The Order Management Seaplane

If we were to follow the typical vision of travel, as shaped by IATA and most consultants, seaplanes wouldn’t even exist. Instead, you’d take a plane to a certain point, disembark, gather your luggage, carry it to the harbor, and then board a boat to reach your final destination. Two entirely different modes of transportation—one for flying, one for sailing—with an inconvenient transfer in between to make the journey even more challenging.

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This is how the leaders of the airline industry perceive the relationship between OMS (Order Management Systems) and PSS (Passenger Service Systems). They suggest using two separate systems with a transfer process to sync data. A PSS alone wouldn’t get you to the island, and an OMS alone wouldn’t even get you to the harbor. To complete the entire journey—akin to multi-channel distribution—you’d need to manage multiple systems, including different platforms, teams, maintenance schedules, captains, and infrastructure.

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In short, OMS doesn’t support existing distribution channels, and PSS doesn’t fully support the retail world.

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Then, someone came up with the brilliant idea of creating seaplanes—an innovation that merges the best of both transportation modes. With a seaplane, you can travel seamlessly from your origin to the harbor and directly to your final destination, the island, without a stopover or any need for data transfer. You can sit back, relax, and enjoy the journey, knowing your business needs are fully supported.

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Seaplanes are built by starting with an airplane (OMS) and adding the necessary features to enable it to float on water (PSS). You wouldn’t take a boat (PSS) and try to add wings (a compromised OMS, like adding NDC APIs to an outdated PSS) because history shows that this approach leads to limitations. You’re left with the constraints of a boat.

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The magic happens when you migrate and implement an OMS that also supports the full functionality of a PSS. This allows you to operate it as a PSS, as an OMS, or even better, as a unified system that combines both, supporting ALL distribution channels on a single, cost-effective platform. You shouldn’t have to restrict your distribution channels based on whether you use a PSS or an OMS. Instead, you should expand your options with the flexibility of an integrated system.

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We always say, "the sky’s the limit!" but the real limitation is the system we choose—PSS or OMS, or the cost of maintaining both. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

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Welcome to a ONE Order Passenger Services solution.