Lufthansa : wins important partner for direct NDC interfaces

• Lufthansa City Center travel agencies, Ruefa and Pelikan to profit from new benefits of Lufthansa Group's NDC API as part of the NDC Partner Program as of October
• Lounge access and Internet vouchers can now be booked exclusively via the NDC interface for the first time
• As of January 2019: NDC coupon bonus of one euro for all contractually tied sales partners

The Lufthansa Group will work even more closely with other sales partners in the future as part of the Lufthansa NDC Partner Program. The new partners, Ruefa, a member of the Verkehrsbüro Group, the Lufthansa City Center travel agencies and Pelikan use direct interfaces to the Lufthansa Group booking system, the so-called NDC API. As of October, they will thus have access to fares and product offers that can now be booked exclusively via these channels for the first time: Access to Lufthansa and SWISS lounges as well as Internet vouchers for Lufthansa and SWISS intercontinental flights and Austrian Airlines continental flights. The connection takes place as part of the NDC Partner Program, which bundles the offers, exclusive content and solutions of Lufthansa Group Airlines' NDC API connection on a single platform.

From January 2019, all contractually bound sales partners who book via an NDC interface will also receive a bonus of one euro for every flown NDC coupon.

'We are very pleased that with Lufthansa City Center Travel Agencies, Ruefa and Pelikan we have been able to win several important new partners in our home markets of Germany, Austria and Switzerland as well as in Slovakia for our NDC Partner Program. We want to serve our local partners with attractive offers. The newly launched NDC Partner Program and its website form an important basis for this. Already today, a steadily increasing number of agents use the NDC Smart Offer and benefit from it', says Jürgen Siebenrock, Vice President Sales Home Markets & Global Key Account Management.

The NDC Partner Program

In the Lufthansa Group's home markets of Germany, Austria and Switzerland, travel agencies, corporate customers and travel technology providers have been able to find out about the various direct sales interfaces of the airline group on the new website www.lhgroupairlines.com/ndc since July of this year.

The website is freely accessible on the Internet and provides information on fare and product offers that can only be booked via these channels, the so-called NDC Smart Offer, as well as on the technological connection to the Lufthansa Group booking interfaces. The program also offers user support for connected customers and training programs. Travel agencies interested in the free web-based NDC solution SPRK can register on the website and thus gain access to the Lufthansa Group booking and service platform. Registration is made by filling out a form available on the new website.

www.lhgroupairlines.com/ndc is available in German and English. The site will be launched in many other markets worldwide by the end of the year.

At this year's fvw Congress, which will take place on September 18 and 19 in Cologne, Lufthansa Group Hub Airlines will once again be represented with a stand and provide further insights into the NDC Partner Program.