Immfly & Adyen
Immfly: Taking in-flight payments to new heights
Immfly is a global leader in onboard digital solutions, transforming the passenger experience with innovations in retail, connectivity, and entertainment. The company currently partners with over 50 airlines worldwide, managing over 50 million transactions annually across 4,000 POS devices serving over 400 million passengers.
As demand for onboard retail and services increased, Immfly recognised a critical hurdle: how to deliver secure, fast, and reliable payments at altitude. Limited connectivity, the need to accommodate international payment methods, and the risk of fraud made the challenge especially complex.
To understand how Immfly is tackling these challenges, we sat down with Fernando Guinea, President and COO of Immfly, to discuss their approach to in-flight payments, the role of technology in overcoming connectivity issues, and what it takes to create a seamless passenger experience in the sky.
4%
less fraud with Adyen Uplift
5%
faster checkout with Tap to Pay
Watch the video
The turbulence of in-flight payments
The challenge: Offline, complex, and fraud-prone payments.
Handling payments on an airplane presents a unique challenge. "Processing a payment on the ground already has its complexities, but in an airplane, it's another story. You're in a metal tube, without an immediate connection to banks, and with passengers who want to pay with their favourite method," explains Fernando Guinea, President and COO of Immfly.
Before partnering with Adyen, Immfly relied on multiple providers for every part of the process, from payment gateways and acquiring to hardware and reconciliation. This setup created complexity, drove up operational costs, and delivered a fragmented experience for airlines, crews, and passengers.
A unified platform with Adyen
The solution: A single provider for the entire payment process.
With Adyen, Immfly has consolidated all its payment services into a single integration: gateway, acquiring, local and international payment methods, hardware, and real-time reporting.
Key features like Store & Forward and auto retries allow offline payment processing and automatic resending for up to 30 days until authorisation is captured. Furthermore, Adyen's dashboards facilitate real-time visibility, fraud detection, and airline data analysis.
"With Adyen, we transformed a complex process into a single solution, with which we manage payments, prevent fraud, and provide valuable data to our clients."
Fernando Guinea, President and COO of Immfly
Smarter payments unlock growth in the sky
The result: Fast, secure, and seamless payments, boosting revenue and delighting passengers at 30,000 feet.
Payments as a revenue driver
Partnering with Adyen enabled Immfly to reduce friction in onboard sales, facilitate fast, contactless payments, enable upselling experiences like seat upgrades or in-flight connectivity plans.
"Payments should be seen as a revenue driver. That's why we chose a leading partner like Adyen, which drives innovation in terminals, AI for fraud prevention, and automation."
Fernando Guinea, President and COO of Immfly
Better experience for crew and passengers
Before, cabin crews worked with legacy systems that included up to three separate devices (terminal, printer, and POS). Adyen's all-in-one devices have simplified operations, making implementation quick and onboard work more agile.
Thanks to Tap to Pay, each payment now takes up to 5 seconds less, which on full flights means less waiting in the aisle and more time to assist passengers.
Passengers expect to pay with their usual method, regardless of nationality. With Adyen, Immfly accepts most global payment methods in seconds, offering an experience comparable to one on the ground.
“A memorable example,” recalls Fernando Guinea, President and COO of Immfly “was when mid-flight, a passenger decided to upgrade their seat, purchase a connectivity plan, and buy from the boutique catalogue. The transaction took just 30 seconds, with funds available to the airline just three minutes after landing.”
Fraud reduction and security
Adyen's AI risk engine, Adyen Uplift, has been a game-changer for Immfly. It has used dynamic blocklists for fraudulent cards, detected suspicious attempts in real time, and reduced fraud by up to 4% in the first year.
The result? Safer payments for airlines and greater confidence for passengers when making purchases onboard.
Turning onboard payments into a competitive advantage
The Adyen team has been decisive in the initial implementation but also in continuous innovation: agile support, advanced reporting, and strategic guidance to scale with new airlines.
"With Adyen, we have gone from having multiple providers and scattered processes to working with a single partner who also supports us in innovation and growth."
Fernando Guinea, President and COO of Immfly
Partnering with Adyen, Immfly has turned a historically complex process into a driver of revenue and differentiation. With fast, secure, and global payments, the onboard experience has improved for everyone, airlines, crew, and passengers alike.
Immfly proves that, even at 30,000 feet, payments can be a strategic lever for innovation, efficiency, and customer satisfaction.