This has been the conundrum faced by airlines that have set their sights on the ever growing mobile market.

Native apps have the advantage of being designed from scratch for mobile use, which tends to result in a more pleasant user experience when accessed through mobile devices. They can also send push notifications and run some tasks offline.

Yet, they also have serious drawbacks. Not only do you need to develop a version for each of the dominant mobile platforms if you wish to reach a broad audience, but many potential users simply can’t be bothered to download them...and of those that do, the odds are that most won’t be using it anyway! (data of % of little used apps).

Responsive design, in turn facilitates access, but it can be lacking in terms of user experience and this can hamper your mobile presence.

With the evolving growing trend within the travel industry towards mobile bookings, and a mobile first eCommerce strategy being the prevailing option in many markets, it is essential for airlines to get the most suitable, scalable and cost effective solution right from the start.

Luckily for those facing this difficult decision, PWA technology comes to the rescue!

What is PWA?

PWA, that stands for Progressive Web App, offers an interesting compromise between the best features of both, native apps and responsive design. And one of its most interesting features is that you will only have to build, update and maintain one platform: your website.

It, basically, offers many of the capabilities and convenience of an app, but without having to abandon the web.