IATA Consultant cheat sheet

Tourism is classified as an export for the destination country: inbound visitor spending is credited to the destination's balance of payments, while outbound spending is an import.

IATA areas: Area 1 = Western Hemisphere (North, Central, South America, Caribbean); Area 2 = Europe, Africa, Middle East; Area 3 = Asia, Australasia, and the Indian subcontinent.

Traffic conference sub-areas split Areas into TC1 (TC1AT, TC12, TC13, TC16, TC17), TC2 (TC21, TC23), TC3 (TC31, TC3W).

Distribution mix: indirect channels (travel agencies, OTAs, corporate travel departments) versus direct channels (airline websites, call centres, airport counters).

IATA-accredited travel agency status requires financial security, qualified staff, and adherence to the IATA Passenger Sales Agency Agreement; accreditation gives access to BSP settlement.

BSP (Billing and Settlement Plan) consolidates agency sales into one reporting cycle per country, with one settlement per period and a single billing statement per agency.

Cargo equivalent of BSP is CASS (Cargo Accounts Settlement System); IATA also issues the IATA/IATAN number that identifies an accredited agency.

Industry bodies: ICAO (standards and Chicago Convention), IATA (airline trade association), WTO/UN Tourism (statistics), ACI (airports), CLIA (cruise lines).

IATA airport/city codes are 3 letters (e.g. LHR, JFK); airline codes are 2 characters (e.g. BA, AA) or 3 letters for ICAO (e.g. BAW).

Minimum connecting time (MCT) is set per airport and per terminal pair; a connection below MCT must not be booked as a single through itinerary.

Boarding gate closes typically 15-20 minutes before departure; check-in cut-off is commonly 45-60 minutes before departure, varying by carrier and airport.

Airport codes for terminals are not standardised: terminal designators appear in the flight number suffix or in free text, not in the 3-letter airport code.

Baggage: checked allowance is expressed by weight concept (kg) or piece concept (PC); piece concept is standard on most North American and transpacific routes.

Cabin baggage rules are set by the carrier; the IATA Recommended Practice 1720 defines the reference size (approximately 55 x 40 x 20 cm) used by many airlines.

Flight irregularity: denied boarding compensation under EU Regulation 261/2004 applies to departures from EU airports and to EU carriers arriving in the EU.

Special service requests (SSR) such as WCHR, UMNR, PETC, and MEDA must be transmitted in the PNR and confirmed by the operating carrier before ticketing.

Fare construction: NUC fare = published fare amount in NUC; total = NUC x IROE (IATA Rate of Exchange); IROE is applied to convert NUC to the currency of the country of commencement of travel.

Journey versus pricing unit: a journey is one-way, round trip, or circle trip; a pricing unit is the fare component used in a fare calculation, and one journey may contain several pricing units.

Fare basis codes: first character is the booking class; subsequent characters denote season, day of week, advance purchase, and minimum stay (e.g. YEE6M, HLXAP).

Minimum stay and maximum stay conditions are read from the fare rule categories: Category 6 = minimum stay, Category 7 = maximum stay, Category 4 = flight application.

Taxes and fees are shown as separate codes on the ticket (e.g. YQ/YR carrier-imposed surcharges, XX country taxes); they are not part of the fare amount.

Ticket coupons: a ticket has a flight coupon per segment plus the audit coupon; the passenger receipt is retained by the passenger; e-ticket records are stored as ETKT with a 13-digit ticket number.

PNR elements: name, itinerary, contact, ticketing arrangement, received-from, and optional SSRs/OSIs; a PNR must contain a ticketing time limit to be queued for ticketing.

Reservation status codes: HK (confirmed), HL (waitlisted), RR (reconfirmed), UN (unable), UC (unable to confirm), and NO (no action taken); an unconfirmed segment cannot be ticketed as confirmed.

Service recovery sequence: acknowledge the problem, take ownership, offer options within policy, confirm the chosen solution, and record the case for follow-up.

Involuntary schedule change: rebooking is at the carrier's discretion within the same cabin; refund entitlement depends on the fare rule and on local regulation.

Refund rules are governed by fare rule Category 16 (penalties) and Category 33 (voluntary changes); taxes on unused segments are generally refundable where the tax is not applicable.

Data protection: passenger data (PNR, APIS, payment details) is personal data; disclosure requires a lawful basis, and PNR data is transferred to authorities under national law.

Accessibility: service animals, mobility aids, and reduced-mobility passengers are handled under carrier procedures and, in the EU, Regulation 1107/2006.

Unaccompanied minors require an UMNR SSR, a signed handling form, and confirmation that every segment is accepted by the operating carrier.

Complaint handling timelines: EU Regulation 261/2004 requires a written response within 2 months; IATA/agency complaints are usually logged with a case reference.

Cross-cultural counselling: confirm name order, dietary and religious requirements, visa and passport validity, and vaccination entry rules before finalising an itinerary.