EMDs See Light of Day With First Transaction

American Airlines beat Air New Zealand to a milestone: The Airlines Reporting Corp. processed its first Electronic Miscellaneous Document (EMD) generated by a travel agency on behalf of American.

ARC president Mike Premo had expected Air New Zealand to be the first. In July, the carrier agreed to distribute ancillary products through Sabre Travel Network, starting with prepaid baggage fees, and to fulfill the purchases through the EMD.

Air New Zealand has been testing the technology, but it has not yet sent a live transaction through the system.

Ancillary charges
The Electronic Miscellaneous Document accommodates various ancillary charges within a single transaction, providing greater account data tracking.

Corporate travel agencies and managers have looked forward to using the EMD, since it promises more information about the true costs of a trip now that fares have been “unbundled.”

The EMD has been ready to go since last fall, but airlines have been slow to jump on the bandwagon.

Two types of EMDs
The EMD-A is designed for products and services associated with a particular flight, such as extra-legroom seats, meals and checked bags.

It also serves as a proof of purchase in the event a flight is canceled and the passenger must take a different flight.

The EMD-S is for standalone services, such as lounge access.

First transaction
ARC said the first transaction was for a Preferred Seat (American’s new brand name for what it used to call Express Seats) on Flight 523 from Dallas/Fort Worth to El Paso. It was generated via American’s Direct Connect technology provider, Farelogix.

The travel agency that made the booking had requested anonymity, according to American.

No other EMDs have come through since, ARC said.
 
(Related story “Ancillary Fees: Coming Soon to Your GDS at Last,” Aug. 1, 2011.)