<B> Inside Track</B>
<B>Pro Air Rides Momentum But Cancels Meeting </B>
Overwhelmed with calls from companies interested in discussing deals similar to the one the airline negotiated with Chrysler and GM (<I>BTN,</I> June 22), Detroit-based Pro Air will postpone a July 23 forum to which it planned to invite 150 potential corporate customers. "To handle the logistics associated with more than what we anticipated would be the interest, we're planning a bigger meeting for mid-August," said Pro Air president Craig Delmondo. The year-old airline is hearing interest from companies both in and outside of Detroit. Meanwhile, Pro Air signed a partnership with Hertz that brings its rental cars to Detroit City Airport and enables Pro Air reservations agents to book them. Hertz, however, is not a preferred vendor of either Chrysler or GM. A rare partnership between a startup airline and an established travel vendor, the Hertz-Pro Air deal will enable the two companies to team up on joint sales and promotional efforts in Pro Air's destinations of Baltimore, Indianapolis, Newark and Philadelphia.
<a name="story2"><B>PwC Toasts Merger, Picks Card and Car Vendors</B>
Newly formed PricewaterhouseCoopers, which toasted its July 1 merger with made-to-order "Merger Beer," already has selected American Express for corporate card services and Hertz and Budget for car rental. The card decision came down to Amex and Diners' Club, while the car selection--completed late last month--combines the two companies' previous preferred vendors; Coopers had used Hertz and Price Waterhouse had used Budget.
<a name="story3"><B>Get Y2K Readiness In Writing</B>
As part of any travel technology contract, corporations should be demanding written guarantees from vendors that their computers will be year 2000 compliant, advised Steve Reynolds, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Travel Technologies Group, Dallas. Speaking at the first Association of Corporate Travel Executives Technology Forum in Chicago, Reynolds said now is the time to ask third-party vendors whether they've tested their software to ensure it won't cause problems. Just in case, companies should create a disaster plan, he said.
<a name="story4"><B>In-room Videoconferencing Computers</B>
Pan Pacific Hotel Vancouver in British Columbia equipped 17 of its 506 rooms with videoconferencing-capable computers. Costing about $30 a day, the service includes a 24-hour, toll-free support line with worldwide video-conferencing capabilities. The computers have access to e-mail, the Internet, radio or television shows and various computer games.
<a name="story5"><B>Carlson Focuses On Vertical Investing</B>
Hosting a cruise aboard the Carlson Companies yacht, the Curt-C, Marilyn Carlson Nelson said not much has changed at the family-owned business since she took the reins from her father (<I>BTN,</I> Apr. 13), mostly because "I started changing things before Curt left." What she has brought to the table, though, is a "a range of services" for Carlson employees, including onsite day care and a broadened stock incentive program. Carlson is focusing on vertical integration of its services, including investments in airlines and leisure travel companies. For example, Nelson said, Carlson Leisure Group last summer became a minority owner of Caledonian Airways, based in the U.K.
<a name="story6"><B>Navy Picks Amex Over Sato</B>
After a relationship spanning more than 40 years, the U.S. Navy has switched its $129 million Western Region travel account from SatoTravel to American Express, under a one-year contract that begins Oct. 1. While acknowledging that "rebates were part of the contract requirement," Amex spokesperson Melissa Abernathy said the agency won based not on the strength of its revenue sharing, but because of its Recon Power software and its service offering. COO Denise McShea said that during its tenure, Sato "defined unprecedented systems and processes for the Navy customer, including the automated bachelor-quarters central reservation system, consolidated worldwide Navy reporting capability and accelerated credit-card reconciliation processes."
<a name="story7"><B>Arrington faces Int'l Expansion</B>
Michael Arrington dropped the president part of his title but kept CEO and added chairman in an attempt to better focus on internal expansion with Arrington Travel's seven year-old U.K. partner, the $100 million Hillgate Travel. Arrington plans to grow the partnership and add other agencies in Tokyo, Singapore and possibly Sydney. "He will also be investigating possible acquisitions domestically," said Kelly Kuhn, who has assumed the role of president. Kuhn, formerly executive vice president and COO, will continue to perform her COO duties.