Travelport reaches deal with AF KLM

Surcharges lifted by airlines

Travelport GDS has today (April 21) signed a global full content deals with Air France KLM.

The four year deal will exempt agents using Travelport's Galileo or Worldspan GDSs from the €4.50 surcharge the airlines were levying on bookings made through them.

The fees were due to be imposed in the French market from June 1 and in the Netherlands from mid-July.

During the negotiations Travelport said it would absorb the fee "temporarily."

Travelport said that the agreement which last until March 2013 would come in to effect immediately.

Patrick Lukan, its general manager for the UK and Ireland, said: "The length of this new agreement, and the fact that it guarantees full content globally, will really give our travel agency customers a competitive edge.

Patrick Lukan, Travelport

"It is a further illustration of our ability to work with our airline partners and reach a situation that is beneficial to all those involved in the travel booking chain - the airline, ourselves, the travel agency customers, and, of course, the end traveller."

Henri Hourcade, Air France's vp corporate and distribution, said: "Travelport GDS, with its Galileo and Worldspan systems, is an important distribution partner for the sale of Air France and KLM flights and we are looking forward to working closely together over the coming years."

 Rival GDSs Sabre and Amadeus have already signed long term all content agreements with Air France KLM.

But the latter is still in dispute with Lufthansa and SWISS. The airlines and the GDS have failed to come to an agreement despite exhaustive talks over the airlines' controversial Preferred Fares Programme.

Amadeus said earlier this month that the failure to agree had lost it 10% of its flight bookings in Germany since the end of January when it ceased absorbing the surcharge.  

www.travelport.com   www.airfrance.com   www.klm.com