While it did not mention American Airlines by name, the letter said that while the TMC is confident in its readiness, “the reality is that no one can offer a seamless customer solution by April 1.” That is the date the carrier said it would require travel agencies and online booking tools (OBTs) to connect to its NDC-based connections or else lose access to up to 40% of fares now available via third-party legacy channels.
“NDC is on a promising trajectory,” said the letter, “and BCD is optimistic that the near-term future may finally see the kind of corporate travel-relevant benefits that airlines have long propounded.” As the landscape continues to evolve, it continued, “we stand with our ecosystem partners in our commitment to delivering a superior experience to our clients in their channel of choice.”
The letter quoted Mark Stansbury, manager, global travel, events and logistics services for Lockheed Martin, a client, as saying: “Unilaterally driven changes will drive further disruption as other partners in the ecosystem seek to compensate for poorly planned changes. The changes will entail additional costs to the end user — with no known substantive value to compensate.”
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