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Maltese Laws |
CODE OF CONDUCT FOR COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS ACT
To provide for a code of conduct for computerised reservation systems.
1st October, 2002
ACT XIX of 2001, as amended by Legal Notice 426 of 2007.
Computerised Reservation Systems Act.
"air transport product" includes both unbundled and bundled air transport products;
"Board" means the Computerised Reservation Systems Board established under article 19;
"bundl ed air transport product" means a p r e-arranged com b ination of an unbundled air transp ort pro duct with
other services not ancillary to air transport, offered for sale and, or, sold at an inclusive price;
"bundled rail transport produc t" means a pre-arranged co mbinatio n of an un bundled rail transport product w ith
other services not ancillary to rail transport, offered for sale or sold at an inclusive price;
"computerized reservation system" means a computerized system containing information with regard to, inter alia, air carriers’ -
(a) schedules; (b) availability; (c) fares; and
(d) related services;
with or without facilities through which - (a) reservations may be made; or (b) tickets may be issued,
to the extent that some or all of these services are made available to subscribers;
"con su mer" mean s an y person seeki n g in formati o n abou t o r intending to purchase an air transport product for private
use;
"Director" means the Director of Civil Aviation and includes, to the ext ent o f th e auth orit y gi ven, any person au
thorised in that behalf by the Director;
"distribution facilities" means facilities provided by a system vendo r for th e provisi on o f inform atio n ab out air
carriers’ schedules, availability, fares and related services and for making reservat io ns a nd, or issu in g t i ck ets, a nd
fo r any o t h e r rel a ted
Short title. Interpretation.
services;
"duplicate reservation" means a situation which arises when two or more reservations are made for the same passenger when
it is evident that the passenger may not be able to use more than one;
"effective control" means a relationship constituted by rights, contracts or any other means which, either separately or
jointly and having regard to the considerations of fact or law involved, confer th e p o ssi bi li ty of d i rect ly o r indirectly
exercising a decis i ve influence on an undertaking, in particular by the -
(a) right to use all or part of the assets of an undertaking;
and
(b) rights or contracts which confer a decisive influence on the composition, voting or decisions of the bodies of an undertaking
or otherwise confer a decisive influence on the running of the business of the undertaking;
" e lapsed journe y time" me ans the time diff erence be tween scheduled departure and arrival time;
"fare" means t he p rice t o be pai d for unb undled ai r transport products and the conditions under which this price applies;
"Minister" means the Minister responsible for Civil Aviation, and includes, to the ext e n t of the autho r ity given, any
officer authorised by him, in writing, to act in that behalf for any of the purposes of this Act;
" p a r ent ca rrie r " means any air c a rrie r which directly or indirectly, alone or jointly with others, owns or effectively
controls a system vendor, and includes any air carrier which it owns or effectively controls;
"participating carrier" means an air carrier which has an agreement with a system vendor for the distribution of air transport
products through a computerized reservation system. To the extent that a parent carrier uses the faciliti es of its own com puter
ized reservation system covered by this Act, it shall be considered a participating carrier;
"principal display" means a comprehensive neutral display of data concerning air services between city-pairs, within a specified
time period;
"rail transport product" includes both unbundled and bundled rail transport products;
"service enhancement" means any product or service offered by a system vendor on its own behalf to subscribers, in conjunction
with a computerized reservation sy stem , oth e r t h an dist rib u ti on facilities;
"scheduled air service" means a series of flights all possessing the following characteristics:
(a) performed by aircraft for the transport of passengers or passengers and cargo and, or, mail for remuneration, in
such a manner that seats are available on each flight for individual purchase by consumers, either directly from the air carrier
or from its authorized agents;
(b) operated so as to serve traffic between the same two or more points, either -
(i) according to a published timetable; or
(ii) with flights so regular or frequent that they constitute a recognizably systematic series;
"subscri ber" m e ans a per s on, othe r than a consumer, or an undertaki ng, other t h an a parti c i p ating carrier
, using a computerized reservation system under contract or other financial arrangement with a system vendor. A financial arrangement
shall be de eme d to exis t where a s p ecific payme n t is made for the services of the system vendor or where an air transport
product is purchased;
"system ve ndor" m eans any entity and its affili ates which is re sponsible for the op eration or marketing of a compute
r ized reservation system;
"ticket" means a valid document giving entitlement to transport, or an equivalent in paperless, including electronic, form
issued or authorised by the carrier or its authorised agent;
"unbundled air transport product" means the carriage by air of a passenger between two airports, including any related
ancillary services and additional benefits offered for sale and, or, sold as an integral part of that product;
"u nbund led rail transpo r t product" m eans the carriage of a passen ger between two stati ons b y rail, in clud ing
any related ancillary services and additional benefits offered for sale or sold as an integral part of that product.
