Alitalia switches to new Sabre IT system that can boost up to €100 million in revenues for airline and drive significant benefits for customers

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Oct 19, 2016, 03:05 ET

SOUTHLAKE, Texas, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Alitalia has successfully completed a major IT system upgrade which is set to generate a substantial increase in additional revenues for the airline and improve customer service.

The introduction of the new system is part of the overall business restructuring plan to place the airline on a sustainable commercial platform.

All of Alitalia's reservations, check-in and critical airline operations were switched at the weekend from Arco to global technology company, Sabre (NASDAQ: SABR).

The new system will allow Alitalia to deliver new services and an improved customer experience to air travelers, and link in more effectively with the Etihad Airways Partner (EAP) airlines, most of which use Sabre's industry-leading technology. Combined the EAP airlines constitute Sabre's largest group of airline customers in the aviation industry.

Alitalia expects to increase revenues, estimated at some €100 million per year according to Sabre benchmarks, driven by the sale of new ancillary services, optimizing inventory and availability, and also the introduction of new routes.

The new system will also allow Alitalia to support and grow its cooperation with Etihad Airways Partners by improving inventory availability, messaging across systems, ancillary enhancements and better service provision to customers.

The project to migrate to Sabre began two years ago and has involved more than 38,000 tests, and more than 4,000 training sessions with 2,000 front line Alitalia staff.

During the weekend 950,000 passenger reservations and 2 million tickets were switched from Arco to Sabre.

About Alitalia

Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana (alitalia.com) is Italy's largest airline and commenced operations on January 1, 2015 after acquiring the operational activities of Alitalia - Compagnia Aerea Italiana, now named CAI. CAI has a 51% controlling stake in Alitalia and the remaining 49% of shares are owned by Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates (Airline of the Year 2016 by the prestigious US-based aviation industry publication Air Transport World). As part of its 2016 summer schedule, Alitalia flies to 97 destinations, including 27 Italian and 70 international destinations, with more than 4,400 weekly flights. Alitalia boasts one of the most modern and efficient fleets in the world. It is a member of the SkyTeam alliance and is part of the Transatlantic Joint Venture alongside Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines. Alitalia also collaborates with the other Etihad Airways Partners - airberlin, Air Serbia, Air Seychelles, Etihad Airways, Etihad Regional operated by Darwin Airline, Jet Airways and NIKI – in order to offer customers more choice through improved networks and schedules and enhanced frequent flyer benefits.

About Sabre

Sabre Corporation is the leading technology provider to the global travel industry. Sabre's software, data, mobile and distribution solutions are used by hundreds of airlines and thousands of hotel properties to manage critical operations, including passenger and guest reservations, revenue management, flight, network and crew management. Sabre also operates a leading global travel marketplace, which processes more than US$120 billion of global travel spend annually by connecting travel buyers and suppliers. Headquartered in Southlake, Texas, USA, Sabre serves customers in more than 160 countries around the world.

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