Emirates selects Sabre Airline Solutions for flight scheduling upgrade

Sabre Airline Solutions, the leading provider of software and services to the airline industry from planning to execution, said today it had expanded its existing relationship with Dubai-based carrier Emirates. The airline, one of the world’s fastest growing, will enhance its flight scheduling activity by implementing the latest Sabre AirFlite flight schedules planning and management solutions. Emirates has replaced its existing Sabre Airline Solutions product, PC AirFlite, with the premier offering.

In order to generate revenue and reduce operating costs, airlines must continually decide which markets to serve, when to fly, which type of aircraft to assign to a specific route and track slots at airports. Sabre AirFlite supports an airline’s entire flight scheduling activity, from strategic planning and forecasting through to fleet assignment and the construction of a seasonal schedule and short-term tactical schedule adjustments.

The system is part of a suite of products that automates the development of an airline’s flight schedule. The latest version contains major advances in schedule publication, passenger connection analysis, code-share handling and many other features.

Azhar Kapadwanjwala, vice-president of schedule planning and network optimisation at Emirates, said: “We liked PC AirFlite but the demands of being one of the world’s fastest growing airlines, and the resulting need for greater functionality, led us to upgrade to Sabre Airline Solutions’ premier flight scheduling tool. It has the performance and ease-of-use of PC AirFlite, but the enhanced features will help make our business more efficient and profitable.

“Over 70 airlines around the world rely on AirFlite to prepare and distribute their flight schedules,” said Steve Clampett, president of airline products and solutions at Sabre Airline Solutions. “We expect Emirates will derive significant value from this new version, including enhanced scheduling flexibility and analysis.”

In a separate development the UK’s leading travel website, lastminute.com, has signed a deal to become the sole worldwide supplier of hotel products to the Emirates Website for the first time.

lastminute.com has been servicing Emirates’ customers’ global hotel needs since 15 November last year, across the 43 international markets in which the airline currently operates.

The new service gives customers access to over 100, 000 city and resort-based hotels worldwide, with access to lastminute.com’s full range of 3- to 5-star luxury, holiday and hip hotels.

The new service is available initially in English, with customers able to pay for their accommodation in Pounds Sterling, U.S. dollars and the euro. A wider range of languages and currency will be introduced in the future.

The deals with both Sabre Airline Solutions and lastminute.com demonstrate the value, beyond the traditional GDS function, that the combined Sabre business is able to bring to travel providers. By working with both Sabre Holdings companies, Emirates will be able to reduce operating costs, offer an enhanced service to its customers and generate greater revenues.

Vic Darvey, group trade director for lastminute.com B2B said: “We’re delighted to be working with one of the world’s fastest growing airlines and we look forward to supporting them as they continue their expansion. Our wide range of hotel content will be pivotal to this relationship and we see this as a strong endorsement of our capabilities as an integrated supplier of ancillary revenues.”

About Sabre Airline Solutions

Sabre Airline Solutions, a Sabre Holdings company, is the world’s largest provider of products to help airlines market, sell, serve and operate from planning to execution.

More than 200 airlines use its broad portfolio of decision-support tools to increase revenues and improve operations, while more than 500 use its leading operational technology. More than 100 airlines rely on Sabre Airline Solutions for passenger management solutions, while a similar number have turned to the company’s consulting group for strategic, commercial and operational advice.

Sabre Holdings (NYSE: TSG) connects people with the world’s greatest travel possibilities by retailing travel products and providing distribution and technology solutions for the travel industry. More information about Sabre Holdings is available at http://www.sabre-holdings.com.

Sabre Airline Solutions, the Sabre Airline Solutions logo, SabreSonic, CargoMax, AirFlite, AirMax, AirOps, AirServ, AirCrews and Sabre Travel Network are trademarks and/or service marks of an affiliate of Sabre Holdings Corp. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names are the property of their respective owners. (C) 2005 Sabre Inc. All rights reserved.

About Emirates

Emirates Airline is based in Dubai, the second largest city in the United Arab Emirates. Financially independent and thriving, Emirates is one of the world’s most successful and fastest growing airlines. The airline has recorded a profit every year since its inception except the second, and growth has averaged 20 percent a year. In its first 11 years, Emirates doubled in size every 3.5 years, and has every four years since.

Emirates currently operates a fleet of over 100 wide-bodied aircraft to over 80 destinations in 59 countries worldwide. Since January 2006, the airline has launched new services to 10 new cities: Abidjan (Cote D’ivoire); Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Bangalore (India), Barcelona* (Spain), Hamburg (Germany), Kolkata (India), Lilongwe* (Malawi), Nagoya (Japan), Thiruvananthapuram (India), and Tunis (Tunisia).

*Freighter services only

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