3. (1) A system vendor shall have the capacity, in its own name as a separate entity from the parent carrier, to have rights and obligations
of all kinds, to enter into contracts, inter alia, with parent carriers, participating carriers an d sub s cri b ers, o r to accomplish other legal acts and to sue and be sued.
(2) A system vendor shall, subject to any technical constraints outside the control of the system vendor, allow any air carrier
to parti c i p ate, on an eq ual and non-discrim i natory basis, in i t s distribution facilities within the available capacity
of the system concerned.
(3) (a) A system vendor shall not -
(i) attach unreasonable conditions to any contract with a participating carrier;
(ii) require the acceptance of supplementary conditions which, by their nature or according to commercial usage, have
no connection with participation in its computerized reservation system and shall apply the same conditions for the same
level of service.
Conduct of system vendors.
par t ici p at io n i n it s co mp u t er i zed reservation system that a participating carrier may not at the same time be a participant in another system.
Conduct of parent carriers.
(c) A participating carrier may terminate its contract with a system vendor by giving such notice, as may be stipulated, for the
contract to expire. In such a case, a system vendor shall not be en ti tl ed t o r e co ver more than th e cost s di rectly r e
l a t e d t o th e termination of the contract:
Provided that no notice of more than six months may be stipulated, and that the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply if the
contract is terminated before the first year of the contract:
Provided further that a participating carrier may give a longer notice than that stipulated.
(4) If a system vendor decides to add any improvement to the distributi on facili ties provided or the equipm ent used in the
provision of the facilities, it shall give information on, and offer these improvements to, all participating carriers, including
parent carri ers, wit h equ a l ti mel i n e ss an d on th e same ter m s an d conditions, subject to any technical constraints outside
the control of the system vendor, and in such a way that there may b e no di f f erence i n leadti me fo r the imp lement at io
n of the new improvements between parent and participating carriers.
4. (1) (a) A parent carrier may not discriminate against a competing computerized reservation system by refusing to provide the latter,
on request and with equal ti meliness, with the same information on schedules, fares and availability relating to its own ai r ser
v ices as th at wh ich it pro v ides to it s own co mput eri z ed reserv ation system or by refusing to distribute its air transport
products through another computerized reservation system, or by refusing to accept or to confirm with equal timeliness a reservation
made through a competing computerized reservation system for any of its air transport products which are distributed through its
own computerized reservation system . The p a r e n t car r ier shall be obliged to accept and to confirm only those bookings which
are in conformity with its fares and conditions.
(b) The parent carrier shall not be obliged to pay any costs in this connection except those in connection with the reproduction
of the information to be provided and for accepted bookings. The booking fee payable to a computerized reservation system for an
accepted booking made in accordance with this article shall not exceed the fee charged by the same compute r ized re serva t ion
system to participating carriers for an equivalent transaction.
(c) The parent carrier shall be entitled to carry out controls to ensure that the provisions of article 7(1) are adhered to by the
competing computerized reservation system.
(2) The provisions of this article shall not apply in relation to a competing computerized reservation system which has been found,
by the Board, to have obtained information by any unauthorised means.
5. (1) (a) Participating carriers and other providers of air transport products shall ensure that the data which they submit to a co
mpu terized reservation system are accu rate, non-misleadi ng, transparent and no less comprehensive than that submitted to any
other computerized reservation system. The data shall be such as to enable a system vendor to meet the requirements of the ranking
criteria as set out in the First Schedule.
(b) Intermediaries shall not manipulate data submitted to them in a manner which l eads to inaccurate, misleading or discriminatory
information.
(c) The provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) shall, mu tatis mutandis, also appl y to rail services in respect of da ta provided for inclusion in the principal display.
(2) (a) A system vendor shall not manipulate the material referred to in subarticle (1) in a manner which would lead to the provision
of inaccurate, misleading or discriminatory information.
(b) A system vendor shall load and process data provided by all participating carriers with equal care and timeliness, subject only
to the constraints of the loading method selected by individual participating carriers and to the standard formats used by the said
vendor.
