Flybe deal boosts GDS content by a third

Flybe is giving Sabre and Galileo powered agents full access to its fares, boosting content in the GDSs by around 30%.

The airline has reached an agreement with Sabre and Galileo to access its full range of fares. The deal replaces the existing agreement that gave agents access to about 70% of through the GDSs. It will continue to add a premium of £5 per sector to the fares.

“It is at the discretion of agents, how they manage the premium – whether to absorb this cost themselves or pass it on to the customer”, said Sabre Travel Network’s director of airline, hotel and car distribution EMEA, Hamish Broom.

Agents using Amadeus and Worldspan face a £7 premium on fares, and will continue to miss out on access to two or three fare classes (about 30% of fares).

The airline previously worked with all four GDSs and invited them all to enter a new deal over access to fares. The move came after agents were reluctant to use the Flybe dedicated agent website because of problems integrating it with their back office systems.

If agents were to book the fare themselves through the Flybe website they would bypass the £5 or £7 fees encountered on the GDSs, but would face a £1.75 credit card processing fee per sector, both through the consumer and agent dedicated websites.

“That £3.25 must be seen in the context of the benefits travel agents will have of booking through one screen”, said Mr Broom.

He added: “These are for very low fares so it makes good business sense not to spend long on the booking. Agents shouldn’t be turning this low fares business away. This is particularly important for agents booking business travel who want to retain the management information – the best way to do that is through a GDS.”

Mr Broom was keen to set the record straight with TravelMole following a report in one travel trade paper. He said: “The Travel Weekly piece did not get it absolutely correct. It is not an opt-in scheme, so no change or contribution needs to be made by the agent.”

The Flybe fares will also be available to book through agency branded websites that are powered by Sabre. Commenting on this Mr Broom said: “This deal works well with our multiple channel strategy, something we have been focussing on as we move towards deregulation for GDSs.”

Mr Broom said that he expected further deals between GDSs and airlines: “We expect more unique deals will come into the marketplace later on in the year.”