Finding a flight is no longer the real problem for airline ticket offices.
The challenge begins when, for a given request, you need to determine which option is the most cost-effective among the fares available on your GDS, those distributed via NDC, NDC agreements negotiated directly with certain airlines, private fares, fares tailored to specific markets, and all the commercial terms that an IATA agency has established over time with its suppliers.
The same flight may appear multiple times, come from different sources, and have seemingly similar prices. However, a closer look reveals that baggage allowances, included services, change policies, refund options, fare rules, and overall value can vary significantly.
At that point, the operator's job changes completely.
The question is no longer just “What flight should I take?”, but it becomes “Of all the options available to me, which one should I really choose?”
For an IATA agency that handles dozens or hundreds of requests every day, this complexity can quickly turn into an operational bottleneck.
When a simple request starts to get complicated
Let's imagine a completely normal situation.
A customer requests a flight. The agent searches their GDS and finds a good option. However, they know that the airline is also available through an NDC aggregator, so they decide to check.
The same flight appears, but with different conditions.
The agency also has its own direct NDC agreement with the carrier and must explore that option as well.
For certain destinations, there may be a private, negotiated rate or a specific condition applicable to VFR or ethnic traffic.
The confrontation, which just a few minutes earlier had seemed straightforward, is beginning to escalate.
You need to check the price, figure out what’s included, read the rules, check your luggage, evaluate any additional services, take the terms of the agreement into account, and finally decide which option really makes sense to offer.
And while the operator is performing these checks, a second request comes in.
Then a third one.
The phone rings; a sub-agency is asking for information about a PNR, a customer wants to know if they can change a ticket that has already been issued, and an airline has made a schedule change to an outgoing flight.
The complexity of the ticketing system does not necessarily stem from individual operations. It stems from their interplay.
The lowest price doesn't tell the whole story
Two rates may seem the same but actually be quite different.
They may refer to the same flight, the same departure time, and the same cabin class, but have different commercial characteristics.
One may include baggage, while the other may not. One may allow a change for a small fee, while another may have more restrictive conditions. A fare available through a specific channel may include different services than the offer displayed through another source.
Even a difference of just a few euros can take on a completely different meaning when you look at the product as a whole.
That is why the best strategy cannot be reduced to simply finding the lowest number displayed on the screen.
For an IATA agency, the most attractive fare must be evaluated by simultaneously considering the benefit to the customer, the product features, and the commercial terms available to the agency through its agreements.
The problem, then, becomes the ability to correctly compare offers from different sources.
A sea of rates, terms, and variables
Air distribution offers many more possibilities today than it did in the past.
An agency can work with its own GDS while also having access to one or more NDC aggregators. It may also have negotiated NDC terms directly with airlines such as Emirates, Turkish Airlines, or other carriers, in addition to having private fares and agreements tailored to its own volume.
This wealth represents a commercial asset.
But an asset only generates value when it can be easily used.
If, for each search, the user must query different systems separately, open multiple windows, remember the conditions associated with the various sources, and mentally reconstruct the comparison, part of the benefit gained from new content is offset by the complexity involved in managing it.
And the more sources there are, the greater the risk of wasting time—even though the goal should be the exact opposite: to quickly find the best solution.
When work extends into the evening, at night, and on weekends
The airline ticket office also has a characteristic that those who work in the industry know very well: travel doesn't follow office hours.
A flight may be rescheduled on Friday evening. An airline may change its schedule when the agency is closed. A customer may need assistance while already at the airport. A reservation may require attention before a deadline, and a case may change status while the agent is working on something else entirely.
As the number of emissions increases, the number of events that need to be monitored inevitably increases as well.
When an IATA agency also works for sub-agencies, companies, or other entities within its network, the amount of information increases even further.
Phone calls often serve as the glue that holds this system together.
The sub-agency calls the parent agency to find out what’s going on. The company asks for an update. The agent checks the file and provides the information. If anything changes, the process starts over.
The result is a huge number of small tasks that each take only a few minutes but can, over the course of the day, take up a significant portion of the available time.
The true cost of complexity is often hidden in these very steps.
The more people working at the ticket office, the more coordination is needed
The problem becomes even more apparent when an IATA agency develops its own network.
A sub-agency must be able to work with its own clients. A company that receives ticketing services must be able to manage the tasks under its responsibility. At the same time, the IATA agency must maintain control, visibility, and the ability to intervene throughout the entire process.
