New Travelport technology resolves flight disruption issues

Boris Padovan (left) with Keri Ingmire

Airlines are likely to have an easier time managing passengers and helping them with accommodation issues during flight disruptions, thanks to a new technology from Travelport.

The travel technology company has launched Resolve, a paperless system for airlines that automates sourcing, distribution and booking of hotel rooms when flights are cancelled or delayed.

Boris Padovan (left) with Keri Ingmire

It will notify affected passengers by email and text message, and lead them to a listing of available partner hotels on ground. The airline will be able to customise the presented list along variables such as price per night and passenger class.

Passengers can then reserve their rooms and check in with their electronic bookings. This can cut the queues on ground at customer service, and shave check-in time from about 15 minutes to about two minutes, said Resolve product owner Keri Ingmire.

At the same time, the airline will be able to keep track of booking numbers and expense data live. The suite also includes actionable insights into irregular operations, including hotel-related costs and passenger activity patterns, as well as analysis on the cost of disruptions and improvements an airline can make to its service.

Resolve was trial-tested with a major US-based carrier, and Travelport is now in talks with several airlines to implement the system, said Boris Padovan, vice president of global sales, airline IT solutions.

There are also plans to integrate it into Travelport’s other products, such as Trip Assist and Fusion, as well as independently hosted airline apps, said Padovan.

Besides improving customer service for airlines, adopting such a system can also translate into better customer satisfaction, reduced costs and an added safety blanket for travel agents, said the managing director of Pegasus Travel, Charles Tan.

-reporting from Travelport LIVE, Sydney

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