85, Anis Nsouli SIr. - Verdun

P.O. Box: 13-5468

Telephone: +961 1 861 299

Facsimile: +961 1 863 168

5ITA: BEYXAXD

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ARAB Am CARRIE-RS ORGANIZATION

To whom it may concern

U.S. Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.

Washington, D.C.20590

United States of America

The Arab Air Carriers Organization (AACO) is the trade association of 30 Arab airlines, namely:

Afriqiyah Airways, Air Algerie, Air Arabia, Air Cairo, EgyptAir, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Gulf Air,

Iraqi Airways, Jordan Aviation, Kuwait Airways, Libyan Airlines, Maximus Air Cargo, Middle East

Airlines, Nas Air, Novelair, Oman Air, Palestinian Airlines, Petra Airlines, Qatar Airways, Rotana Jet,

Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, Saudia, Sudan Airways, Syrian Arab Airlines, Tassili Airlines, TMA

Cargo, Tunisair and Yemen Airways.

AACO welcomes the opportunity to submit to the US Department of Transportation its support for

the approval of Resolution 787 which will modernize the indirect channel's distribution landscape

by establishing a standard for data transmission that uses the latest technological advancements

to allow airlines to present their complete product offerings to its customers.

The current indirect distribution structure was created when airlines were flag carriers and

national assets. In addition, the lack of communication media through that era resulted in limited

knowledge of the consumer of the offerings outside his narrow surrounding.

However, the deregulation of air transport in addition to the technological advancements and the

associated globalization resulted in a revolution in the shopping experience across all commercial

sectors. The resulting sophistication of the consumer led airlines to develop their product offerings

in order to compete on the services offered, rather than only on ticket prices. But the indirect

distribution channel was not able to fulfill the needs of the airlines, and hence airlines turned to

develop their direct distribution channel through their websites and offices. A direct result of this

was the rise of meta-searches that spawned as a result of the need of the customer to compare

offerings through the direct channel from several airlines without going through each carrier's

website.

The introduction of a new messaging standard for indirect distribution channel is a long awaited

step that would complete the circle and allow airlines to compete in the indirect channel not only

on price, but on service level and additional services they provide to their customers as well.

We believe that the New Distribution Capability will create a healthier competition environment

for the consumer who will be able to choose from complete offers rather than prices. In addition,

www.aaco.org

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85, Anis Nsouli 5tr. - Verdun

P.O. Box: 13-5468

Telephone: +961 1 861 299

Facsimile: +961 1 863 168

5ITA: BEYXAXD

<f~~ J-.i.:.ll..r-:'~~9U..aJ~

AMB AIR CARRlt-:RS ORGANIZATION

we believe that the New Distribution Capability will allow travel agents to recoup some of the

share they have lost to direct distribution channels due to the lack of functionality through the

current indirect distribution channel's infrastructure, and will leverage the role of travel agents

from merely price offering agencies to travel consultants who will be able to provide advice to

their customers on the best combination of price and services they are seeking.

Accordingly, AACO strongly supports the initiative and would recommend to the Department of

Transportation approving Resolution 787 which will reflect positively on the air transport sector as

a whole.

www.aaco.org

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