets of wisdom are for you:
- Champion Agility: Spot design flaws early to avoid the chaos of rushed coding.
- Be Evidence-Based: Make architectural choices backed by proven concepts.
- Prevent Regressions: Deploy early-stage test automation as your secret tool.
- Security First: Prioritize safe coding, even as you build exciting features.
- Mobile is Paramount: Aim for top-notch mobile performance from the get-go.
- Unite Business and Tech: This strong alliance is key to hitting quality milestones.
- Flexibility is Power: Equip every feature with an on-off switch for on-demand launch.
- Log Extensively: The path to speedy ticket resolution lies in detailed logging.
- Diversify Test Data: This crucial investment holds the key to product quality.
