'UBER RESERVE' USES OAG DATA TO DRAMATICALLY IMPROVE FLIGHT TRACKING ACCURACY

Providing a Sense of Certainty for Customers, with Flight Info API from OAG

With the ease of pandemic travel restrictions worldwide, Uber wants to be a traveler’s first choice for airport pickups and drop-offs. 

Uber is known for its ease of use - customers push a button and get a ride on-demand, whenever and wherever they need it. With Uber Reserve, customers can follow this format, but plan a ride up to 30 days in advance, meaning they can step off the plane and into their designated car.

As travel can be unpredictable, Uber Reserve provides a sense of certainty when things don’t go as planned. Through an integration with OAG’s technology platform, the reservation time is automatically updated based on flight information, so your Uber ride is waiting when your flight lands, whether it’s on time, early or delayed.

Challenge

Although we’re not completely back to pre-pandemic travel rates, passenger traffic at airports has more than doubled compared to last year. But as more people hit the road again, it’s also true that air travel can feel more stressful and uncertain than before. There is no doubt that at Uber, the focus remains on getting you where you need to be as efficiently and safely as possible. To do so, Uber prioritizes continuous innovation, hoping to make their customers' lives easier.

For this new product to be successful, Uber knew they needed an accurate and reliable source of real-time flight data to power the automatic updates to their customers' pick-up times.

Solution

Uber works with OAG to help coordinate flight tracking for riders and drivers. Within 24-hours of a flight landing, the rider will be notified in the Uber app of a delay or potential early arrival. The technology, powered by OAG, then adjusts the reservation pick-up time automatically and informs the driver. This way the driver is ready and waiting the moment you land.

Testimonial 

We spoke to Rob Mitchell, Head of Business Development for Airports, Events and Travel at Uber, and here's what he had to say about Uber's partnership with OAG;

Q: How did you hear about OAG and when did you first make OAG part of Uber Reserve?

A: OAG is practically a household name for aviation enthusiasts, many of us at Uber included. My dad traveled all the time for work and he would bring home the original OAG Pocket Flight Guide, which I would often read cover-to-cover. Fast forward to our early discussions about Uber Reserve and other products for which we might need real-time flight status data, and we knew we could turn to OAG – the company knows that good data is the backbone of the travel industry and puts the needs of its customers first.

Q: Can you describe a few of the reasons you decided to partner with OAG? For example, anything about OAG’s data and platform capabilities that were most appealing to your team?

A: At Uber, our goal is to help you go anywhere and get anything. That includes getting to and from the airport as easily and smoothly as possible. And, since air travel can be unpredictable, we wanted to partner with one of the world’s leading travel data providers to improve the airport pickup experience. With more than one million flight status updates daily, including 97% of worldwide flight coverage, OAG was the ideal partner for Uber Reserve at airports. 

Q: How does OAG support Uber Reserve?

A: Uber works with OAG to help coordinate flight tracking for riders and drivers. Within 24-hours of a flight landing, the rider will be notified in the Uber app of a delay or potential early arrival. The technology, powered by OAG, then adjusts the reservation pickup time automatically and informs the driver. This way the driver is ready the moment you land.

Find out more about Flight Info API here

Read the Full Q&A here

Find out more about Uber Reserve here