New Delhi, March 17 (IANS) Amadeus, a leading global technology and distribution partner to the travel industry, Monday announced that Deccan, India’s first and fastest-growing low-cost carrier (LCC), will now be able to market and sell all its flights on the Amadeus system. Travel agents will have access to all Deccan availability and fare classes, a statement from Amadeus said.

“This partnership makes Amadeus the first GDS (global travel distribution system) in the Indian travel market to have fully integrated Deccan into the GDS booking procedure, making it available on the main screen to compete alongside Full Service Carriers,” the statement said.

“This means travel agents using the Amadeus booking platform do not have to change their established practices to book Deccan. This will save time for agents, improve their productivity and expand Deccan’s offerings of affordable fares and value added facilities to millions of travellers,” the statement added.

According to Deccan officiating CEO Ramki Sundaram, “Given the inherent dynamism of the Indian market, we believe aggressive technology adoption is imperative for airlines focused on staying ahead of the growth curve.

“We have constantly endeavoured to move up the value chain with respect to distribution channels. Our adoption of Amadeus solutions will improve our distribution network while making available differentiated services to our widening consumer base,” he added.

David Brett, president of Amadeus Asia Pacific, said: “The LCC market accounts for 12 percent of all flights and all seats within Asia-Pacific.”

The Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation’s (CAPA) outlook report for 2007 says the LCC sector is thriving in India and is expected to achieve a market share of 70 percent by 2010 - one of the highest in the world.

“To maximise the possibilities of such a lucrative market, Deccan can now use Amadeus’ system to reach thousands of existing and potential travellers through its multi-channel network, giving Deccan customers greater choice,” Brett pointed out.

Amadeus India Managing Director Ankur Bhatia said the low-cost model that Deccan has perfected is ideally designed for markets such as India, which has a rapidly emerging but highly price sensitive middle class.

“Amadeus’ leadership and a preferred technology partner position in India and at a global level allows Deccan greater visibility and recall among a wider range of travel agencies across the world,” Bhatia said.

“In India, Deccan’s home market, Amadeus has a market share in excess of 50 percent with a penetration to nearly 20,000 booking agents and we are confident that it will have a positive effect on Deccan’s business performance.

“I believe this will be a precursor to more Indian low cost carriers realising the benefits of providing booking access to agents via Amadeus” Bhatia added.