(2) A system vendor shall not reserve any specific loading and, or, processing procedure or any other distribution facility for
one or more of its parent carriers.
(3) A system vendor shall ensure that its distribution facilities are separated, in a clear and verifiable manner, from any carrier
’s priv at e i n ven t o r y and ma nag e m e nt and ma rketin g facilities. Separati on may be est a bl ish e d ei t h er by means
o f software or physically in such a way th a t any co nn ect io n bet w e e n th e d i strib u tio n faci liti es and the pri v
at e facili ties may only be achieved by means of an ap plication-t o -application interface. I rresp ecti ve of the metho d o f
separat i on adop ted, any such interfac e shall be made available to all parent and participating carriers on a non-discriminatory
basis and shall provide equality of treatment in respect of procedures, protocols, inputs and outputs. Where relevant and generally
a cce pted air tra n sport indus t ry standards are ava i lable, system vendors sha ll offer interfaces compatible with them.
(4) The system vendor shall ensure that any third parties providing computerized reservation system services in whole or
in part on its behalf comply with the relevant provisions of this Act.
Conduct of participating carriers.
Access and distribution.
reservation system displays.
Availability of information.
system shall be clear and non-discriminatory.
(b) A system vendor shall not intentionally or negl ig ently display inaccurate or mi sleadi ng information in it
s computerized reservation system.
(2) (a) A system vendor shall provide a principal display or displays for each individual transaction through its computerized reservation
system and shall include therein the data provided by part ici p at ing carri ers on flight schedules, fare typ e s and seat av
a ila bi lit y i n a cl ea r an d co mp rehensi v e mann er and wit h o u t discrimination or bias, in particular as regards the
order in which information is presented.
(b) A consumer shall be entitled to have, on request, a principal display limi ted to e ither sched u led or non-scheduled
services only.
(c) No discrimination on the basis of airports serving the same city shall be exercised in constructing and selecting flights for
a given city-pair for inclusion in a principal display.
(d) Ranking of flight options in a principal display shall be as set out in the First Schedule.
(e) Criteria to be used for ranking shall not be based on any factor directly or indirectly relating to carrier identity and shall
be applied on a non-discriminat ory basis to all parti c ipating carriers.
(3) Where a system vendor provides information on fares, the display shall be neutral and non-discriminatory and shall contain
at least the f a res p r ovid ed for all fli ghts of participati ng carrier s shown in the principal display. The source of such
in form ation must be acceptable to the participating carrier and system vendor concerned.
(4) Information on bundled products regarding, inter alia, the tour organizer, availability and prices, shall not be featured in the principal display.
(5) A computerized reservation system shall not be considered to be in breach of the provisions of this Act to the extent that
it changes a display in order to meet the specific request or requests of a consumer.
(a) information concerning identifiable individual bookings shall be provided on an equal basis and only to the air carrier
or carriers participating in the service covered and to the subscribers involved in the booking. Information under
the control of the system vendor concerning identifiable individual bookings
shall be archived off-line within seventy-two hours of the completion of the last element in the individual booking and destroyed
within three years. Access to such data shall, without prejudice to any power of the police or other authority in connection with
criminal investigations or national security, be allowed only for reasons relating to disputes concerning billing;
(b) any marketing, booking and sales data shall only be made available on the basis that -
(i) such data are offered with equal timeliness and on a non-discriminatory basis to all participating carriers, including parent
carriers;
(ii) such data may and, on request, shall cover all participating carriers and, or subscribers, but shall include no identification,
either directly or indirectly, of, or personal information on, a passenger or a corporate user;
(iii) all requests for such data are treated with equal care and timeliness subject to the transmission method selected by the
individual carrier;
(iv) information is made available on request to participating carriers and subscribers both globally and selectively
with regard to the market in which they operate;
(v) a group of airlines and, or subscribers is entitled to purchase data for common processing.
(2) A system vendor shall not make personal information con cerni ng a passenger available to others not involved in the
transaction without the consent of the passenger.
(3) A system vendor shall ensure that the provisions of subarticles (1) and (2) are complied with, by technical means
and, or appropriate safeguards, in such a way that information provided by or created for air carriers shall in no way be accessed
by one or more of the parent carriers except as permitted by this Act.
6, 7 and 8 shall not apply in respect of a parent carrier of a country other than Malta to the extent that its computerized reservation
system outside the territory of Malta does not offer Maltese air
carriers equivalent treatment to that provided under this Act.
