SOUTHLAKE, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 11, 2004--
SabreSonic Becoming the Preferred Choice for the
Low Cost Carrier Market
Sabre Airline Solutions, the industry leader in airline operations technology, today announced its expanded presence in the low cost carrier market with Valuair, Singapore’s first premium budget airline, selecting the SabreSonic passenger management solution to drive its reservations, pricing, ticketing, reporting and customer service while providing a strong, cost-effective platform for future growth and business expansion.
Valuair, which commenced operations in May, 2004, is the first privately owned, budget airline in Singapore to operate scheduled services throughout Asia. Lim Chin Beng, chairman of Valuair, has over thirty years experience in the aviation industry most notably playing a key role in setting up the renowned Singapore Airlines in the 1970s. Valuair today operates services from Singapore to Bangkok, Hong Kong and Jakarta.
As the low cost carrier market continues to proliferate in Asia Pacific with the emergence of new carriers, Valuair looks to differentiate itself in this highly competitive market by offering the lowest possible air fares combined with a corporate objective to “put the fun back into travel.” Closely managing its cost base while leveraging mission critical IT systems will play a key role in Valuair’s service delivery and operational strategy.
“After conducting an extensive market evaluation, SabreSonic clearly stood out as the best product available on the market to meet our needs,” Beng said. “SabreSonic is the only solution available today that offers an open system architecture that will enable us to quickly adapt to changing market demands and business requirements. The modular architecture and performance-focused pricing of SabreSonic are exactly what we need as a low fare carrier, allowing us to use a variety of distribution channels to offer the most advanced travel experience at value-based pricing.”
Beng added, “We found limitations quickly arose with the reservation system we implemented initially and decided to turn to the market to identify the best solution to meet all our needs both current and future. SabreSonic will allow us to expand our reach via a number of different distribution channels, facilitate partnerships with our industry members, maintain a low cost of business and provide a fast, reliable, modern solution that meets Valuair’s needs including capabilities for e-ticketing, Internet booking and codeshare.”
Cameron Curtis, vice president, Asia Pacific, Sabre Airline Solutions, said, “SabreSonic has had incredible acceptance in the market since its launch in January as the first new generation reservations system, with nine carriers already selecting it as their choice for reservations systems and others leveraging individual components and options that is made possible through Sabre Airline Solutions’ modular approach – the only vendor in the market that provides this approach. This flexibility is particularly appealing to low cost carriers since it can easily accommodate future growth or changes in customer preferences.”
SabreSonic is the first passenger management solution built on open systems architecture for critical airline operations such as pricing and shopping for airline travel, ticketing and day-of- travel operations. This open systems underpinning provides airlines with a “plug and play” type of unlimited flexibility to implement individual or integrated solutions across the entire scope of passenger solutions, as well as flexibility within the individual modules for more robust functionality.
Valuair will implement the fully integrated SabreSonic solution, which includes the four core modules:
-- SabreSonic Res, which forms the core selling function and
provides advanced reservations management capabilities that
manage every channel of distribution. SabreSonic Res includes
the industry's leading online booking engine along with
shopping, ticketing and codeshare capabilities all managed
from a single, easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI).
Some of the benefits of this technology for travelers are the
ability to easily shop and book online, print boarding passes
from home, and book their entire itinerary with the airline's
codeshare partners.
-- SabreSonic Check-In, which will provide Valuair a
customer-centric focus that starts with the ability for
travelers to use electronic tickets instead of having to get
paper tickets issued to them. They then can print their
boarding passes from home before they leave for the airport,
or choose to check-in at the kiosk, at curbside, through a
roving agent, or at the gate. And, if there is any kind of
delay or cancellation, an automated system will help get
passengers rebooked to their destination. The easy-to-use
check-in system is identical for the reservation agent and the
airport agent--which means travelers get the same information
at the airport that they get when checking on the flight from
home. Another advantage is that the check-in agent at the
airport will spend more time talking to the customer and less
time with their head down typing in long commands to get
simple information.
-- SabreSonic Inventory, which leverages open systems technology
to ensure revenue integrity through real-time application of
inventory controls, while addressing the dramatic growth of
flight availability requests. While this provides airlines a
huge advantage in their inventory management, it also provides
travelers with more itinerary options and the industry's best
real-time availability information.
-- SabreSonic Command, which will provide Valuair the only
Web-based tool available in the industry that offers flexible
options to easily and quickly configure and manage its
passenger solution system from one central location based on
the carrier's profile. This easy configurability of the
system, a first in the industry, means that Valuair can easily
adapt to changes in the way people travel.
About Sabre Airline Solutions
Sabre Airline Solutions, a Sabre Holdings company, is the world’s largest provider of software products; reservations, departure control systems and other passenger management systems; and consulting services that help airlines simplify operations and lower costs. Sabre Airline Solutions’ proven leadership is demonstrated by the growing number of airlines that leverage the technology and services: More than 200 airlines worldwide use Sabre Airline Solutions’ broad portfolio of smart solutions for decision-support tools to increase revenues and improve operations. More than 100 airlines worldwide rely on Sabre Airline Solutions for passenger management solutions, with 15 new carriers added and nine carrier renewals for SabreSonic Res advanced reservations in 2003. In the first half of 2004, six new carriers signed up the new generation passenger solution, and another three carriers renewed contracts. In addition, more than 100 clients worldwide have turned to Sabre Airline Solutions consulting group for strategic, commercial and operational consulting. More than 500 contracts worldwide were signed in 2003 within Sabre Airline Solutions and nearly 400 have been signed in the first half of 2004.
Sabre Holdings Corporation (NYSE:TSG) is a world leader in travel commerce, retailing travel products and providing distribution and technology solutions for the travel industry. More information about Sabre Holdings is available at http://www.sabre-holdings.com/.
Sabre Airline Solutions, the Sabre Airline Solutions logo, SabreSonic, SabreSonic Res, SabreSonic Check-In, SabreSonic Inventory and SabreSonic Command are trademarks and/or service marks of an affiliate of Sabre Holdings Corporation. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names are the property of their respective owners. (C)2004 Sabre Inc. All rights reserved.
CONTACT: Sabre Airline Solutions
Kathryn Hayden, 682-605-2252
kathryn.hayden@sabre-holdings.com
SOURCE: Sabre Airline Solutions