The African Pilot reports that at the recent Routes Europe 2025 event in Seville, Spain, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) launched a series of advancements and data innovations to foster strategic growth and operational efficiency in global aviation. With accurate data gathering at its core, IATA, which represents over 80% of international air traffic, aims to bolster aviation-enhanced data solutions designed to empower airlines and airports.
With a presence in over 50 countries and a strong foothold in Africa, IATA’s new suite of data-driven tools is particularly relevant for optimising the operations of African airlines and airports. Chief amongst these tools is the AirportIS, a core solution in IATA’s portfolio. According to Aerospace Global, the AirportIS is useful in providing airports with market intelligence, passenger trends analytics, and route performance evaluation.
AirportIS has recently been enhanced to significantly reduce data latency and provide access to updated information. As African airports continue to battle infrastructure constraints and limited resources, AirportIS’s real-time data insights could enhance operational efficiency and improve service delivery.
IATA’s Direct Data Solution (DDS) also arm airports and airlines for efficiency. The DDS provides airlines with a centralised global database of sales, market, and itinerary information. It is designed for frictionless integration into airlines’ analysis systems to enable the reach of data-backed management decisions.
The DDS gives airlines access to a single global dataset encompassing airline sales, market, and itinerary data. It aggregates information from multiple sources, such as carrier contributions, Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) transactions, and ARC’s Area Settlement Plan (ASP) transactions, ensuring the most complete and accurate data available.
As African airlines navigate their operations in volatile, challenging market conditions, the DDS can be leveraged to gain a competitive edge. It will open airlines to comprehensive market data that will be handy in route expansion, fleet management, and pricing strategies.
Beyond data solutions, IATA’s “Focus Africa” initiative seeks to address key challenges and unlock the region’s vast potential. The initiative focuses on safety enhancements, infrastructure development, economic growth, and sustainability and is a means to create a more resilient and sustainable aviation industry across Africa.
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Africa’s aviation industry can also leverage IATA’s long-standing engagement with the Routes platform, especially the Routes 360 platform, as it is poised to open up stakeholders in African travel to valuable opportunities for business support.
IATA’s latest data solutions and initiatives are poised to significantly impact African tourism and travel by enhancing connectivity, operational efficiency, and passenger experience. For one, IATA’s “Focus Africa” is poised to facilitate trade and tourism, creating jobs and boosting prosperity across the continent. With aviation demand expected to triple in two decades, better data and connectivity will unlock Africa’s vast tourism potential.
Also, IATA’s new 10-year Global Baggage Roadmap introduces digital baggage tracking, electronic tags, and real-time updates accessible via mobile phones. This modernisation will reduce delays, improve baggage handling efficiency, and enhance traveller satisfaction, which is crucial for tourism growth.
With IATA’s Direct Data Solutions providing airlines, airports, and travel agents with detailed, real-time data on passenger traffic, market trends, and route performance, African airlines can leverage these insights to optimise routes, tailor services, and better meet traveller preferences, thus boosting tourism and travel efficiency.
Plus, IATA supports the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), which aims to liberalise air transport across Africa, boosting intra-African connectivity. With enhanced data sharing and harmonised regulations, increased flights, reduced costs, and job creation will be positive offshoots that will directly benefit the tourism and travel sectors.
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FAQs
1. What are IATA’s latest data solutions, and what do they offer?
IATA’s latest data solutions include Global Data Products (GDP), Direct Data Solutions (DDS), and Flight Data eXchange (FDX). GDP provides access to a comprehensive and regularly updated database of over 180,000 IATA travel and cargo agency locations worldwide, enabling verification and management of agency distribution channels. DDS offers airlines a single global dataset of airline sales, market, and itinerary data aggregated from multiple sources, updated daily for precise commercial decision-making. FDX is a program for sharing flight data to enhance safety and operational performance through statistical analysis and benchmarking.
2. How do IATA’s Global Data Products benefit the travel and transportation industry?
Global Data Products provides a trusted, up-to-date resource for identifying and verifying IATA-accredited travel and cargo agencies using unique IATA Codes. This facilitates standardised identification and interoperability among business partners, helping airlines, hotels, car rentals, and other suppliers build and maintain reliable indirect distribution channels globally. It also supports targeted marketing campaigns and system integration via APIs like CheckACode.
3. What advantages does Direct Data Solutions (DDS) bring to airlines?
DDS offers airlines comprehensive, accurate, and timely data on ticket sales, market trends, and itineraries from both direct and indirect sales channels worldwide. This data supports better network planning, revenue management, sales, marketing, and strategic decision-making by providing unprecedented clarity and reducing risk. The newest DDS version is cloud-based, enabling faster implementation of new features, enhanced data access options, and inclusion of New Distribution Capability (NDC) data.
4. How does the Flight Data eXchange (FDX) program improve airline safety and operations?
FDX collects and analyses flight data from participating airlines to provide industry-wide safety insights and benchmarking. It complements but does not replace individual airline Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) programs. Data is securely uploaded and statistically sampled to ensure broad regional coverage. Participation in FDX helps airlines identify safety trends and operational improvements through shared data and tools.
5. How can companies access and integrate IATA’s data solutions?
Companies can access IATA’s data solutions through subscription services and APIs. For Global Data Products, integration options include web services like CheckACode and online directories. DDS data is available via cloud-based file feeds, direct file access, or data warehouse connections, with support from the DDS team for customisation. FDX participants upload data via secure FTP and receive access after account setup, typically within 90 days.
