Galileo distributing Bangladesh’s GMG Airlines inventory to Domestic Travel Agents

Galileo International has become the first GDS to distribute the inventory of Bangladesh’s GMG Airlines to domestic travel agents. Such inventory was previously only available via the GDS channel to overseas agents, with travel agents within Bangladesh having to make reservations on GMG Airlines by phone.

“Travel agents throughout Bangladesh that subscribe to Galileo can now enjoy the exclusive benefit of fully automated reservations and this underlines once again the value that airlines see in using the GDS channel,” said Mark Rizzuto, Managing Director (Asia), Cendant Travel Distribution Services with responsibility for Galileo. “In addition, GMG Airlines’ decision to extend participation in Galileo to include domestic travel agents will support the airline’s ambitions as it opens its international network. Our subscribers in Bangladesh will be able to sell GMG Airlines to their customers for both local and overseas flights with maximum ease and efficiency.” 

GMG operates 32 flights daily connecting the capital Dhaka to five other cities within Bangladesh – Chittagong, Sylhet, Jessore, Barisal and Cox’s Bazar. The airline recently commenced international flights with a service between Chittagong and Calcutta and it aims to expand its newly-established services to India and grow its international operations with flights to Nepal, Thailand, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

“As our operations grow, we have decided the time is right to allow travel agents in Bangladesh to book seats on GMG Airlines through the GDS channel,” said Mr Shahab Sattar, Managing Director of GMG Airlines Ltd. “Thanks to Galileo, agents within Bangladesh can now book our airline from their desktop rather than by phone. We are pleased that Galileo is the first GDS to help us do this. Galileo have been very easy to work with, both in operational terms by ensuring smooth implementation of our participation and in business terms by listening carefully to our requirements and responding with a cost-effective solution. We are grateful to Galileo’s Airline Business Development team for all their hard work and support.” 

GMG Airlines participates in Galileo at the highest level of functionality, known as Interactive Sell. This allows agents to make real-time bookings and offer instant confirmation to passengers. Additionally, the airline will give its own reference/confirmation number to the agent, providing further reassurance in this respect and avoiding overbooking.