Amber Inventory

About Amber Inventory

Amber Inventory System (hereinafter referred to as the “System”) supports efficient automated inventory management for airlines.

Supported Processes

Schedule Management

Amber Inventory supports the following schedule management processes:

• automatic schedule download,
• manual schedule management,
• schedule publication

Automatic Schedule Download

Automatic schedule download functions are as follows:

• Downloading schedule from external systems (for example, from airline’s schedule management system or from codeshare agreement partner’s inventory system).
• Forming, receiving and processing messages in SSIM 4, SSIM 5 (SSM/ASM telegrams) and SSIM 7 (OAG messages) formats. SSIM 7 messages are converted and loaded in the SSIM 4/5 format.
• Automatic and manual processing of incoming messages.
• Configuring algorithms of processing schedule messages received from external systems via business rules.

Manual Schedule Management

Existing flights in the System have the following schedule management operations available:

• Creation of basic or ad hoc period of flight performance schedule — each flight can have one or more performance periods. Schedule parameters for each of periods may differ..
• Creation of ad hoc period — flight schedule ad hoc period may be created for any date, and the flight will be performed according to schedule parameters for ad hoc period regardless of existence of the base schedule for this date
• Modification of base or ad hoc period of flight performance schedule — change of start and end dates of flight performance period.
• Deletion of ad hoc period — If “ad hoc” marker is removed from the date within the base schedule period, it returns to the base period with base schedule details. If independent ad hoc period is deleted, ad hoc marker is removed from the date and the date returns to the base schedule without changing parameters. To cancel ad hoc period of schedule, period cancellation operation is used.
• Permanent period cancellation — deletion of period from schedule.
• Date cancellation with restoration option — the specified date goes to ad hoc period and saves all schedule parameters which were set for that date at the time of cancellation. Flight is not carried out within the created ad hoc-period.
• Flight delay — change of flight departure time on the last day before the set departure.

Schedule Publication

Schedule publication functions:

• Schedule formed in the System may be published in external systems (and some parameters reflecting commercial components of the flight schedule may be partially changed without changing the base schedule).
• Publication of messages in TTY SSIM4/5 format (TTY message format is described in Chapters 4 to 5 of the SSIM standard. SSM messages are formed for base periods, and ASM messages are formed for ad hoc periods).
• Automatic and manual (forced) schedule publication.

Flight Inventory Management

Amber Inventory supports the following flight inventory management processes:

• automatic formation of flight inventory upon flight schedule creation
• automatic modification of flight inventory when schedule is changed
• special spaces management
  • special space agreement
  • applying SSP parameters to a flight
  • re-accommodation of passengers in special space
  • SSP restoration
  • SSP passengers List
• ancillaries settings
• inventory management business rules
• operational flight inventory management
• availability calculation algorithms: TopDown, BottomUp, UpSell
• application of various nesting structures
• application of overbooking – booking over the aircraft capacity
• waitlist management
• publication of seat availability in the booking systems
• PFS data management

Operational Flight Inventory Management

The following manipulations refer to operational flight inventory management for one date:

• capacity parameters management,
• waitlist management,
• RBD sale status management,
• configuring seat maps,
• applying business rules,
• viewing reports,
• other functions:
  • updating inventory information,
  • interaction with DCS,
  • forming and sending meal service list (MSL),
  • adding a comment to flight inventory,
  • adding comments to PNRS,
  • viewing operation archive on inventory management,
  • inventory change notifications.

Other than operational management, there are the following ways to manage inventory of several flights simultaneously:

• applying business rules
• applying mass operations – for one date and flight or for a time period and several flights.

Managing Flight Inventory via Business Rules

The business rules for the inventory management group allow to manage the settings for the flight inventory parameters.

The following business rules are supported:

• status publication
• AV calculation
• segment Limit Rule
• overbooking
• nesting
• booking class quota
• SSR & RFISC quota
• waitlist rule
• comments during sale
• INV Internal comments
• flight close/open
• segment close/open
• cabin close/open
• class close/open

Managing Flight Inventory via Mass Operations

Amber.Inventory allows to perform the following mass operations:

• close / open Flight / Segment / Class
• delete Closed/Open States
• apply business rules
• synchronize SSP
• overbooking
• limit capacity segment
• combined seats
• seats adjustment
• seats borrowing
• waitlist
• booking class quoting
• class statuses
• create SSP
• SSP Move
• SSP Params
• SSP Quota
• delete SSP.