(2) The obligations of parent or participating carriers under articles 4, 5 and 10 shall not apply in respect of a computerized
reservation system co ntrolle d by an air carrier of one or more countries other than Malta to the extent that, outside the territory
of Malta, the parent or participating carrier is not accorded equivalent treatment to that provided under this Act.
Parent carriers and countries other than Malta.
No commission, incentive or disincentive.
Distribution of facilities.
use of any specific computer ized reservation system by a subscriber for the sale or issue of tickets for any air trans p ort products
directly or indirectly provided by the said parent carrier.
(3) An air carrier shall not, when authorizing a travel agent to sell and issue tickets for the air carrier ’s air transport
products, impose any condition, on the travel agent, which runs counter to the provisions of subarticles (1) or (2).
(2) A system vendor shall not require a subscriber to sign an exclusive contract, nor directly or indirectly prevent a subscriber
from subscribing to, or using, any other system or systems.
(3) A service enhancement offered to any one subscriber shall be o f fered by t h e sy stem vend or to all su bscrib ers o n
a no n- discriminatory basis.
(4) (a) A system vendor shall not attach unreasonable conditions to any subscriber contract allowing for the use of its
computerized reservation system and, in particular, a subscriber may terminate its contract with a system vendor by giving such
notice, as may be stipulated, for the contract to expire. In such a case, a system vendor shall not be entitled to recover more than
the costs directly related to the termination of the contract:
Provided that no notice of more than three months may be stipulated, and that the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply if
the contract is terminated before the first year of the contract:
Provided further that a subscriber may give a longer notice than that stipulated.
(b) Subject to the provisions of subarticle (2), the supply of technical equipment by the system vendor shall not be subject to any
of the conditions set out in paragraph (a).
(5) A system vendor shall, in each subscriber contract, make provision for -
(a) the principal display, in conformity with article 7, to be accessed for each individual transaction, except where a consumer
requests information for only one air carrier or where the consumer requests information only for bundled air transport products;
and
(b) the subscriber not to manipulate material supplied by computerized reservation systems in a manner which would lead to inaccurate,
misleading or discriminatory presentation of information to consumers.
(6) A system vendor may not impose an obligation on a subscriber to accept an offer of technical equipment or software,
but may require that equipment and software used be compatible
with its own system.
12. (1) (a) In the case of information provided by a computerized reservation system, a subscriber shall use a neutral
display in accordance with article 7(2)(a) and (b) unless another display is required to meet a preference indicated by a consumer.
(b) No subscriber shall manipulate information provided by a compute rized reservation system in a manner that leads to inaccurate,
m i sleading or discrimin ator y presentation of that information to any consumer.
(c) A subscriber shall make reservations and issue tickets in accordance with the information contained in the computerized reservation
system used, or as authorised by the carrier concerned.
(d) A subscriber shall inform every consumer of any en rou t e change s of equipm ent, th e number of scheduled en route stops, the identity of the air carrier actually operating the flight, and of any changes of airport required in any itinerary provided,
to the extent t h at that inform at ion is present in t h e com puterized reservation system. The subscriber shall inform the consumer
of the nam e and a d d r ess of the sy stem ven d o r, t h e pu rp ose s o f th e processing, the duration of the retention of individual
data and the means available to the consumer to exercise his access rights.
(e) A consumer shall be entitled at any time to have a print-out of the computerized reservation system display or to be
given access to a parallel computerized reservation system display reflecting the image that is being displayed to the subscriber.
(f) A person shall be entitled to have effective access, free of charge, to his own data regardless of whether the data is stored
by the computerized reservation system or by the subscriber.
(2) A subscriber shall use the distribution facilities of a computerized reservation system in accordance with the Second
Schedule.
(2) The billing for the services of a computerized reservation system shall be suff iciently d etailed to al low the participating
carriers to see exactly which services have been used and the fees therefor; as a minimum, bookin g fee bills shall include the
following information for each segment:
(i) type of computerized reservation system booking;
(ii) passenger name; (iii) country;
(iv) IATA/ARC agency identification code; (v) city-code;
Subscribers’ obligations and consumers’ rights.
Fee charging criteria to participating carriers.
Use of computerized reservation system by carriers in their own office, etc.
