Travelport further deepened its collaboration with Singapore Airlines (SIA) and the travel agency community on the implementation of SIA’s KrisConnect Programme – the airline’s initiative to leverage IATA’s New Distribution Capability (NDC) standard. Damian Hickey, Global Vice President & Global Head of Air Travel Partners, briefed representatives of around 200 agencies on Travelport’s NDC implementation roadmap for SIA at the launch of the airline’s expanded KrisConnect Programme in Singapore. He also offered a preview of the intuitive new NDC-enabled process which agencies can soon expect, as Travelport prepares to launch the next phase of its NDC delivery shortly. Since KrisConnect was first launched in late 2018, Travelport has been working extensively with SIA to integrate its NDC content, ahead of general availability from April 2020. Functionality is expected to be launched through Travelport’s NDC-enabled points-of-sale, starting with initial pilots with a small group of agency customers in the coming months. Agencies connecting to KrisConnect through Travelport will gain access to customised offerings that are tailored to customers’ needs and preferences. SIA has advised that they will also benefit from a wider range of fares and other content come April 2020. All of this will be delivered through an intuitive, user-friendly interface integrated into the Travelport systems they are already familiar with. This latest collaboration builds on Travelport’s leading momentum in rolling out NDC capabilities for the industry. Travelport was the first GDS to make a live NDC booking in October 2018, and is already connected to six airlines’ NDC content.
Read More »1st Travel Tuesday engages corporates
Ashwin Singh, Managing Director, Plus Point Hospitality organised ‘Travel Tuesday’, an ROI-driven networking event with Singapore Tourism Board and Singapore Airlines for corporates, MICE and travel trade decision makers. It was the first event that took place on October 17, 2017, at the Taj Hotel Dubai Business Bay. The event was divided in two parts- the first one included decision makers from the various Corporates and MICE organisers attended a presentation by the Singapore Tourism Board and Singapore Airlines where they received valuable information about the destination and the airline. The attendees stated that it was a very good meeting point as they were able to obtain a lot information and it was a very personalised meeting with the two partners and they looked forward to another event in two months.
Read More »Ethiopian-Singapore expand code share
Star Alliance members Ethiopian Airlines and Singapore Airlines will expand their code-share agreement as of June 1, 2017, offering customers travelling between Africa and Asia seamless connectivity options. Ethiopian Airlines’ daily non-stop services to Singapore from Addis Ababa, due to be launched in June 2017, will be covered by the expanded code-share agreement. Under the expanded agreement, Ethiopian Airlines customers will be able to access multiple destinations in Australia, China, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam across Singapore Airlines’ wide network. In turn, Singapore Airlines customers will enjoy access to Ethiopian Airlines’ vast intra-African network including countries like Botswana, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cote D’Ivoire, Kenya, Nigeria, Mozambique, The Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. Girma Shiferaw, Acting Vice President, Strategic Planning and Alliances, remarked: “I wish to thank Singapore Airlines for the successful completion of this vital agreement. The two airlines will synergize their respective networks in Asia and Africa to offer customers the best connectivity options with one ticket and one single check-in at the first boarding airport. It will also play a critical role in enhancing investment, trade and tourism ties between a rising Africa, and a highly developed, innovative, and business-friendly Singapore.” Tan Kai Ping, Senior Vice President Marketing Planning, Singapore Airlines, said, “We are delighted with our expanded codeshare operations with Ethiopian Airlines. This significant expansion of our important partnership is in line with our ongoing effort to continuously expand our network reach and to offer customers more travel options and convenience when travelling between Africa, Asia and Southwest Pacific.” The airlines first began code sharing on each other’s flights to and from Dubai in 2011. The expanded codeshare flights are …
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