Plug and Play Brand & Retail’s Post

🌱 Is making aviation more sustainable your primary focus? International Airlines Group (IAG) is committed to decarbonization and accelerating change towards a more sustainable industry. Technologies of interest include sustainable aviation fuel, zero-emission flight, carbon removal, electrification, and sustainable materials. Would you like to collaborate on projects with leading airlines and companies such as British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, Vueling Airlines, IAG Cargo, or IAG Loyalty, and contribute to the industry's sustainable transformation? The selected innovators will benefit from the following: 🔸 Working closely with senior business sponsors of the Group 🔸 Developing a fast-tracked PoC with commercial opportunities following a successful PoC 🔸 Potential investment by IAG Ventures, the VC fund of IAG 🔸 Opportunities to access the IAG offices in London and Madrid for certain milestones of the program 🔸 Benefit from introductions across the Group and the industry 🔸 Access to deep insights and expertise in aviation operations The application submission for the program will close on June 16, 2024. Learn more about the program and apply through the following link ➡️ https://lnkd.in/d5SksKvg #IAG #Hangar51 #OpenCall #traveltech #PNPTC #corporateinnovation #openinnovation #sustainability Jose Serrano Molina, Annalisa Gigante, Julie Dvorakova, Charlie Crawley, Rebecca Rosser Tomás, Michele Luperini, Tommaso Fontirossi, Kieran Borrett, Nik Munaretto

🚀 Exciting News! 🚀 What a week it’s been so far! Excited to share that Trapi has been shortlisted to pitch at the Hangar 51 (IAG’s innovation vertical) event this Friday, July 5th, in front of a committee of IAG airline executives. This opportunity enables us to showcase how Trapi can help IAG airlines scale their direct connection (NDC) APIs efficiently. Currently, integrating each customer requires significant time, resources, and capital on both airline and customer side, sometimes up to 6 figures in cost and 6+ months commitment! As we’re seeing more APIs being rolled out in travel & hospitality (over 2,000 of them today!), the fragmentation is real! At Trapi we’re looking to lower the barriers of entry when it comes to integrating with travel & hospitality APIs, so that we can see a true evolution in travel tech, and enable travellers to truly see all the content, regardless of what API or tech it’s coming from! We’ve still got a long way to go, but these are the small steps that gives us hope for the future of travel tech. Fingers crossed for a successful pitch! 🤞 #innovation #traveltech #NDC #APIs #Hangar51 #IAG #Trapi #startup #technology #integration #aviation #futureoftravel

That's a wrap - the UATP 2024 Airline Distribution conference in Vienna, Austria is over - and it is time to reflect on some of the key messages delivered during the 2 1/2 days of knowledge sharing, presenting and intense networking while talking about almost anything related to distribution and payment I truly enjoyed the many conversations with airline and payment experts from a wide range of airlines and fintech companies around the world - some of them we already work closely with here at Spotnana, and some of them we are only just starting conversations about how our #cloudnative #travelasaservice platform can enable digital innovation using a number of different approaches My personal highlight was no doubt being part of the panel called "NDC - what it is all about ?" along with Roman Brauner MBA, GTP (Sabre Corporation), Eric Dumas (TPConnects Technologies), George Bryan (Hawaiian Airlines), Mario Maier (Lufthansa Group) and Brian Clark (Hudson Crossing) expertly moderated by Ian Luck (T2RL) A big thank you to Wendy Ward, Ralph Kaiser and the entire UATP team for inviting us, and for putting a great conference program and venue together It was very refreshing to be on a panel where everyone agreed 100% that NDC is here to stay, and while it might have experienced a slow start it looks like 2024 will be the year where NDC really takes off across the wider travel industry (as Mario stated so elegant at the end) Obviously there are still many obstacles and challenges to solve, but it does feel like we finally can stop discussing "if NDC will happen" and focus more on how we improve the solution rapidly and start introducing true innovation without the shackles of the past Perhaps fittingly, I was watching the 3rd launch of SpaceX Starship rocket live as I was writing this post, and they did never even consider to stop the program after the 2 first failed launches - in fact they viewed the 2 failed launches as incredible important learning about what not to do - perhaps that is how we should view the first 10 years of NDC and the lack of success in the travel industry 😀 let's use 2024 as the year of the 3rd launch of NDC and get it right this time #openinnovation #travelmicroservices #traveltopia #allinatrip #timeforgreentravel #unbundlingtravel

