DENVER, Colo. (Apr. 20, 2004) - Frontier Airlines (NASDAQ: FRNT) today announced
a multi-year agreement with Sabre Airline Solutions, the industry leader in
airline operations technology, for its SabreSonic passenger solution to power
its reservations and check-in capabilities along with a broad scope of technology
for streamlining its operations and improving revenues.
With SabreSonic, Frontier will have access to real-time passenger data including
the customer's history with Frontier and any EarlyReturns frequent flyer activity,
current travel plans and any changes made to an existing reservation. The data
can be accessed by Frontier customer service agents via an open-source, Windows-based
interface at all customer touch points including the website, reservations,
the ticket counter and the gate, providing a seamless customer service experience
from the time the customer books the ticket until they arrive at their final
destination.
"Simply put, we chose SabreSonic because we believe it is the best suite
of tools available for creating a streamlined and efficient customer experience
including an improved web-based booking engine," said Sean Menke, Frontier's
senior vice president of marketing. "This solution is the only one available
today that offers an open systems platform which makes it simple for us to train
our employees on and to use in our everyday operations. This is key to our on-going
efforts to improve our customer service while keeping our operational costs
low so that we can continue to offer low fares to our customers."
"Frontier truly is a new breed of airline that provides great service
at low prices, and customers love its value proposition -- the result is one
of the best growth stories in the airline industry," said Tom Klein, president
of Sabre Airline Solutions. "SabreSonic was built to meet the needs of
our current customer base and be flexible enough to facilitate new business
models. We made the investments that are paying off today, as opposed to asking
our customers to make a leap of faith on long-term future development. We appreciate
Frontier's vision in selecting SabreSonic and the 12 other products from the
Sabre Airline Solutions portfolio and are proud to be associated with an emerging
leader in the aviation industry."
Full implementation of the SabreSonic system is scheduled for completion in
the first half of 2005, which includes four core modules:
- SabreSonic Res, which forms the core selling function and provides advanced
reservations management capabilities that manage every channel of distribution.
SabreSonic Res includes the industry's leading online booking engine along
with shopping and pricing, ticketing and codeshare capabilities all managed
from a single, easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI).
- SabreSonic Check-In, which provides Frontier a more efficient and customer-friendly
process for e-ticketing and other paperless solutions. With e-tickets, passengers
can print their boarding passes from home before they leave for the airport,
or choose to check-in at Frontier's airport kiosks, at curbside, at the ticket
counter or through a roving agent utilizing a hand-held system for times when
check-in lines are longer. In the event of a delay or cancellation, an automated
system will help get passengers rebooked to their final destination. This
easy-to-use check-in system leverages real-time data at all customer touch
points so the reservations agent, the ticket counter or the passenger checking
in from home all have access to the same information.
- SabreSonic Inventory, which leverages open systems technology to ensure
revenue integrity through real-time application of inventory controls, while
addressing the dramatic growth of flight availability requests. While this
provides airlines a huge advantage in their inventory management, it also
provides travelers with more itinerary options and the industry's best real-time
availability information.
- SabreSonic Command, which provides Frontier the only Web-based tool available
in the industry that can adapt to evolving industry trends quickly and easily
by managing Frontier's complete passenger solution system from one central
location.
Frontier also will leverage the benefit of integrating 12 operational solutions
from Sabre Airline Solutions as part of the agreement, including airport resource
management optimization, the Traverse loyalty management system, marketing analysis
tools and consulting services. This integrated set of tools will enable a seamless
flow of information through Frontier's entire operations, helping to ensure
that on the day of travel the right people are at the right place at the right
time. In addition, if there are any disruptions, decisions can be made quickly
with real-time information, minimizing any inconvenience to the traveler.
About Frontier
Currently in its tenth year of operations, Denver-based Frontier Airlines is
the second largest jet service carrier at Denver International Airport with
a fleet of 40aircraft and employing approximately 4,200 aviation professionals.
Frontier, in conjunction with Frontier JetExpress operated by Horizon Air, operates
routes linking our Denver hub to 37 cities in 22 states spanning the nation
from coast-to-coast and to five cities in Mexico. Frontier's maintenance and
engineering department has received the Federal Aviation Administration's highest
award, the Diamond Certificate of Excellence, in recognition of 100 percent
of its maintenance and engineering employees completing advanced aircraft maintenance
training programs, for five consecutive years. In August 2003, Frontier ranked
as one of the "Top 10 Domestic Airlines" as determined by readers
of Travel + Leisure magazine. Frontier provides capacity information
and other operating statistics on its Web site, which may be viewed at www.frontierairlines.com.
About Sabre Airline Solutions
Sabre Airline Solutions, a Sabre Holdings company, is the world's largest provider
of software products, reservations and departure control systems and other passenger
management systems, and consulting services that help airlines simplify operations
and lower costs. Sabre Airline Solutions' proven leadership is demonstrated
by the growing number of airlines that leverage the technology and services:
More than 200 airlines worldwide use Sabre Airline Solutions' broad portfolio
of smart solutions for decision-support tools to increase revenues and improve
operations. More than 100 airlines worldwide rely on Sabre Airline Solutions
for passenger management solutions, with 15 new carriers added and nine carrier
renewals for SabreSonic Res advanced reservations in 2003. In addition, more
than 100 clients worldwide have turned to Sabre Airline Solutions consulting
group for strategic, commercial and operational consulting. More than 500 contracts
worldwide were signed in 2003 within Sabre Airline Solutions.
Sabre Holdings Corporation (NYSE: TSG) is a world leader in travel commerce,
retailing travel products and providing distribution and technology solutions
for the travel industry. More information about Sabre Holdings is available
at http://www.sabre-holdings.com.
