NDC MARKS A MILESTONE

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) marked a major milestone in its New Distribution Capability (NDC) initiative with the assignment by Airline Tariff Publishing Company (ATPCO) of its Open AXIS license to IATA. This makes IATA the custodian of the Open AXIS XML schema, with full governance over schema evolution, including further development, maintenance and standardization efforts. The Open AXIS license assignment to IATA is fully aligned with the decision taken at the Passenger Distribution Group (PDG) meeting in January to use Open AXIS schemas to enable NDC to deliver XML capabilities. “XML schemas are one of the building blocks of NDC, setting the parameters for transmitting data between partners in the air travel distribution value chain. The Open Axis framework is well advanced. And it will continue to evolve in line with industry needs to ensure that NDC is open, robust and transparent,”said Eric Leopold (pictured), IATA Director Passenger. IATA XML Standards are released under Passenger and Airport Data Interchange Standards (PADIS) governance, and Open AXIS’s schemas in the interim are open and available for use by the entire industry. Under the license agreement with ATPCO, IATA has assumed the Open AXIS web site. ATPCO will remain actively involved and provide assistance to the NDC initiative, including participating in the Distribution Data Exchange Working Group that is detailing NDC business requirements and XML schemas.