If all information has to be relayed by phone or through constant requests to the central operator, the network’s growth risks creating a bottleneck.
Ten agencies calling to request information can take ten times as long.
Ten agencies that have direct access to the information they need to see, as part of an organized and controlled process, can instead handle a much larger volume without proportionally increasing the operational burden on the central office.
The difference lies in the system's design.
The solution is based on a simple principle: comparing all of your product sources
To truly reduce complexity, we first need a unified view of the sources the agency already has at its disposal.
Your own GDS.
The NDC aggregators used.
Any NDC agreements negotiated directly with carriers.
The rates and terms and conditions associated with the agency's existing contracts.
An effective system must allow for a comparison of these sources without altering existing commercial agreements and without artificially steering the choice toward a specific source.
The platform must remain neutral.
The value lies in allowing the agent to see the options, compare them more quickly, and decide which one best meets the client’s needs and the commercial interests of their agency.
This way, the technology does not make decisions on behalf of the agent.
It helps them make better decisions.
From Fragmentation to a Single Interface
When different product sources can be queried and compared within the same environment, the process changes radically.
The operator has a clearer, more immediate view of the options and can focus on the differences that really matter.
The time previously spent switching between different systems can now be devoted to evaluating the proposal.
The benefit becomes even more apparent when this same platform also allows you to monitor what happens after the reservation is made and the ticket is issued.
Because finding a good rate is just the beginning of a case's journey.
Knowing where to look before you even have to search
One of the most effective ways to reduce the operational workload is to avoid forcing the operator to constantly monitor everything.
We need information that can be brought to the forefront when it requires attention.
Alerts and notifications let you at a glance an overview of the situations that need to be reviewed, allowing the agency to focus on exceptions and significant events rather than manually checking every single case.
When the same logic is applied to a network of sub-agencies and companies, the flow of information can become much more efficient.
The central agency retains overall control, while the other entities can access information and carry out the operations permitted by their level of autonomy.
This reduces the need for phone calls, repetitive requests, and constant back-and-forth of information between the service provider and the ticket office staff.
Skytool: Compare, Work, and Monitor—All in One Place
Skytool was created to address this complexity.
The platform allows an IATA agency to compare all available product sources, by integrating GDSs, NDC aggregators, and NDC connections negotiated directly with airlines into its operational process, in accordance with the agency’s existing contracts and agreements.
Skytool maintains a neutral stance with regard to the source.
It does not replace the agency's commercial agreements and does not dictate which product to choose. It makes the available options part of a process that is easier to navigate and manage, leaving the final decision up to the operator.
In addition to this ability to compare, there is a control structure based on alerts and notifications that allows users to quickly identify issues requiring attention throughout the case’s operational cycle.
The goal is to provide a clearer, more comprehensive overview: from search to booking, from ticket issuance to follow-up events.
A single management structure for sub-agencies and companies as well
This same infrastructure allows the IATA agency to extend its ticketing system to affiliated sub-agencies and to the companies for which it manages airline ticketing.
Each user can operate in accordance with the authorizations and conditions established by the central agency, reducing the need to constantly exchange information via phone calls, emails, or messages.
The sub-agency can operate with greater autonomy.
The company has access to the features and information provided by the service.
The IATA agency maintains an overview and control of the entire system through a single interface.
The ability to work in this way becomes particularly valuable as the number of cases, users, and related parties grows, because it allows the central office to increase its operational capacity without becoming the mandatory hub through which every single piece of information must pass.
Fewer steps to help you make better, more affordable choices.
Simplifying the airline ticketing process does not mean limiting the options available to the agency.
It means being able to take advantage of a wider range of possibilities without being overwhelmed by their complexity.
An IATA agency can continue to use its own GDSs, the NDC aggregators it has chosen, the direct connections it has negotiated with carriers, and its own commercial terms—but within a process that makes it easier to compare, decide, and monitor.
The same platform can extend this model to its network of affiliates and the companies it serves, making the information available where it is needed while maintaining central control over the entire process.
Ultimately, the benefit isn't just about saving a few clicks.
This means reducing repetitive searches, limiting the number of steps required to switch between systems, cutting down on the number of phone calls needed to transfer information, quickly identifying events that require attention, and devoting more time to the decisions that truly create value: Choose the most cost-effective solution from among all those available to the agency.
With Skytool, the complexity of the sources remains behind the scenes, while the operator is presented with comparison, control, and visibility.
More sources to choose from. A single interface to manage.
By Guido Deiana and Daniele Di Stefano