Service Functions of Flight Inventory Management

Amber Inventory allows to perform the following service functions:

• seats availability view,
• modeling flight inventory condition when modifying inventory parameters,
• notification and comments management.

Flight Inventory Reports

Amber Inventory allows to promptly receive the following types of flight reports:

• list of passengers,
• AV status,
• report on segment nesting structure,
• report on SSR/RFISC quotas,
• report on capacity on a leg,
• report on capacity on a segment,
• report on sales,
• report on transfer pax,
• money report.

Re-accommodation Management

Amber Inventory supports the following passenger re-accommodation processes:

• manual and automatic re-accommodation,
• automatic search of a matching flight,
• re-accommodation business-rules management:
  • search conditions
  • flight search range
  • allowed flights
  • prohibited flights
  • traffic restrictions
  • same route
  • non-stop flights only
  • class matching
  • SSP rebooking
  • cap oversell
  • manual control mode
  • minor time change

PNR Management

Amber Inventory supports the following PNR management processes:

• change of segment status,
• addition/removal of a passenger,
• change of passenger’s parameters,
• change of number of seats,
• booking of a new segment,
• segment deletion,
• split PNR,
• confirmation/refusal of a special service,
• management of contact information,
• management of remarks (OSI element),
• change of time limit,
• ticket revalidation,,
• PNR history view
• PNR system queue.

Business Rules

The business rules mechanism allows to set system behavior scenarios for different states and to manage flight inventory configurations depending on current business tasks.

Business rules of the following groups are available:

• schedule management rules
• inventory management rules
• re-accommodation management rules
• seats layout management rules
• intercation management rules for schedule download
• PNR

Managing Air Carrier’s Settings

Air carrier’s settings allow to set parameter value or action definition for the carrier as whole (without division on flights, markets, etc.) and without limitation of validity period.

Air carrier settings include:

• general settings,
• ancillaries settings,
• PNL/ADL settings,
• service list configuration,
• APIS configuration,
• PAL configuration,
• booking access configuration,
• minimum connection time (MCT) configuration.

Managing Commercial Agreements

Franchise and codeshare (Blockspase, Free sale, Cap Free Sale) agreements are supported.

The following processes of agreements management are supported:

• managing franchise agreements,
• codeshare flights inventory management,
• configuring integration between carriers' inventory systems,
• codeshare flight or agreement parameters modification,
• codeshare flights synchronization,
• codeshare agreement information publication,
• codeshare flights passenger re-accommodation,
• pnl/adl settings,
• confirmation of services by marketing carrier.

System Dictionaries

Amber Inventory allows to access and view system dictionaries:

• Airlines,
• Airports,
• Meal Services,
• Currencies,
• Geozones,
• Cities,
• Traffic Restrictions,
• Seat Characteristics,
• Inflight Services,
• Service Types,
• Countries,
• Aircraft Types,
• Doc Types.

Carrier Reference Data

Amber Inventory allows the Air Carrier to independently manage reference information, including:

• Physical Configurations
• Sale Configurations
• Flight Groups
• Markets Dictionary
• POS Groups
• Branded Fare Codes
• RFISC Codes
• SSR Codes

Functions of Carrier’s references:

• Management of regulatory and reference information at three levels: airline, destination, flight.
• Possibility to combine flights into groups and to manage flight groups.
• Possibility to take control actions using not only geographical objects, but also its own objects – markets.
• Independent management of aircraft physical configuration and sale configuration.
• Creation of own aircraft configurations.
• Management of aircraft cabins' layouts
• Sales with seat selection and using interactive seat map.

System Queue Management

System queues promptly inform the Carrier about conditions requiring manual management and allow to control event notifications.

Amber Inventory supports control of the following events:

• negative availability in the booking class
• negative availability in the codeshare partner block
• blocking of sales in special area
• exceeding special service quota
• booking above the allowed maximum
• waiting list overflow
• unprocessed message (telegram)
• booking control event:
  • individual or group PNR with “Requested” seat status
  • individual or group PNR with “On waiting list” seat status
  • request for a special service
  • critical change in passenger’s full name (more than 3 characters)
  • correspondence between the number or ordered seats and the number of seats in order segments
  • time-limit control
• formation of decision on manual passengers re-accommodation is required
• re-accommodation plan approval is required, etc.