Business Plus is a great way for SMEs to get rewarded for their loyalty including earning Asia Miles

Really Cool Airlines flies into the future with PROS for #RevenueManagement The innovative startup airline from Asia is gearing up to launch operations in 2024! Planning to serve medium to long-haul international routes and expand to Europe, Really Cool Airlines is investing in its future growth. After careful market consideration, the carrier has selected PROS as the Revenue Management partner of choice for #revenue generation. “Really Cool Airlines is going to transform the experience of flying by placing innovation and creativity at the heart of our business. To support this goal, we were not merely looking for an RM solution our team can confidently trust. We needed a true partner... PROS deeply understands the market and our vision while having perfected its pricing and revenue generation expertise across multiple industries. I am confident that our shared passion for innovation will help us outperform the competition and deliver on our promise to fly the future.” - Wutcharin Thatan, Head of Commercial, Really Cool Airlines Learn more about Really Cool Airlines: http://ms.spr.ly/6043iFAbB #RCAxPROS #ReallyCoolAirlines #WeFlyTheFuture #PROSRM #PROSAI #AirlineRevenue #RevenueGeneration

On this day in 2009, Iberia’s low-cost subsidiary Clickair was merged into Vueling. Clickair, initially known as ‘Catair’ – chosen to represent the airline’s Catalonian Barcelona base – was a joint venture between the Spanish flag carrier, Iberostar, Cobra, Nefinsa (parent of Air Nostrum) and Quercus Equity. Each party owned 20% of the start-up, but Iberia would be tasked with establishing and running the new airline, which had one of the best-financed start-ups in history with an initial capital of €120 million. With Alex Cruz at the helm, the airline took to the skies on October 1, 2006, with three ex-Iberia Airbus A320s. By the end of its first year of operations, the airline had carried over 4.5 million passengers, its fleet had swelled to 22 A320s, and it held the biggest share of traffic at Barcelona. However, the low-cost market had become saturated, and both Clickair and Vueling were struggling financially. In July 2008, the two carriers announced their merger, with the Vueling brand surviving and Iberia retaining a 45% shareholding in the new airline. Did you ever fly Clickair? 📸: Aviation Image Network/Simon Gregory #avgeek #aviationhistory #europeanaviation #airline

Launching a business during the COVID-19 pandemic was no mean feat – especially when your sights are set on starting a brand new airline. 🛫 But sometimes opportunity arises from adversity. 📈 In the May 2024 edition of INNOVATION Magazine, I sit down with Andri Geir Eyjolfsson, Executive Director of Operations at PLAY airlines who shares his insights into the innovation and strategies behind the journey so far at Iceland’s newest budget airline. Despite the challenging context of its early growth, Andri explained to me how PLAY adapted to the circumstances. “Our initial goal was to launch the airline in early 2020,” said Andri. “Our timeline was derailed by COVID-19, but this unique window also created an exciting opportunity for us. Before COVID-19, we were looking to acquire fifteen-year-old aircraft, but the delay meant there were a lot more newer aircraft lying around and struggling to find a new home. As a result, we were able to access the latest generation of the Airbus A320 family aircraft. “Our long-term goal was always to acquire new generation aircraft, but we didn’t foresee having access to them so quickly. From the get-go, we were able to use aircraft that are 14% more fuel efficient compared to the previous generation.” Today, the company is flying one and a half million passengers per year, and the airline’s ambitions are only growing. “We have a 2029 vision,” shared Andri. “In the next five years, we want to have somewhere between 18 and 20 aircraft while remaining very competitive on costs. From a financial standpoint, we want to have our EBIT margins above 10%. We already have over 40% of the market share in Iceland, in less than two full years of operating. My wish is that in 2029, we will be the leading Icelandic airline.” Read the full interview for free here ⬇ https://lnkd.in/gGDr9iEN Receive the latest global tech and innovation news by subscribing: https://lnkd.in/ePSpqPxc With thanks to project partner Lundin Software. #innovation #airlineindustry #thoughtleadership #businessstrategy #avitation #digitalinnovation #travel

