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Clive Wratten says there are ‘no signs’ of the promise of NDC – of which Lufthansa has been a leading supporter – ‘becoming a reality’


BTA blasts airlines for failing to deliver on NDC promises


Association criticises ‘haphazard approach’ to new system. Ian Taylor reports It insists: “The BTA and its


The Business Travel Association (BTA) delivered a withering appraisal of airlines’ approach to Iata’s New Distribution Capability (NDC) last week. The BTA concluded, in a report


on five years’ NDC implementation, that “despite heavy financial and technological investment” by travel management companies (TMCs), “the TMC community and business traveller [have] been consistently penalised . . . with promises unfulfilled by airlines”. It noted the uneven progress with


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50% of airlines “not currently certified on any standard of NDC” and said: “A ‘functionality gap’ remains.” Iata launched NDC as a way


to bring Amazon-style retailing to airlines through intermediaries, but it was also seen as way to reduce the costs of GDS distribution. The BTA report notes airlines and


content aggregators have benefited from “a significant reduction in distribution costs” and concludes: “Up to now, NDC has only been about renegotiating commercial terms for airlines.”


members strongly embrace NDC. Our issue is with the lack of progress and haphazard approach to NDC adoption. “The availability of paid options


such as preferred seats, additional bags, Wi-Fi and one-off lounge passes has previously been limited through GDS distribution. TMCs have long desired to access such ‘richer’ content [and] . . . NDC promised to offer


Continued on page 46 travelweekly.co.uk


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