Business Aviation
Access for travel agents to Amadeus E Support Centre
Shirajiv Sirimane in Thailand
 Sri
Lankan Travel Agents would be given the opportunity to access the
Amadeus E Support Centre from next year.
According to Country Manager Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Amadeus,
Dennis Fonseka, the E support Centre launched by the company recently is
very popular. “This is the reason we have decided to extend its
facilities to both Sri Lanka and the Maldives as well”, he said.
Vice President, Corporate and Marketing Communications, Amadeus,
Karun Budhraja said the travel agent should look to offer niche products
to passengers rather than depending on the airline commission which is
shrinking.
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Karun Budhraja with Amadeus’s Senior Asia Pacific Management. |
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The Amadeus headquarters in Bangkok |
He said that Green tours should be promoted while the airline ticket
should be coupled with hotel packages whereby the travel agents would be
able to earn more.
He said that while booking on to hotels, the agents may face problems
and it was to iron out them on line that Amadeus E support Centre was
launched. “Any travel agent could log in from anywhere to find solutions
to their problems”, he said.
Amadeus, the leading provider of technology to the travel and tourism
industry, has acquired a controlling interest in Onerail, which provides
technology solutions to the rail industry.
The acquisition is a major milestone in Amadeus’ strategy to expand
its range of technology solutions for its customers in the travel
industry. “This would also give travel agents more options for
passengers”, he said.
Fonseka said Sri Lanka is now 99 per cent e ticket enabled with grey
areas only in infant ticketing. “At Amadeus we have witnessed an
increase in the out bound market and have issued more than half a
million tickets last year through our 110 agents”, he said.
He said the outbound market was mainly driven by the labor traffic,
which accounted to 65 percent while leisure followed with 20 and
corporate travels by 15 percent. He said the Bill Settlement Plan (BSP)
that was introduced last year has brought back creditworthiness to the
industry.
Singapore Airlines powers
its next generation passenger systems with Amadeus’ Madrid
Singapore Airlines, the
world’s most awarded carrier, will revolutionise its
management of passenger services with its next generation
customer management platform provided by Amadeus, the
leading technology and distribution partner to the travel
and tourism industry.
Singapore Airlines selected
the Amadeus Alt,a Customer Management Solution (CMS) after
an exhaustive and detailed evaluation. With this agreement,
Singapore Airlines will replace its existing passenger
service systems with Amadeus’ suite of solutions, to help
drive all sales and reservations, as well as manage its
global inventory and departure control operations.
A key factor in Singapore
Airlines’ decision to select the Alt,a CMS was the added
assurance that Amadeus’ extensive experience in migrating
from legacy applications and platforms to newer technologies
will ensure that its customers are minimally affected, even
as the carrier transplants the Alt,a CMS into its complex
and diverse day to day operations.
Executive Vice President
Marketing and the Regions of Singapore Airlines Huang Cheng
Eng, said: “Singapore Airlines prides itself on its
single-minded focus on commitment to its customers. We
believe that the Alt,a CMS, with its proven and scaleable
infrastructure, will help us to maintain and enhance our
position as an industry leader in customer service, well
into the foreseeable future.”
According to Executive Vice
President, Commercial, Amadeus, David V. Jones, “Singapore
Airlines’ decision is further recognition and validation of
the key concepts behind Alt,a CMS.
That is, a proven,
future-proof platform, that is built around the customer and
offers unmatched deployed functionality, which allows
airlines to configure the system to deliver truly
differentiated service. Singapore’s choice of Alt,a
underlines our expertise in providing airlines with
world-class IT solutions.”
Amadeus Alt,a CMS is today
the platform of choice for 63 airlines, including members of
the three global airline alliances, Star, oneworld and
Skyteam. In addition, the reservation module of Amadeus
Alt,a CMS is used by 150 airlines as their in-house sales
platform. |
Picture by Shirajiv Sirimane
Cathay Pacific offers bonus Asia Miles
Cathay Pacific Airways, announced an exclusive Asia Miles bonus
accrual promotion for Sri Lankan residents. Passengers travelling on
business class to Cathay’s North American destinations such as Los
Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Toronto, are eligible for bonus
miles redeemable for business class seats.
