Continental Airlines to offer new Corporate Travel Payment Solutions

Continental Airlines today announced a partnership with AirPlus International to offer the Continental Airlines AirPlus Company Account, an air travel payment and billing system for corporate travel managers that enables companies to analyze and manage travel budgets with a high level of sophistication and flexibility.

"When we re-launched our UATP program three years ago, we enjoyed immediate growth among companies with small to mid-sized travel budgets," said Dave Hilfman, Continental's vice president sales. "We've expanded the program to meet the needs of large corporate customers by incorporating improved technology and additional features. We selected AirPlus as our partner, since they are the leader in technology for payment and data solutions, as well as the largest issuer of UATP cards in the world with over 20,000 corporate customers worldwide." 

This "neutral" solution allows corporate clients to purchase tickets on more than two hundred airlines worldwide, and access the aggregated travel data via an internet-based system. Travel managers are able to use the AirPlus Information Manager to analyze data and create reports to establish and control travel budgets and policies.

The Continental Airlines AirPlus Company Account connects directly to travel agencies, through a merchant agreement, to provide agencies with a simple, cost-efficient method of processing airline tickets and incidental charges.

Some key features include:

· Exceptional coupon data quality

· Complete customized descriptive billing information, such as automated transmission of reference or job number information

· Variable billing cycles

· Invoice control and customization

· Reporting and invoicing transactions for international operations in local currencies

· Electronic invoicing in any standard format

Certain system functions are available immediately, with the full product implemented by the fourth quarter of 2003.