Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has partnered with Verteil Technologies, a New Distribution Capability (NDC) aggregation partner, as it continues its NDC strategy launched earlier this year.

The new partnership will enable Etihad to expand its global NDC distribution with a particular focus on India, the home market of Verteil. The technology company will provide Etihad with its International Air Transport Association (IATA) certified NDC distribution platform, Verteil Direct Connect. The platform will enhance the digital distribution for Etihad and provide travel agents with more effective merchandising, access to rich content, and product personalisation.

Dieter Westermann, Vice President Revenue Management, Etihad Airways, said: “Etihad’s adoption of NDC earlier this year was a major milestone and it has given us the ability to connect with innovative new-age travel technology companies like Verteil Technologies.

“With a population of more than 1.3 billion, India is one of the most important strategic markets for Etihad, and before the outbreak of COVID-19, Etihad was operating 150 return flights per week between Abu Dhabi and 10 key Indian gateways. As government restrictions are slowly eased, our partnership with Verteil Technologies will offer a greater reach into this key market and neighbouring countries across Asia.”

Jerrin Jos, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Verteil Technologies, said: “Verteil Technologies has been at the forefront of NDC distribution and is delighted to partner with Etihad Airways, making available our unique products and services on our NDC based direct connect distribution platform, Verteil Direct Connect. This partnership is a testament to the critical role Verteil is playing when it comes to the development and promotion of NDC content distribution worldwide. We continue to work diligently in making the Verteil platform deliver greater innovation, more diverse content and enhanced booking experience for our customers.”

Etihad’s journey into NDC took a major step forward in March 2020 when the airline was accredited with IATA’s level 3 certification, and the airline continues to introduce new partners worldwide.