(vi) city pair of segment;
(vii) booking date (transaction date); (viii) flight date;
(ix) flight number;
(x) status code (booking status);
(xi) service type (class of service);
(xii) passenger name record (PNR) locator; and
(xiii) booking/cancellation indicator.
(3) The billing information shall be offered on magnetic or other media normally used in the services provided. The fee to
be charged for the billing information provided in the form chosen by the carrier shall not exceed the cost of the medium itself
together with its transportation costs. A participating air carrier shall be of fered the facility of being informed when any booking
or transaction is made for which a booking fee may be charged. Where a carrier elects to be so informed, it shall be offered the
option of disallowing any such booking or transaction, unless the latter has already been accepted. In the event of such a disallowance,
the air carrier shall not be charged for that booking or transaction.
(4) Any fee for equipment rental or other service charged to a su bscri b er b y a system v e ndo r shall b e no n-di scrim i
n a to ry, reasonably structur ed and reasonably re lated to the cost of the service provided and used, and shall, in particular,
be the same for th e sam e l e vel o f serv ice. Pr od u c ti vi ty ben e fi ts awar ded t o subscribers by system vendors in the
form of discount on rental charges or commission payments shall be deemed to be distribution costs o f the sy stem vendors and shall
be based on t i cketed segment s . Withou t prej udice to p a ragraph 5 of the Second Schedule, when the system vendor does not
know whether a ticket has been issued or not, then that system vendor shall be entitled to rely upon notification of the ticket number
from the subscriber. The billing for the services of a computerized reservation system shall be sufficiently detailed to allow subscribers
to see exactly which services have been used and what fees have been charged therefor.
(5) A system vendor shall, on request, provide interested parties, including consumers, with details of current procedures,
fees and system facilities, including interfaces, editing and display criteria used. The processing of individual data shall be
free of char ge for consum ers t o wh om t h at i n form at ion ref e rs . This provision shall not, however, require a system vendor
to disclose proprietary information such as software.
(6) Any changes to fee levels, conditions or facilities offered and the basis therefor shall be communicated to all participating
carriers and subscribers on a non-discriminatory basis.
(a) in its own office or offices and sales counters clearly identified as such; or
(b) to provide information and, or distribution facilities accessible through a public telecommunications network,
clearly and continuously identifying the information provider or providers as such.
(2) Where booking is performed directly by an air carrier, the provisions of article 12(1)(d) and (f) shall apply.
(2) The system vendor shall inform participating carriers and the Dir ecto r of the ident ity of the auditor at least three months before his appointment and at least three months before each annual reappointment. If, within one month of notification, any of the participating carriers objects to the capability of the auditor to carry out the tasks as required under this article, the Director shall, within a further two months, and after consultation with the auditor, t h e system vendor an d any o t her p a rty clai ming a leg itimate interest, decide whether or not the auditor is to be replaced.
(2) Where a system vendor decides to include rail products in the principal display of its computerized reservation system, it
may choo se to incl ude onl y certain wel l -d efi n ed cat e gories o f rail services, while respecting the principles stated
in article 3(2).
(3) A rail transport operator shall be deemed to be a participating or parent carrier, as appropriate, for the
purposes of this Act, insofar as it has an agreement with a system vendor for the d i str i b u t i o n o f it s pr od uct s th ro
ug h t h e pr in ci pal d i sp l a y of a computerized reservation sy stem or wh ere i t s ow n reservat ion system is a computerized
reservation system as defined in article 2. Subject to subarticle (4), those products shall be treated in the same manner as air
transport products and shall be incorporated in the principal display in accordance with the criteria set out in the First Schedule.
(4) (a) When applying the rules laid down in paragraphs 1 and
2 of the First Schedule to rail services, the system vendor shall adjust the ranking principles for the principal display in order
to take due account of the needs of consu m ers to be adequately
informed of rail services that represent a competitive alternative to the air serv ices. In particular, sy stem vendors may ran k
rail services with a limited number of short stops with non-stop direct
air services.
Auditing of technical compliance of computerized reservation system.
Applicability to rail transport products.
Prohibition of renunciation to rights.
Procedures before the Board.
Computerised Reservation Systems Board.
(b) System vendors shall define clear criteria for the application of the provisions of this article to rail services. Such
criteria shall cover elapsed journey time and reflect the need to avoid excessive screen padding. Those criteria shall be submitted
to the Director at least two months before their application.
