Op-Ed: Air Canada Should Reverse Tango Dance Steps
Air Canada may call its bargain fares "Tango," but the airline's recent actions prove that it has two left feet. In the middle of the night on May 2, without warning or consultation, Air Canada removed these Tango fares—its lowest fares—from the global distribution systems travel agents depend on to serve their customers, as well as from the travel agency Internet portal Air Canada operates. A strange dance, since retail travel agencies sell more than 70 percent of Air Canada's tickets. Agents fill Air Canada's planes each and every day with consumers who count on them to find the best travel options and, in many cases, manage their travel programs. Air Canada appears to have forgotten the first rule of Tango; namely, that it takes two.
Instead, Air Canada is attempting to tango alone, and the pathetic sight of it so far isn't going to win any dance contests. Air Canada erroneously believes that by placing its lowest fares only on its Web site, which lacks personalized customer service, passengers will either shun their trusted travel agents and make their bookings directly or shun the Tango fares and pay higher prices. Clearly, Air Canada is intent on taking away the consumer's right to the lowest available fare and the best service, which is found when booking with a travel professional.
The reaction from not only travel professionals, but also consumers who pay Air Canada's bills, has been swift and sure. Over 3,600 Canadian travel professionals throughout the country have expressed their outrage in a recent call to action delivered to Air Canada late last month. Meanwhile, executives representing 50 large corporations signed a letter sent to Air Canada CEO Montie Brewer. Never in ACTA's history has an industry issue sparked such an intense and immediate grassroots response. And yet, Air Canada continues to lumber across the dance floor, losing more business and goodwill as it stubbornly clings, not to a partner, but to the mistaken belief that it alone can dictate our nation's travel purchasing habits.
In response to stripping these Tango fares from the global distribution systems, the companies who run those systems have taken some predictable retaliatory measures, including making all Air Canada fares harder to find in competitive markets throughout the world. Angry travel agents, corporations and consumers are independently deciding on their own responses. AirTrav Inc., an air travel consulting company, has estimated that Air Canada stands to lose as much as $245 million in annual sales and $7.4 million in annual net income as a result of this action. The Canadian travel industry has come to expect Air Canada to push and shove on the dance floor. What is truly bizarre is watching Air Canada hurl itself into a wall.
And for what? For its part, Air Canada claims that there are some "technology" problems that prevent certain "simplified fare products" from being displayed correctly in the global distribution systems used by travel agencies and corporations. No one denies Air Canada the right to sell its products the way it sees fit; and if there are technology problems, they should be fixed. However, these problems, which hardly seem intractable, would be better solved through good-faith dialogue and the setting of realistic deadlines, rather than through surprise, middle-of-the-night actions that alienate an entire industry. The awkward Air Canada approach leads everyone to fall flat on his or her face.
Indeed, the real losers here are consumers who are finding their access to information greatly limited, paying higher airfares, receiving less trusted service and support, and for those Canadians with no Internet access, having no opportunity to Tango at all.
ACTA has called on Air Canada and the global distribution system companies to end the current crisis by immediately rolling back all of their fare actions taken since May 2. This action would restore Tango fares and reverse the measures GDSs took in response concerning Air Canada services in markets worldwide. Once these actions are taken to obtain a truce, ACTA stands ready to help engage in productive discussions about how to equip agents with technology enhancements that meet the needs of consumers. Retail travel professionals would like to go on with their business doing what they do best, serving their customers in an efficient and cost-effective way. That's a sensible next step.
Association of Canadian Travel Agencies Public Affairs Vice President Christiane Théberge.