Addendum
Direct bookings with carriers to climb to 55% after “lost year”
April 1st 2021
A recent survey commissioned by technology solutions provider, Accelya, and published in early April, confirmed what everyone in the industry knows full well: 79% of the airline executives surveyed said the pandemic was the most challenging moment in their careers. Read More »
More positively, 96% of airline professionals who responded to the poll said the “crisis has created opportunities” for the industry, particularly in commercial processes, commerce and retailing technologies.
Additionally, 89% of those surveyed believed the pandemic “will fundamentally after how airlines do business in the next five years”.
Conducted by Atmosphere Research Group, the study predicted that in another two years, airline direct and online channels will account for 55% of bookings, a 12% increase over 2020.
“We view 2020 as being the lost year for airlines, but far from being discouraged, we see airline leaders ready to make big, bold and even unconventional moves to get back on track,” Atmosphere Research Group president, Henry Harteveldt, said.
The survey detected a shift in airline attitudes about the importance of merchandising/retailing to their businesses. Pre-pandemic, 26% of executives considered it to be extremely important. By April this year, 49% of respondents said it would matter more during the business recovery.
“However, a worrying point of note is that nearly half of all airlines surveyed (47%), believe inadequate technology will keep them from fulfilling their visions of dynamically priced offerings,” the survey authors said.