The following functions are supported:

• configuration of Carrier’s own queues
• automatic queuing of control event into corresponding system queue
• manual event queuing

&transfer from system queue to management object (flight, order, telegram, transfer plan, etc.), with which the *orresponding control event is connected

• disabling control over an event (manual removal from queue)
• automatic queue cleaning of upon elimination of control event occurrence cause.

Reports

Amber Inventory supports the following reports:

• List of flights
• Closed flights
• Flight information
• Passengers
• Passengers for period
• Money report
• Search passenger
• Transfer pax list
• Flights avail leg
• Flights avail segment
• AV display
• Airport pax
• Arrival airport pax
• Flights booking
• SSP sales report.

Reports can be downloaded in .csv files.

Operations Log and Archive

Amber Inventory allows maintaining system operations archive and record values of the following parameters:

• operation type,
• operation object,
• operation time,
• user performed the operation.

Booking Access Rights Management

Amber Inventory allows control over access to Airline's inventory from agent network. The Airline may set access restrictions for its inventory at the following levels:

• Booking systems
• Agencies
• Points of Sale.

User Access Rights Management

Amber Inventory allows a specific user to access system functions in accordance with access rights provided to the user.

The user may have access to a specific system function either in the “Edit” mode or in the “View” mode, or not to have access to the function at all.

The user may have restrictions on the scope of access to information in the form of individual destinations or individual flights.

Integration Features

Interaction with GDS, CRS, DCS

Amber Inventory allows interaction using industry standard data exchange protocols, including:

• For distribution and inventory booking systems in inter-center interaction mode through the following access levels:
  • Standard (AIRIMP telegram messages):
    • transfer of schedule information (SSM/ASM);
    • transfer of availability information (AVS/AVA/AVR);
    • transfer of information about booking for codeshare partners;
    • seat booking;
    • booking of ancillary services;
    • transfer passengers’ contact information;
    • secondary operations with orders (change of passenger’s name, division,
    • decrease/increase of seats number, cancellation of segments);
    • change of route at airline’s initiative;
    • confirmation of seats and additional services at airline’s initiative.

• Interactive (EDIFACT message exchange):
  • interactive availability (PAOREQ/RES);
  • seat booking (ITAREQ/RES);
  • creation of PNR in airline’s host (HWPREQ/RES);
  • seat booking cancellation (CLTREQ/RES).
• For passenger registration systems:
  • Transfer passenger lists for registration (PNL/ADL).

Interaction with ETS

ETS interaction protocol ensures procedure of synchronization of information on electronic tickets issued under interline agreements, between PNR and airline’s electronic ticket database.

The protocol includes two message types:

• informing operating carrier’s ETS about electronic tickets issued by validating carrier for subsequent request of control over its coupons by operating carrier;
• verification of availability of electronic ticket specified in the PNR, in the airline’s electronic tickets database before sending passengers list to the registration systems.

Interaction With the Revenue Management System

Interaction between the Revenue Management System and the Inventory System is carried out in three modes:

• Regular (scheduled) download
• By trigger (occurrence of significant event in the inventory system)
• On-line update (at request of a Revenue Management System user).

Interaction with Amber allows to manage flight inventory from the inventory screen using RMS optimization features. Request for flight data optimization is sent to the revenue management system directly from the inventory system screen. Optimized data are provided in real time.

Interaction with the Notification System

Amber.Inventory controls occurrence of significant events connected with performance of flights (flight cancellation or delay, change of flight number, etc.). Integration with the Notification System allows the passengers of corresponding flights to receive information about occurrence of these events via SMS or e-mail.

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User manuals:

• Getting Started
• Schedule Management
• Inventory Management
• PNR Management
• Passenger Re-accommodation
• Carrier Settings
• Seatmaps and Sale with Seat Numbers
• Commercial Agreements Management
• System Queue Management
• Reports
• Dictionaries
• User Rights and Roles
• Viewing Operation Archive
• Messages Searching and Viewing
• Charter Flight Creation