Air India will get a uniform ticketing system by the year-end. The ticketing platform or passenger scheduling system is being integrated by Societe International Telecommunication Aeronautics (SITA) and will be on trial from January till March 2011.
“We have already integrated the ticketing at seven destinations we operate to and 15 more will be ready by mid-November. The other destinations will get integrated by December-end and will be on trial till March next year,” said a senior Air India official, requesting anonymity.
The government carrier operates to and from 63 destinations (international and domestic).
The integration will give one code to Air India. As of now, erstwhile AI and IA flights have different codes – Air India is AI and Indian Airlines is IC – and operate from separate booking counters at the airports.
The carriers also have distinct information technology platforms, powered by Unisys (AI) and IBM (IA). “Both the technology platforms are dated and not capable to take the load of both the airlines. Between the two airlines it was very difficult to achieve consensus on one IT system and we hired SITA,” said the airline official.
AI has given a Rs 800-crore contract to SITA to integrate the ticketing systems and then operate it for 10 years.