TAP Portugal selects Star Alliance Common IT Platform

TAP Portugal, a member of the Star Alliance network, has chosen the Star Alliance Common IT Platform (CITP) as a replacement for its current IT systems, including reservations, inventory, ticketing and check-in. CITP is a joint centralised platform developed and hosted by  Amadeus for participating Star Alliance member carriers. TAP plans to migrate all key airline IT systems to CITP by 2010.

The project was originally launched in 2005 with Lufthansa and United as the lead carriers. To date, Austrian and TAP, as well as regional members Adria Airways and Croatia Airlines have joined CITP. Additionally, Star Alliance member carrier South African Airways is using Amadeus Altéa, based on a similar technology as CITP.

CITP is based on the first next-generation Customer Management System available in the airline industry. CITP will enhance customer service functionalities, specifically for sales and airport environments, including schedule, availability, reservations, inventory, fare quote and ticketing as well as passenger check-in.

“We are delighted that TAP has selected the Star Alliance Common IT Platform as this strengthens our members’ ability to greatly improve time to market, reduce costs of ongoing development work and enables a seamless service offering across our global network. It is also an important step forward for the overall project and proves that we are following the correct strategy with the aim of better serving the traveller,” said Aman Khan, Star Alliance VP Information Technology.

The new platform will improve airlines’ efficiency within the alliance through common services, ease of use, as well as through the provision of better quality and common data for airline service agents when dealing with alliance customers. This will allow a higher level of customer service to be delivered across the Star Alliance network, benefitting all stakeholders.

“TAP Portugal is growing and our customers demand high levels of service. New tools are needed to win the challenges of the present, and to achieve excellence in the future. The business has to be more flexible and the service delivery has to be of top quality. In this context, IT plays an important role as a business enabler for success. With the new platform TAP will improve its processes, will strengthen its relationship with airlines and partners and will provide a better service to our customers on a worldwide network, throughout the process chain,” added Manoel Torres, Member of the TAP Executive Board.

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