Tag Archives: Sunil Kumar

Air India has agreed to accept travel agents’ corporate credit card for booking, revealed Sunil Kumar, President, Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI). Speaking in New Delhi, at the UFTAA presentation for TAAI Northern Region members, he revealed that the team of TAAI had a meeting with Ashwani Lohani, CMD, Air India; Pankaj Srivastava, Director-Commercial, Air India, and other representative of the national carrier. “I am very impressed with the response from Ashwani Lohani, Pankaj Srivastava, and the entire team of Air India on allowing travel agents to use their corporate credit cards to do ticketing. We have been consistently talking to them on the airline having no objection if a customer uses his credit card, or the agent uses the customer’s credit card. However, the agent could not use his corporate credit card to make the booking. However, they listened to us, and we are highly obliged that may be within a week, the agent corporate credit card will be used by Air India as a form of payment.”

The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) Western Region invited Yossi Fatael, Vice President, UFTAA, and Chairman, Air Matters, to conduct an in-depth presentation on New Distribution Capability (NDC) and IATA’s NewGen ISS in Mumbai. Also present was Sunil Kumar, President, UFTAA and National President, TAAI, and a few members of the Managing Committee. The presentation titled ‘Changing Trends in the Travel Industry and its Impact’ highlighted the travel agents’ perspective on these two important subjects. TAAI will conduct a similar workshop in New Delhi on January 30 at The Claridges from 4 pm onwards.

Sunil Kumar, President, TAAI, said, “We will be rolling out circulars inviting our members to join the Joint Bank Guarantee (JBG) scheme by February first week and close the process by March 31, 2016. Those agents who are chosen by the National Committee for the scheme will be able to get on board with IATA effective July 1, 2016. They were anyway paid their insurance or guarantee till June 30, 2016. So, TAAI’s JBG scheme will be in place from July onwards when the new term starts for the new guarantee cover.” He however refused to share any updates on TAAI’s annual convention. This was discussed during TAAI’s Managing Committee meeting held on the sidelines of the IITT exhibition in Mumbai recently.