This launch allows travel agencies to tap into Air Canada’s expanded NDC offers and services so that they may provide a more personalized travel experience to their customers. Airlines across the board, whether they be full service or low-cost, as well as those who sell travel and customers will benefit from a more transparent experience. It will show airline products and services with full access and rich air content for sellers.
As of July 17, 2024, travel agents and other travel sellers can shop, book, and service Air Canada NDC offers alongside traditional EDIFACT content and low-cost and ancillary XML options, a form of text coding that is an extensible markup language used for the description of marked-up electronic text – a metalanguage.
EDIFACT is Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce and Transport – a global set of rules defined by the UN for inter-company electronic data exchange (EDI) between 2 or more business partners via EDI. It is used for messages used by departments responsible for booking, departures, space, and ticketing and allowed communication with other airlines and GDSs (Global Distribution Systems).
NDC is now available in the following markets: Canada, Australia, Brazil, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Following the launch in these countries, focus will turn to activating new markets based on demand.
Air Canada and Sabre are committed to advancing travel retailing to create more personalized experiences for travelers. NDC is a vital enabler of this shared goal. It provides the technology infrastructure to expand offer-and order-based retailing from airlines to third-party travel sellers, such as travel agencies and online booking tools. By activating NDC through Sabre, travel sellers maintain their competitive edge by maximizing access to Air Canada’s content.