The deadline to submit your entry for the FTE Americas Innovate Awards is fast approaching – Friday, 16 August! If your organization is serious about innovation, you can't miss the chance to be part of the region’s largest and most respected innovation competition at #FTEGlobal, taking place on 28-30 October in LA. Building on the success of our EMEA edition, where industry leaders like International Airlines Group (IAG), Turkish Airlines, Air France, Lufthansa Group, Qatar Airways, and more participated, we are thrilled to bring this prestigious competition to the Americas. The FTE Americas Innovate Awards will celebrate the best air transport industry innovations from across the region. Industry stakeholders will pitch on stage, aiming to impress our judges and audience, whose crucial votes will determine the winners. If your organization is headquartered in, or has offices within, the Americas region, we invite you to participate in one of the following categories: 🏆 Best New Transformative Concept (open to vendors and startups only) 🏆 Most Innovative Airline Initiative (open to airlines only) 🏆 Most Innovative Airport Initiative (open to airports only) View the full criteria and enter here: https://lnkd.in/dHuEyhtA

✈️ European Airports are driving innovation toward zero emissions and zero waste. We are proud to be an innovation partner of TULIPS and The Journey, two leading innovation projects. Both have an ecosystem-approach to the aviation challenges, working collaboratively with key stakeholders - from local transports to airlines, regulators, airport managing companies and more. 🇳🇱TULIPS: A European consortium with more than 30 partners for innovative & sustainable airports. Designed to accelerate sustainability in and around the airport by testing new solutions at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. https://hubs.ly/Q02zXcC80 🇵🇹The Journey: Open innovation program with 8 local and global partners and 20 startups. Made to improve the sustainability of Lisbon Airport while improving the passenger experience https://hubs.ly/Q02zXjMb0 #innovation #aviation #airport #sustainability

Today is one of the most important days in AirAsia ‘s journey— the beginning of a new era for Capital A and AirAsia X. We have signed a groundbreaking agreement for the divestment of Capital A’s airline business and AirAsia X’s strategic acquisition that will create one AirAsia Group to cement its standing as the largest low-cost carrier in Asia. Marrying Capital A’s huge order book of 362 aircraft to AirAsia X’s diversified portfolio of traffic rights will allow us to continue our trademark of exploring new destinations and pioneering new and underserved routes. It’s the best of both worlds and the answer to our growth dilemma. All of this, of course, would not be possible without our key enabler: the new-generation Airbus aircraft, which can fly further and more efficiently than previous narrow bodies. AirAsia Group will run on a single-type fleet to connect Asean to the entire world - Europe, Africa, Central Asia, and North America. We will be able to land at smaller airports and serve more secondary cities, opening up huge potential for fly-thru flights. Trip costs will be lowered by 30% and we remove the complexities of a mixed fleet with common components and streamlined operations. At the end of the day, it’s all about our guests, Allstars and most importantly shareholders. We want to unlock and realise value for our shareholders, while remaining steadfast in our commitment to emerge successfully from PN17. Turning Capital A’s shareholders’ equity positive, which is a major step forward in exiting PN17, is a welcome benefit but ultimately immaterial in our decision to pursue this. As I always say Believe the unbelievable, Dare to dream, Never say never and Never take no for an answer. We will revolutionalise global low cost travel, once again. Watch this space.