 Similarly
economy class passengers travelling from Colombo to North American
destinations and in Australia to Melbourne and Sydney will earn bonus
miles to redeem economy class tickets to Bangkok, Singapore or Hong
Kong. The special offer is valid only on round trip fares from June
until the September 30 with travel having to be completed during that
time duration.
“We are delighted to launch this promotion to reward our loyal
passengers, offering an opportunity to visit our long haul destinations
and in the process to earn sufficient Asia Miles which they can redeem
for another free ticket” Cathay Pacific Airway’s Sales and Marketing
Manager, Ruhan Abbas said.
Passengers who avail themselves of this promotion can now enjoy
Cathay’s new long haul experience on selected flights. Economy class
travel has been revolutionised with the introduction of a new cabin
designed to increase personal space and more leg room, with contoured
seat backs for extra comfort, providing extra comfort on the long hauls.
From seats that turn into flat beds, fluffy duvet pillows and a new
gastronomical menu, Business Class passengers are in for a treat.
Asia Miles is Asia’s leading travel reward programme offering
exciting rewards such as hotel stays, dining, shopping and even extra
credits on credit cards. Bonus Asia Miles earned on this promotion is
valid for a three-year period within which members can redeem for free
tickets at any time.
Dialog partners Aeromobile for inflight GSM
In keeping with the Company’s thrust to proactively enhance the user
experience of Sri Lankan consumers by providing any time anywhere
connectivity, Dialog Telekom has achieved the distinction of being the
first operator in the region to partner with AeroMobile a global
provider of inflight GSM services.
Aeromobile announced in March 2008, the pioneering of its services in
partnership with Emirates - the Airbus A340-300 operated by Emirates
being the first commercial airliner to be fitted with the AeroMobile
system.
Similar systems will come in to operation shortly, aboard the
Emirates A340-300, A340-500 and Boeing 777-300 aircraft.
Dialog customers possessing a Postpaid or Prepaid Roaming
subscription are now able to make and receive calls as well as to send
and receive SMS on selected flights subject to the aircraft being fitted
with Aeromobile inflight GSM systems. AeroMobile has announced that it
would add further features to benefit passengers, and that includes
enabling Blackberry email and other GPRS data applications.
The UK-based AeroMobile, will have a large number of airlines and
aircraft enabled with the Aeromobile inflight GSM system by end 2008,
and the company has international airline commitments that total over
300 aircraft.
Special launch offer of complimentary stay for all passengers
Emirates gung-ho on Guangzhou:
Escape to the beautiful “spring city” of Guangzhou with Emirates
introductory offer of a free hotel stay that lasts from July 1 till
September 30. The offer extends to passengers in all classes of travel.
 First Class Passengers receive a three-night stay at the Shangri-La
Hotel, Guangzhou, in an Executive Suite. Business Class Passengers can
avail of a two-night stay in a Horizon Club Premier Room and Economy
Class Passengers receive a one night stay in a Premium Room.
The offer is inclusive of buffet breakfast and all service charges.
Emirates’ Senior Vice President Commercial Operations Gulf, Middle East
and Iran Nabil Sultan said: “We are pleased to offer our customers yet
another irresistible offer to a wonderful new destination. We expect a
lot of traffic to Guangzhou from all over our network with our new
service there. This offer of complimentary accommodation is our way of
thanking our customers for their loyalty to our world-class airline. We
promise the best and deliver it.”
Emirates’ Guangzhou launch offer may be booked via travel agents or
from Emirates directly. In Dubai, passengers can book via their travel
agents, Emirates’ travel hubs, or the airline’s call centre.
This offer is applicable to all Emirates adult fare paying passengers
holding return tickets for Guangzhou exclusively on flights operated by
Emirates. Conditions apply and customers are advised to check with their
travel agents.
Guangzhou is the main commercial centre of Guangdong province in
China and is well connected by railways, highways and waterways. Ferries
are a popular mode of transport, and tourists can enjoy a river
excursion down the Pearl River. |
