Plan Standards Strategic Partnerships Program

Plan Standards Strategic Partnerships Summary

The Plan Standards Strategic Partnerships Area of Involvement derives from one of the five management boards established by Resolution 009 under the Passenger Standards Conference, which combines the activity of the Passenger Services Conference and Passenger Tariffs Conferences. The Passenger Standards brochure (pdf) outlines the Conference structure as well as standards adoption and development procedures.

Each Management Board is an airline-only group overseeing the strategy and direction of standards development and implementation within a specific business domain. The Board has the autonomy to create and disband groups to work on specific areas of standards.

Each Board will also have an Advisory Forum, where senior delegates from Strategic Partners can meet with Board member airlines to discuss issues around standards development and implementation.

The Plan Board manages the development of standards concerning any interaction between airlines and any other parties for the purpose of any interaction between airlines and any other parties for the purposes of exchanging information about which services are intended to be made available and to whom, and the management of any corresponding reference data. This includes but is not limited to schedules publication standards, slot messaging standards, minimum connect time standards, industry coding, and airline product management standards.

Plan Standards Benefits

• Participation in the relevant group(s) below. 
• Access to the Architecture and Technology Standards Area of Involvement, including all groups within it.

Plan Standards SP Activities

The Plan Standards Board oversees standards touching many areas of distribution and will establish Working Groups to develop proposals for standards touching business process and data exchange in these areas:

• Airline Product Management
• Industry Coding
• Schedules Publication & Minimum Connect Time
• Slot Messaging

Strategic Partners involved in the Plan Standards Area of Involvement may send senior level of the Plan Board as well as also send technical experts to any groups created by the Board where specific standards are developed.

Working groups under each Board may be created or disbanded by the Board at any time, but an up-to-date list of active groups is available online. Access to meetings and working groups are subject to individual group terms of references.

Airline Product Management Working Group

The Airline Product Management Group is responsible for matters concerning concerning airline product management including product catalogue, service attributes, product lifecycle, airline profile and product taxonomy.

Members of this groups should have experience and day-to-day involvement in Offer creation, Product Definition and Product Management, Distribution, sourcing products from 3rd party transportation operators.

Industry Coding Working Group

The Codes Group is responsible for the assignment and availability of industry codes for airline designators, accounting codes and prefixes, location Identifiers, baggage tag issuance codes (Resolutions 762, 763, 767 and 769).

Explores changes to industry coding systems to support sustainability and evolving coding requirements while enabling Digital Identity to provide transformative future-proof solutions.

Members of the group should have experience in areas touching industry coding regimes and systems such as scheduling, distribution, messaging and data exchange, industry affairs, interline and other business areas touching such code identifiers.

Schedules Publication Working Group

The Schedules Publication Group is responsible for matters concerning Airline schedule data standards and Minimum Connect Time (MCT), used by airlines, GDSs and supporting systems, including the associated business requirements for schedules creation/publication, distribution processes and formats maintained within the Standards Schedules Information Manual (SSIM).

Recommends amendments to IATA codes in particular the Aircraft Types, Passenger Terminal Indicators, Region Codes and UTC-Local Time Comparisons while also manages Meal and Inflight Service codes and Service Type codes as part of the SSIM standards.

Members of the group should have experience in day-to-day schedule publication processes with a strong knowledge of industry standards.

Schedules Technology Standards Support Working Group

The Schedules Data Exchange (SDEX) develops business requirements and maintains implementation guides for data exchange for Scheduling messaging standards (SSIM Chapters 4, 5, 7 & 8).

Slot Messaging Working Group

The Slot Messaging Group is responsible for matters concerning information exchange and standards related to Airport slot/schedule coordination between airlines, airport coordinators and facilitators maintained within the Standard Schedules Information Manual (SSIM).

Members of the group should have experience in day-to-day slot management and technical administration including filing, reporting and schedule coordination.

Slot Technology Standards Support Working Group

The Slot Data Exchange (SLOTX) develops business requirements for data exchange and maintains implementation guides for Slot messaging standards between airport coordinators and airlines (SSIM Chapter 6).

Note: In addition to the groups listed above, Strategioc Partners will also have access to the Architecture and Technology area of involvement, including all groups within it. 

Note: Strategic Partners must join the Plan Standards, Standards, or Architecture and Technology Standards areas of involvement in order to attend the Passenger Standards Conference.

Focus Areas

• Airline product management
• Industry coding
• Schedules publications & Minimum Connect Time 
• Slot messaging

Designed For

• Airlines 
• Travel management companies
• Online travel agencies
• Global Distribution Systems (GDSs)
• Technology providers

 

> Please view the full list of Strategic Partnerships Program Benefits