Sabre Holdings has opened an office in Moscow to accommodate its…
Sabre Holdings has opened an office in Moscow to accommodate its growing presence in Russia and central Asia. The office, in Actor Gallery in Tverskaya Street, will be staffed by two of the company’s businesses, Sabre Travel Network and Sabre Airline Solutions. They will provide products for travel agencies and operational, decision-support, and reservation technology to airlines across the region.
The office was opened by Tom Klein, group president of Sabre Travel Network and Sabre Airline Solutions. Speaking at the event, Klein described the region’s travel industry as “burgeoning” and said Sabre Holdings was keen to expand the presence it has already established here.
“We see Russia and central Asia as huge growth areas for the travel and tourism industry,” Klein said. “The amount of travel being booked has grown by 14 percent in just one year. We expect sales of air travel alone to more than double in Russia between now and the end of the decade, as continued prosperity in the region boosts demand for domestic, regional and international travel even further. We therefore see a definite opportunity to provide the travel industry in Russia with the infrastructure it needs to support this growth.”
Sabre Travel Network recently upgraded the reservation system used by nearly 6,000 Aeroflot-affiliated travel agents in more than 3,000 locations in Russia and elsewhere around the world. It attracted attention from aviation and travel technology specialists all over the world and made the Sabre GDS (global distribution system) the most widely used travel agency reservation system in Russia.
This upgrade resulted in providing unparalleled access to travel content for the first time to the Russian market. Sabre Travel Network’s global reach provides 100,000 points of sale in 113 countries, delivering connections to 50,000 travel agencies, hundreds of corporations and millions of consumers – and the greatest aggregation of travel demand anywhere. The company recently won the accolade of ‘World`s Leading GDS/CRS’ for a record twelfth consecutive year at the World Travel Awards in London.
The travel agent conversion has been accomplished in conjunction with a massive technology upgrade for the Russian flag carrier by Sabre Airline Solutions. This upgrade involved the successful switch from outdated technology systems to cutting-edge reservation, operational and decision-support products. The IT overhaul, combined with the airline’s recent product upgrade and re-branding exercise, enables the carrier to compete successfully on international routes and paves the way for it to enter the SkyTeam airline alliance.
Sabre Travel Network and Sabre Airline Solutions have had a presence in Russia for five years, and together now have a team of 30 people in Russia. Most are Russians, and the businesses operate a fully-equipped Russian-language helpdesk for their travel agency and airline customers.
Klein said the company wanted to grow its Russian business quickly. It intends to win new business from other travel agencies and Russian airlines beyond the Aeroflot network.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
