NDC is Affecting Corporate Travel

Understanding the new distribution capability (NDC)

The New Distribution Capability (NDC) is a travel industry-supported program launched by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to revolutionize the way air products are distributed. NDC enables airlines to offer personalized, dynamic pricing, and customized travel experiences by improving communication between airlines, travel agencies, and travel management companies. 

What it means: American Airlines is currently limiting around half of their lowest fares to NDC-enabled channels. If your program isn’t set up for this, you’re missing out on savings, control, and visibility. That’s the bottom line. 

Where it’s at now: NDC is far from perfect. That’s why we’re tracking the data and reporting on it openly. There are some operational challenges that a lot of TMCs simply aren’t prepared to handle. We’ve been ready for NDC since 2019, and we can even see areas for improvement. That said, it is imperative that we don’t make our problems our customers’ problems. Any challenges we face will be behind the scenes and will not bring any disruption to our clients. 

American Airlines NDC isn’t killing third-party corporate travel

We’ve seen a lot of content out there lately suggesting that American Airlines is turning its back on corporate travel with its changes to discount program minimums and focus on NDC trailblazing. 

The reality is that the savings are there. 

At least, for those programs that welcome NDC with open arms. The data is irrefutable. Our customers are saving over $130+ per ticket over a third of the time. 

There’s this misconception floating around in industry channels that only American’s basic economy and certain leisure fares are affected. This is simply false. 

We’ve seen, through our own public data, that American’s NDC has much lower fares for corporate customers on many Economy and First Class bookings. 

TMCs that treat NDC as a passing trend will get buried by the harsh reality that NDC is the future of travel. 

The Honest AmTrav difference

We don’t ask our customers to compromise. We’re NDC-ready now. 

Travel programs need complete content to maintain control, visibility, and even service. With AmTrav, your program has it. 

The service component is essential in the changing industry landscape. We’ve got plenty of friendly experts on standby ready to help you maximize the effectiveness of your program. 

Technology-forward environments are what will save you the most money and provide the greatest efficiencies. AmTrav has been first in technology for over 30 years. 

You’ve got choices. Lots of them. 

We want to make it easy for you to choose us, the option that will future-proof your program. The option that ensures when the other NDC shoes drop at other airlines, you’ll be ready to reap the rewards.