(5) For the purposes of this article, all references to "flights" in this Act shall be deemed to include references to
"rail services" and references to "air transport products" shall be deemed to include references to "rail
products".
(2) Complaints may be submitted by natural or legal persons who claim a legitimate interest.
(2) The chairman and the technical assessors of the Board shall be appointed by the Prime Minister from year to year:
Provided that the Prime Minister may renew any appointment from year to year and he may direct, on making any new appointment,
th at the ou tgoing chairman or assessor shall continue to sit on the Board in respect of any matter whereof he has already taken
cognizance before the termination of his appointment until such matter is disposed of.
(3) The Prime Minister may also make any necessary appointments for the purpose of surrogating the chairman or any
assessor of the Board in the event of his being, for an y reason, unable to carry out his functions with respect to any particular
case or cases.
(4) The chairman or a n y asse ssor of the Board shall not be competent to take cognizance of or deal with any matter in which he
has a direct or an indirect interest.
(5) The technical assessors of the Board shall, before entering upon their office, take before the Attorney General an oath to
the effect that they shall examine and decide any matter referred to them under the provisions of this Act with equity and impartiality.
(6) The chairman of the Board shall have, for the purpose of collecting the evidence and establishing the facts relating to any
m atter befor e th e Board, all such powers as ar e by the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure vested in the Civil Court, First Hall, for the like purpose in relation to any matter before it.
(7) Subject to any regulations made under article 21, the Board shall regulate its own procedure.
(8) The Prime Minister shall appoint a public officer to act as secretary to the Board.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subarticle (1), the Board may, on a new fact being brought to its notice, review a decision
given by it:
Provided that -
(a) the application for review is lodged in writing with the Board within twenty days from the date on which the decision is
communicated to the undertaking or association of undertakings; and
(b) a review of the decision shall in no case involve the Board in any liability for any damages which may have been sustained
in consequence of the first decision.
(2) The Board may fix a time limit of not less than one month for the communication of the information requested.
(3) In its request the Board shall state the legal basis and purpose of the request and also the penalti es, which
m a y be imposed in acco r dance wi th article 23(1), fo r the supply of incorrect information.
(4) The owners of the undertakings or their representatives and, in th e case of a l e g a l pe rson or of companies, fi
rms or associations not having legal personality, the person authorised to represent them by law or by their rules, shall be bound
to supply the information requested.
(5) Undertakings and associations of undertakings shall submit to investigations ordered by a decision of the Board. The decision
s h all specify the subject matter and the purpose of the investigation, appoint the date on which it is to begin and indicate
the penalties which may be imposed in accordance with articl e
23(1).
(a) supply incorrect information in response to a request
Review of decisions.
Power to make regulations.
Supply of information to the Board.
Disciplinary penalties. Amended by:
L.N. 426 of 2007.
made pursuant to article 22, or do not supply information within the time limit fixed; or
(b) produce books or other business records in incomplete form during investigations, or refuse to submit to an investigation pursuant
to article 22(5).
(2) The Board may impose disciplinary penalties on system vendors, parent carriers, participating carriers and, or subscribers
for infringements of the provisions of this Act up to a maximum of ten per cent of the annual turnover for the relevant activity
of the undertaking concerned. In fixing the amount of the penalty, regard sh all be h a d bot h t o the seri ousn e ss and to th
e d u rat i o n o f the infringement.
(3) Decisions imposing disciplinary penalties, pursuant to the provisions of subarticles (1) and (2), shall not be of a penal
nature, and any such penalties shall be recoverable as a civil debt by the Director by action before the competent court of civil
jurisdiction.
(4) Carriers, whether they are parent or participating carriers, subscribers and system vendors shall be subject to the jurisdiction
and the procedures of, and the administrative penalties imposed by, the Board.
PRINCIPAL DISPLAY RANKING CRITERIA FOR FLIGHTS* OFFERING UNBUNDLED AIR TRANSPORT PRODUCTS
(Articles 5, 7 and 16)
1. Ranking of flight options in a principal display, for the day or days requested, shall be in the foll owing order unless
requested in a different way by a consumer for an individual transaction:
(i) all non-stop direct flights between the city-pairs concerned;
(ii) all other direct flights, not involving a change of aircraft or train, between the city-pairs concerned;
(iii) connecting flights.
2. A consumer shall at least be afforded the possibility of having, on request, a principal display ranked by departure
or arrival time and/or elapsed journey time. Unless otherwise requested by a consumer, a principal display shall be ranked by departure
time for group (i) and elapsed journey time for groups (ii) and (iii).
