United Kingdom
United States
Asia Pacific
Sabre moves to fill eticketing gap
Sabre will launch a product on June 1 that will allow agents to book flights and other transactions that are not yet e-ticketable.
The new piece of kit, called the Virtual Miscellaneous Charge Order (vMCO), arrives just in time for the IATA May 31 deadline after which it requires 100% e-ticketing.
There are currently a number of gaps where eticketing has yet to become a reality. Some airlines and routes do not operate e-ticketing and payment for excess baggage vouchers and exchange fees is still done the old fashioned way. Pre-paid Ticket Advices (PTA) and tickets on departure are also not eticketable.
The vMCO, however, will bridge the gap with agents able to arrange for passengers to receive a paper ticket at the airport when an airline or route is not yet e-ticketable.
The solution will be totally automated, passing transaction details to IATA’s Billing and Settlement Plans and an agency’s mid and back-office systems.
British Airways is one of the first companies to endorse the use of vMCO.
Martin Cowley, senior vice president for Sabre Travel Network in EMEA, said: “Moving to a 100% e-ticketing environment is one of the most significant industry initiatives ever undertaken, and we’ve been working with airline and agency customers to proactively address gaps where e-ticketing won’t be available.
“Our agents around the world already issue over 93% of their tickets as e-tickets – a figure that is steadily rising as we focus on enabling e-ticketing for remaining airlines and thousands of other interline carriers. Sabre agents can also issue single e-tickets for passengers travelling on multiple carriers, using data from more than 6,100 Interline E-Ticket (IET) agreements we already have in our system.â€
by Dinah Hatch
Phil Davies
Mark Jaronski of Explore Georgia on FIFA World Cup 2026
Connecting Small Businesses to Global Tourism Markets: Nate Huff of Tourism Exchange
North Carolina’s Resilience: Wit Tuttell on Recovery and Tourism
Kittipong Prapattong’s Plan for Thailand’s Tourism Growth: Taxes, Visas, and Campaigns
James Jin: Didatravel’s Journey from China to Global Reach and the Impact of AI on Travel
Darien Schaefer on Pensacola’s Evolution: From Small Town to Global Destination
Florida Tourism’s Next Frontier: Dana Young on Expanding Beyond the Classics
Patrick Harrison on Tampa Bay Tourism’s Resilience and Marketing Strategy
Bubba O’Keefe on Clarksdale’s Vibrant Music Scene
Commemorating Elvis and Embracing Tupelo’s Culture with Jennie Bradford Curlee
Craig Ray and the Expansion of the Blues Trail
Presenting Mississippi’s Cultural Trails with Katie Coats
BA suspending all Heathrow to Abu Dhabi flights
Turkish Airlines flight in emergency landing after pilot dies
Unexpected wave rocks cruise ship
Woman dies after going overboard in English Channel
Foreign Office issues travel advisory for winter sun destinations