About the Client

A growing travel agency wanted to digitize its offerings by launching a user-friendly flight booking platform that worked seamlessly on both web and mobile. Their key goals were:

1. Real-time flight information and availability

2. Simple booking experience with flexible options

3. Centralized backend for managing user trips

4. Scalable cloud infrastructure for future growth

They partnered with Blackwins Tech Solutions to build a robust, cloud-native product from the ground up.

🚀 The Vision

1. Optimal flight search

2. Detailed flight info

3. Two-step booking options

4. Trip tracking

5. Secure login & data protection

6. Mobile-first experience

Flight Booking App on GCP (MERN + Firebase + Amadeus)

App development Process

🧩 Implementation Architecture

1. Frontend: React + TypeScript

1. Responsive UI for desktop & mobile

2. Flight search, real-time results, and booking interfaces

3. Performance via lazy loading & caching

2. Backend: Node.js + Express

1. API layer to interface with Amadeus Travel APIs.

2. Managed logic for:

3. Parsing and caching flight search results

4. Booking workflows (two options: quick booking or confirmation-based)

5. User trip management (view, update, cancel trips)

6. RESTful APIs exposed to both web and mobile clients

3.Authentication with Firebase

1. Implemented secure login using Firebase Auth with support for:

2. Email/password

3. Google sign-in

4. Firebase Auth tokens were validated on the backend to protect all routes.

4. Image & Document Storage

1. Users can upload KYC or travel documents.

   Stored securely using Google Cloud Storage Buckets.

   Used signed URLs for controlled and time-bound access.

✈️ Integration with Amadeus API

Amadeus handled flight data, availability, booking simulation, and fare details. Resolved API version mismatches and implemented retries.

1. Authentication and token management with Amadeus

2. Optimal flight search using parameters (cheapest, shortest duration, etc.)

3. Flight details retrieval including baggage, fare class, transit info

4. Booking simulation and order creation workflows

Challenges addressed:

1. Route and versioning mismatches resolved through Amadeus dev support

2. Implemented retries and fallback options for API timeouts

Web App Hosting:

1. Frontend (React) was containerized and deployed to Cloud Run, offering auto-scaling and fast cold-start performance.

Backend Hosting:

1. Deployed using Google Cloud Functions, with environment variables securely stored in Secret Manager.

CI/CD:

1. Implemented GitHub Actions workflows to auto-deploy on merge to main.

2. Cloud Build used for image generation and storage.

3. Mobile App: React Native + Play Store

4. Built using React Native (Expo) for cross-platform development.

5. Integrated with the same backend and Firebase auth.

App features included:

1. Real-time flight search

2. Trip history

3. Push notifications (via Firebase Cloud Messaging)

4. Published successfully on Google Play Store with Play Console integration.

📊 Outcome

1. Fully functional MVP launched within 10 weeks

2. 99.9% uptime on both frontend and backend

3. Secure and scalable infrastructure to handle traffic surges

4. Successfully onboarded 200+ users within the first month of launch

🧠 Lessons Learned

1. Firebase made authentication seamless, especially with mobile sync.

2. Amadeus API provided deep, accurate data but required careful versioning and error handling.

3. GCP Cloud Run + App Engine enabled quick deployments with little DevOps overhead.

4. React Native + Expo drastically reduced development time for mobile release.

🧭 Future Roadmap

1. Implement AI-powered price prediction

2. Integrate hotel and cab bookings

3. Add multi-language and currency support ( currently supporting two differnt language )

4. Enable group travel and referral discounts