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Travel distribution glossary
Plain definitions of the terms used across this site. Definitions are simplified; exact meanings can vary by airline, system and country.
- ADM (Agency Debit Memo)
- A charge an airline raises against an agency after a ticket is issued, usually for a fare, rule or ticketing error.
- Aggregator
- A provider that connects to many airlines or suppliers and gives sellers one connection to all of them.
- Ancillary
- An extra sold with a flight, such as checked bags, seats, meals or priority boarding.
- Back office / mid office
- Systems that handle what happens after the sale: accounting, invoicing, reconciliation, reporting and quality control.
- BSP (Billing and Settlement Plan)
- IATA’s system for settling money between accredited agencies and airlines in a country or region.
- Consolidator
- A wholesaler that holds airline agreements and sells fares and ticketing services to other agencies.
- EMD (Electronic Miscellaneous Document)
- An electronic document airlines use to record payment for extras and fees that are not part of the ticket.
- E-ticket
- The electronic record of a passenger’s right to travel, identified by a 13-digit ticket number.
- Fare basis
- The code that identifies a fare and the rules attached to it.
- Fare rules
- The conditions of a fare: changes, refunds, minimum stay, baggage and more.
- GDS (Global Distribution System)
- A large network that connects airlines, hotels and other suppliers with travel sellers for shopping, booking and ticketing.
- Interline
- An agreement that lets one airline sell and ticket journeys that include flights on another airline.
- LCC (Low-cost carrier)
- An airline with a simplified product, where extras are usually sold separately. Many sell mainly through their own website or direct API.
- NDC (New Distribution Capability)
- An IATA standard that lets airlines send their own offers to sellers and manage bookings as orders. Read the guide.
- Offer
- A priced package returned by an airline in response to a search: flights, fare and any extras, with its own ID and expiry time.
- ONE Order
- An IATA initiative to replace the PNR, e-ticket and EMD with a single order record.
- Order
- The airline’s record of what the customer bought under the offer-and-order model, used for servicing and fulfilment.
- OTA (Online Travel Agency)
- A travel seller that operates mainly through a website or app.
- PCC (Pseudo City Code)
- The identifier for an agency location or office inside a GDS.
- PLB (Productivity Linked Bonus)
- An incentive an airline pays a seller for reaching agreed sales targets.
- PNR (Passenger Name Record)
- The reservation record that holds a traveller’s itinerary, contact details and booking information.
- Reissue
- Exchanging an existing ticket for a new one, usually after a date or route change.
- Refund
- Returning money for an unused or partly used ticket, according to its fare rules.
- Servicing
- Everything done to a booking after the sale: changes, cancellations, refunds, seats, bags and schedule changes.
- TTL (Ticketing Time Limit)
- The deadline by which a reservation must be ticketed before the airline may cancel it.
- Validating carrier
- The airline whose ticket stock is used, and which is responsible for the ticket and settlement.
- Void
- Cancelling a ticket very soon after it was issued, usually within a short window set by the seller and airline.
- White label
- A booking platform built by one company and branded and sold by another.