Flight Centre Travel Group, including its flagship global corporate travel division FCM Travel Solutions, has reached a multi-year agreement with British Airways and Iberia meaning customers in the UK and Ireland will be exempt from the airlines’ new £8 surcharge per fare component on GDS bookings.
The agreement takes effect from November and FCM’s other European and global markets will follow suit over the coming months where technically feasible.
Mick Heitzinger, product director Flight Centre Travel Group Europe commented: “We are extremely pleased to announce this agreement.
“Flight Centre Travel Group fully supports any technological advancements which improve the customer experience, including IATA’s New Distribution Capability.
“As such we have been working closely with British Airways, Iberia and our technology partners since 2016 on developing new ways to integrate airline content into our existing booking platforms.”
The far-reaching agreement also means that Flight Centre Travel Group will work closely with British Airways and Iberia on developing the future roadmap of New Distribution Capability with a view to begin integrating content via this channel during 2018.
Ian Luck, British Airways head of distribution, said: “Flight Centre and FCM are significant partners for us in a number of markets across business and leisure segments.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the group and look forward to seeing our NDC content being utilised and shaped for the benefit of customers.”