Delta Air Lnes has announced that, from today, its flight attendants will begin to use the Windows Phone 8 powered Nokia Lumia 820 "to streamline on-board purchasing". More than 19,000 devices will be distributed to Delta's staff worldwide, making the deployment one of the most notable enterprise wins for Nokia this year. It's also a high profile win from a consumer awareness point of view, with nearly every passenger flying on Delta set to see a Windows Phone device in action on a regular basis.

The Lumia 820 solution, which includes a clip-on credit card reader that attaches to the top of the device, has been developed by Microsoft, Avanade and AT&T after "months of development and feedback from flight attendants". The system is based on the Avanade point of sale (POS) experience, which is built on top of the Microsoft Dynamics for Retail mobile point-of-sale platform.

The system, which operates over WiFi and AT&Ts 4G network, allow Delta's staff to do near real-time credit card processing for on board purchases, flight upgrades, and more. The solution includes the ability to email customers eReceipts and in the future is set to include the ability to read coupons displayed on the screens of a customers device.

It's clear that the Windows based solution is set to expand in the future with Delta noting that, in due course it "expects to provide flight attendants with certain customer-specific information to enable more personalized service" and that it will "expand the solution over the next three years to the newest Nokia devices". Windows IT Pro notes that the system will eventually reach 22,000 flight attendants and that Delta plans to roll out Windows powered Tablets to pilots later this year.

Chris Weber, global head of sales & marketing at Nokia, said:

"We’re excited that Delta Air Lines has chosen Nokia Lumia to provide new services that will benefit their customers. This is a great example of how Nokia, Microsoft and our other partners are enabling many of the world’s leading companies to build innovative mobile solutions for their businesses. I look forward to seeing the Nokia Lumia in action on my next flight with Delta Air Lines."

Joanne Smith, senior vice president – In-Flight Service at Delta, said:

"Delta's 19,000 in-flight professionals are there for the safety and comfort of our customers, and equipping them with innovative solutions means they can better meet our customers' needs on board every flight. This is yet another way we're investing in technology to improve the customer experience."

Here's a demo video, which talks about how Avanade generic solution works. The system built for Delta has been customised, but is based on the same product: