EXCLUSIVE! Kingfisher back on OTAs

Neelam Mathews

March 9, 2012

A swift reply to Aerospace Diary’s questions by Kingfisher on Online Travel Agents removing the carrier from reservation websites this morning following IATAs BSP pullout, was: “We are available on the OTAs. Since the new solution has a couple of integration elements, the same will be up in a couple of hours.”

And it has. Technology, obviously can be a wonderful thing.

Kingfisher can be booked on major OTAs that are not using the carrier’s name. I did find, however, that Cleartrip returned KFA on its inventory.

According to Manoj Chacko, Executive Vice President – Commercial; “60% of Indian aviation business is done outside of BSP. Hence the suspension does have some short term challenges, but it is being overcome and all sales processes will be near normal over the weekend.”  

We are led to believe by travel agents that almost 70% of Kingfisher’s business comes from travel agents through GDSs. 

The point is, efforts are being made. “We are in dialogue with IATA on the reinstatement process,” adds Chacko.