The unexpected event of COVID-19 has led to complex problems, including government-imposed travel restrictions. The existing automated solution for changes and refunds on tickets was not set up to handle this type of emergency.
The industry needed an automated solution to waive fees on these tickets during this time and provide greater flexibility for the traveling public. It is incredibly time-consuming for each airline and agency to manually process changes to tickets. Each airline was trying to come up with their own solution and nothing was working the same way across all channels. ATPCO saw this happening and, as a service organization to the industry, started looking for ways to help.
Better for everyone
ATPCO quickly got to work, analyzing several ideas to design an automated industry solution to make it easier for airlines to provide passengers with greater flexibility for future travel. It had to be something simple that did not cause a lot of changes in processing for subscribers so it could be implemented soon, but it still had to meet the needs of each airline. More specifically, the automated solution temporarily allows new Voluntary Changes and Voluntary Refunds data to be applied to previously issued tickets. It’s a win for the whole industry.
Collaboration for a quick industry response
What does it take to get this solution implemented? A lot. ATPCO personnel from various teams are working closely with individual airlines and subscribers to establish this viable, automated solution that can be implemented across all channels quickly. In fact, implementing a solution like this would normally take years. But this solution has been established in just a few months, which is an incredible achievement for the industry as a whole, and is one example of how the community has been working together.
As air travel continues to face uncertainty and challenges, ATPCO will continue working closely with the industry to respond to and establish quick solutions through its Industry Governance Model. And above all, ATPCO remains committed to 99.9% operational reliability serving our customers, so they can best serve theirs.
Want to learn more about this solution?
- Attend the 2 June webinar with three major channels who are prepared to implement the solution on 7 June, and get any last-minute questions answered by the ATPCO panel. Register now.
- Recorded product webinar: ATPCO customers can watch a high-level webinar to learn how the solution works (registration required).
- Log in to the Customer Center to:
- Watch a virtual training session: ATPCO customers can register for a virtual training session for a more in-depth look at how to apply this solution by visiting the training section of the Customer Center or sending an email to learning@atpco.net.
- View the guidelines document with information on how to use the solution (updated as necessary).
- View the data application overview document.
- View the FAQ document for a quick overview
- If you have any questions, please reach out to our Customer Service team.
