Travel Bellwether Amadeus’ Booking Data Reveals the Industry’s Scars


Skift Take

Amadeus has seen a dramatic drop in the plane tickets booked and passengers processed through its systems. Its latest results show the broader impact on carriers worldwide and signal the wallop still awaiting.

International air travel will take at least 18 months to recover, Amadeus said Tuesday, as the coronavirus pandemic drove a collapse in profits at the travel technology company. Amadeus runs the world's largest booking network with travel agencies and provides operational software for airlines, airports, and hotels, so analysts consider it a gauge for the health of travel worldwide. On its own, Amadeus's travel agency bookings declined by 48 percent in the first three months of the year. In the last part of February, Amadeus and its peer companies Sabre and Travelport saw a bookings decline of between 30 percent and 40 percent, Amadeus estimated. In March, the so-called global distribution systems saw the bookings they process dec