3. Where a system vendor chooses to display information for any city-pair in relati on to the schedules or fares of non-
*All references to "flights" in this Schedule are in accordance with article 16(6) of the
Act.
participating carriers, but not necessarily all such carriers, such information shall be d i spl a yed i n an accurate, non- misleading
and non-discriminatory manner between carriers displayed.
4. If, to the system vendor ’s knowledge, information on the number of direct scheduled air services and the identity
of the air carr iers conc erned is not comprehens iv e, this shall be clearly stated on the relevant display.
5. Flights other than scheduled air services shall be clearly identified.
6. Flights involving stops en route shall be clearly identified.
7. Where flights are operated by an air carrier which is not the air carrier identified by the carrier designator code, the
actual operator of the flight shal l b e clearly iden tified. Th is requirement shall apply in all cases, except for short-term
ad hoc arrangements.
8. A system vendor shall not use the screen space in a principal display in a manner which gives excessive exposure to one particular
travel option or which displays unrealistic travel options.
9. Except as provided for in paragraph 10, the following provisions shall apply:
(a) for direct services, no flight may be featured more than once in a principal display;
(b) for multi-sector services involving a change of aircraft, no combination of flights may be featured more than
once in a principal display;
(c) flights involving a change of aircraft shall be treated and displayed as connecting flights, with one line per aircraft segment.
Nevertheless, where the flights are operated by the same carrier with the same flight number and where a carrier requires
only one flight coupon and one reservation, a computerized reservation system should issue only one coupon and
shall charge for only one reservation.
10. (1) Where participating carriers have joint-venture or other contractual arrangements requiring two or more of them to assume
separate responsibility for the offer and sale of air transpo r t prod ucts o n a flig ht or co mbi n atio n o f f ligh t s, th e
ter m s "f li ght" (f or di rect ser v i c es) and "combination of flights" (for multi-sector services) in
paragraph 9 shall be interpreted as allowing each of the carriers concerned, up to a maximum of two, to have a separate display
using its individual carrier designator code.
(2) Where more than two carriers are involved, designation of the tw o carriers entitled to avail themselv es of the exception
provided for in sub-paragraph (1) shall be a matter for the carrier actually operating the flight. In the
absence of information from th e op erat ing carrier sufficient to identify the two carriers to be designated, a system vendor shall
design ate the carriers on a non- discriminatory basis.
11. A principal display shall, wherever practicable, include connecting flights on scheduled services which are operated
by parti c ipat in g carriers and are co nstruct e d b y usin g a minimum number of nine connecting points. A system vendor shall
accept a request by a participating carrier to include an indirect service, unless the routing is in excess of 130% of the great
circle distance between the two airports or unless that would lead to the exclusion of services with a shorter elapsed journey time.
Connecting points with routings in excess of
130% need not be used.
USE OF DISTRIBUTION FACILITIES BY SUBSCRIBERS
(Articles 12 and 13)
1. A subscriber shall keep accurate records covering all transactions concluded through the computerized reservation
s y stem. Those records s h a ll incl ude fli ght nu mbers, reservations booking designators, date of travel, departure and arrival
times, status of segments, names and initials of passe ngers with thei r contact addresse s and / or t e l e ph on e numbers and
ticketing status. When booking or cancelling s p ac e, the s ubs cribe r s h al l ens u re tha t the res e rva tion desi gn at
or b ein g use d correspo nd s t o th e fare pai d by t he passenger.
2. A subscriber shall not deliberately make duplicate reservations for the same passenger. Where confirmed
space is not available, the passenger may, at his choice, be wait- listed on that flight (if wait-list is available) and confirmed
on an alternative flight.
3. When a passenger cancels a reservation, the subscriber shall immediately release that space.
4. When a passenger changes an itinerary, the subscriber shall ensure that all space and supplementary services are cancelled
when the new reservations are made.
5. A subscriber shall, where practicable, request or process all re servations for a spe c ific itinerary and all subseque
nt changes through the same computerized reservation system.
6. No subscriber may request or sell airline space unless requested to do so by a consumer.
7. A subscriber shall ensure that a ticket is issued in accordance with the reservation status of each segment and in accordance
with the applicable time limit. A subscriber shall not issue a
ticket indicating a definite reservation and a particular flight unless confirmation of that reservation has been received.
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