Greetings from TDN,
World Aviation Festival opens in Lisbon on Tuesday, and our preview shows where the Offer and Order debate has landed: at the checkout. Who controls payment steering, who settles Offer and Order, and what it costs African carriers to keep up are all on the programme.
Payments ran through the rest of the week. We argued that NDC will not create a payments GDS, but it will make each airline’s payment policy a distribution term, with blocked funds in Africa and the Gulf deciding who holds leverage. A longer analysis asked why airlines pay for some distribution channels and resist others, and found the answer sits in whether the booking is incremental.
On NDC adoption, Delta and JAL announced on the same day and are doing different things: Delta is leaving agencies a choice, while JAL has put dates on 26 markets. In the Gulf, almatar is growing NDC on Sabre Mosaic, and servicing may be what keeps it there. Turkish Airlines and flynas keep widening their codeshare, though neither has said how the content is sold.
We also announced the TDN Air Distribution Summit 2027, bringing Africa’s distribution debate to Lagos on 26 May 2027.
At World Aviation Festival, the Offer and Order Debate Has Moved to the Checkout
World Aviation Festival opens in Lisbon on Tuesday, and its programme shows the Offer and Order debate has moved to the checkout. Panels ask who controls payment steering once AI agents start shopping, and for African carriers, the practical question is what it costs to settle offers and orders.
Why Airlines Are Willing to Pay for Some Distribution Channels but Resist Others
Airlines rarely leave distribution channels they pay for. Lufthansa surcharged the GDS but kept selling through it, and American’s 2023 retreat from GDS content was partly reversed. The pattern is that airlines pay for access to buyers they cannot reach themselves and resist paying for customers they believe are already theirs. In Africa, where agencies still dominate sales, that test cuts differently.
TDN Launches Air Distribution Summit 2027, Bringing Africa’s Distribution Debate to Lagos
On 26 May 2027, TDN brings the first Air Distribution Summit to Lagos, a single day for the people who decide how air travel is priced, sold and settled across Africa and emerging markets. Air Peace, United Nigeria Airlines, NANTA, Travelwings and ARC are among the confirmed voices, with Lufthansa Group, EgyptAir and Turkish Airlines taking part. Attendance is by invitation.
Turkish Airlines Is Building Saudi Reach on flynas’s Aircraft
Turkish Airlines and flynas have widened their codeshare twice since July, and the routes show each carrier selling the part of the map the other covers better. Turkish gains Saudi domestic and regional reach, while flynas takes Turkish’s long-haul and domestic network. Neither airline has said whether the content is available through GDS or NDC channels.
almatar Is Growing NDC on Sabre, and Servicing May Be the Hook
Riyadh-based almatar is growing its NDC bookings on Sabre Mosaic and has added tools for exchanges, refunds and disruption rebooking. Sabre says the growth is driven mainly by Saudia. TDN’s reading is that servicing, more than content, may be what keeps an agency on a platform, because shopping content can be sourced from many suppliers while a disrupted trip has to be fixed fast.
Delta and JAL Announced NDC on the Same Day. They Are Not Doing the Same Thing
Delta and JAL both announced NDC on 24 September, and they are not doing the same thing. Delta is making NDC an agency choice, with existing channels staying open. JAL is putting dates on 26 markets. Both reach agencies through the GDS.
NDC Won’t Create a Payments GDS. It Will Make Payment Policy a Distribution Term.
Airlines spend about $22 billion a year processing payments, yet no payments triopoly is forming around NDC. What changes is that each airline’s payment policy becomes a distribution term. In Africa and the Gulf, blocked funds give central banks the most power.
UNTIL NEXT WEEK
That is it for this issue. If this was useful, forward it to a colleague in travel distribution, travel technology, or payments. If you have a tip, a data point, or want to be featured in TDN, reply directly to this email.
Wishing you a fruitful week ahead!
Gustave Sugira
Founder and Editor-in-Chief
Travel Distribution News
Kigali, Rwanda