Etihad Cargo has expanded its digital booking reach by joining the WebCargo platform.
WebCargo said that by joining its booking portal, the Abu Dhabi-hubbed airline had extended its reach to more than 1,700 logistics providers and freight forwarders.
The WebCargo platform will provide instant Etihad Cargo booking schedules, promotional rates and eBooking, enabling sales and operations teams at forwarders to compare and book airfreight in seconds.
Etihad Cargo’s flight schedules and market rates in mainland Europe and the UK will roll out on the WebCargo platform progressively, allowing all platform members to review and compare airline offers, whilst instant eBookings functionality will follow in April upon the successful completion of API testing and systems integration.
Markets where eBookings will be enabled first are Spain, France and UK, with a gradual rollout to more markets to ultimately cover all of Europe throughout 2020.
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Rory Fidler, head of technology & innovation at Etihad Cargo, said: “We are pleased to kick-start 2020 with yet another digitalization milestone. During the past 12 months we have introduced several initiatives to improve our customers’ experiences and provide the company with greater accessibility and visibility.
“Our latest API capabilities will facilitate the roll-out of our product through WebCargo over the next couple of months and they will become a key partner in strengthening our digital connection to forwarders around the world with a special emphasis on European markets.”
Manel Galindo, chief executive at WebCargo, said: “Digital Air Cargo is going to become an industry norm and WebCargo is proud to be leading the movement with innovative industry partners like Etihad Cargo."
The airline also provides digital booking through its own platform, which today receives around 50% of overall bookings, and through the cargo.one portal.
