▪ The airline will distribute both EDIFACT and NDC content through the Sabre global distribution system (GDS)
▪ Sabre and LATAM are already working on the integration of the carrier’s NDC content in the Sabre GDS. Implementation is planned for the first half of 2024
Sabre Corporation (NASDAQ: SABR), a leading software and technology provider powering the global travel industry, and LATAM Airlines Group, Latin America’s largest airline, today announced an enhanced distribution agreement that provides Sabre-connected agencies with long-term access to LATAM’s traditional and NDC content through the Sabre GDS. Sabre is the first GDS to reach this type of agreement with LATAM.
LATAM and Sabre are actively working on the launch of the airline’s NDC offers in the Sabre travel marketplace. The two companies are currently working together on the integration of NDC by LATAM content in the Sabre GDS, which is planned to be implemented in the first half of 2024 and a specific go-live date will be shared at a later time. Once LATAM’s NDC connection to Sabre is live, it will enable hundreds of thousands of Sabre-connected agencies and travel buyers to have even richer access to the carrier’s broad range of products and offers, as travel agents will be able to shop, book, and manage LATAM’s NDC and EDIFACT offers through Sabre’s Offer and Order APIs, the point-of-sale tool, Sabre Red 360, and the corporate booking solution, GetThere.
“We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with Sabre GDS to expand our long-standing distribution partnership to not only cover EDIFACT but also NDC by LATAM content once the technical connectivity has been implemented,” said Andreas Schek, vice president, Sales and Branding, LATAM Airlines Group. “LATAM is continuously broadening the distribution options available to the travel agency community. This deal deepens our relationship with Sabre and provides additional options to travel agents for accessing our NDC by LATAM content.”
The long-term partnership ensures worldwide distribution through the Sabre global distribution system. Travel agents connected to the Sabre GDS will be able to efficiently shop and compare increasingly sophisticated offers, while helping travelers to benefit from an enhanced experience with more choice and transparency.
Sabre powers a constantly expanding marketplace of travel content. Through its network of agencies and corporations worldwide, Sabre enables airlines to market their fares and offers in a highly efficient way.
“This new agreement with LATAM is another proof point of our commitment to powering travel retailing in Latin America, while meeting the unique needs of our airline customers and our travel buyer partners,” said Chris Wilding, senior vice president, sales strategy, Sabre Travel Solutions. “Our long-standing partnership of over 20 years is a testament of both LATAM and Sabre’s focus on innovation and our continuous efforts to help elevate the booking experience while advancing the adoption of offer-and-order-based travel retailing.”
Once activated, LATAM will be joining 15 other airlines that already have their NDC content available in 150+ markets through Sabre.
In 2018, LATAM Airlines Group implemented Sabre technology to unify two separate reservations systems into one across their combined carriers, now fully powered by Sabre’s SabreSonic passenger services system (PSS).
LATAM Airlines is the largest carrier in Latin America, with presence in five domestic markets in the region: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in addition to international operations in Latin America and from the region to Europe, Australasia, the United States and the Caribbean.
