Reservations Go Wireless As SAS Tests WAP-Based System

<B>Reservations Go Wireless As SAS Tests WAP-Based System</B>

By David Jonas

Proving yet again that European carriers are technologically miles ahead of their U.S. counterparts, Scandinavian Airline Systems recently began testing a wireless booking system that enables corporate travelers to make reservations directly to its system through wide area protocol mobile phones--the first carrier to do so. The new system adds even more convenience to the carrier's pay-as-you-fly Travel Pass Corporate program, which is used by more than 100 Scandinavian companies.

Noting that its passengers were quick to adopt voice response and Internet booking capabilities, SAS said the WAP phone is a natural extension that allows customers to access the reservations system virtually anywhere. Furthermore, a poll of the carrier's 7,000 most frequent travelers revealed that 100 percent used cell phones as a communication tool. The system also provides access to SAS timetables, real-time flight status and frequent flyer information.

A handful of trial corporate clients, including Norsk Hydro--Norway's second largest corporation--last month began using the system, which will be made available to Travel Pass and Travel Pass Corporate customers before a full rollout to all passengers.

<B>Wireless Experimenters</B>

Several other domestic and foreign airlines have begun experimentation with wireless communication for frequent travelers. Northwest, for example, last month unveiled a new Web site designed specifically for use with WAP phones and other handheld devices. The site, www.wireless.nwa.com, allows travelers to obtain up-to-the-minute arrival and departure information, gate information and access to frequent flyer accounts. "Information is only valuable if it's timely and deliverable," said Al Lenza, Northwest's vice president of distribution planning. "For a traveler on the go, checking flight details on the go, one-touch access to Northwest reservations means less hassle, less wasted time and more time for taking care of business."

While Northwest's system, and a similar one recently announced by Delta, include flight status notification, remote checkin and other functionality, the SAS WAP program is the first to enable bookings directly through the carrier's reservations system.

"We are probably the first airline in the world to provide such a service. Our goal is to make SAS optimally accessible," said Lennart Lof, SAS's vice president of marketing and loyalty management. Lof said the product has much greater potential, but development is being "bottlenecked by the physical shortage of WAP telephones in the market." However, WAP phone users are projected to increase rapidly in the years ahead.

SAS's Travel Pass Corporate program, now with more than 100 participating corporations, covers the main cities in Northern Europe. Travelers from those corporations simply swipe a card at the gate. The system recognizes roundtrip travelers on the return leg--also calculating for circle itineraries--and automatically generates an invoice, based on applicable negotiated rates. All invoices from a two-week period are collected and sent to the corporation's travel manager or finance department. The travel manager can access flown data in a password-protected area of the SAS Web site.

While carriers in the United States continue to work on similar systems, SAS will explore the possibility of linking its Travel Pass Corporate program with Lufthansa, a fellow Star Alliance member and the only major airline in the world offering a workable and widely available pay-as-you-fly model (<I>BTN,</I> Dec. 6, 1999).

SAS's standard prepaid Travel Pass program, meanwhile, offers discounted unlimited travel, or a set number of trips between two destinations or within the region.