Airline Reservations & IT TO TH

TO THE AIRLINE RESERVATIONS FUNCTION

This research examines the application of information technology to the airline reservations function. Information technology, as the term is used in this research, refers to the electronic processing and management of data. The findings of this research are presented in discussions related to (1) the development of automated airline reservations systems, (2) a description of existing computerized reservations systems (CRS) used by airlines, (3) yield management and reservations bias, (4) consumer defensive tactics to counter reservations bias, and (5) the future of CRS.

The largest of the airline computerized reservations systems is SemiAutomated Business Research Environment (SABRE), which is a subsidiary operation of American Airlines (Fortune, 1990). SABRE was conceived in 1959 as "an internal link between the airline's offices and ticket counters to help track reservations" (Fortune, 1990, p. 46). At that time, "the volume of reservations began to outrun . . . capacity to handle them with index cards and blackboards" (Hooper, 1990, p. 120). American Airlines was simply unable to manually monitor its "inventory of available seats . . . and to attach passenger names to booked seats" (Hooper, 1990, p. 122).

The SABRE system made it operational debut in 1963 (Hooper, 1990). The system processed "data related to 85,000 phone

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ce for this trip approximates $398; however, this price must be discounted for inflation, before it may be compared with the 1978 price. The inflation discounted price approximates $200. Thus, on the New YorktoLos Angeles route, the fare has been clearly lowered under deregulation. Deep discounting often reduces the cost to $198 in 1991 dollars. By contrast, in 1978, the SeattletoSan Antonio coach fare approximated $280 roundtrip. In early1991, the list price for this trip approximates $339, which, when discounted for inflation, approximates $170. The deregulated environment resulted in a significant fare reduction; however, the level of the reduction does not compare with that on the more heavily traveled route. Further, deep discounting is seldom found on the SeattleSan Antonio route. Adverse economic factors which continue to beset the industry spur some carriers to engage in deep discount pricing, with the result that all carriers eventually join in the practice. Discounting has adversely affected industry profitability. As a consequence only five of the major carriers earned adequate returns on equity in 1990 (Heuslein, 1991). Another tactic developed by airlines to increase revenues and profitability is yi
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2292
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)