18 September 2009

American Airlines Now Plans to Introduce a Single Database for all Systems

American Airlines, in a truly revolutionary move has announced the plans to scrap its 50-years-old computer system for a next-generation version that will be built and developed by Hewlett-Packard Co. Sabre, the old computer platform that was being used by American Airlines until date was created by New York-based IBM Corp. and the Texas-based American in the 1950s.

The new version however, will be centered on passenger data. By using this system, American Airlines plans to form a single database for all its operations. Instead of ticket transactions, the database will depend on the passenger information. This will help to minimize the system crashes. In addition, through the system, the air carrier will be able to use travel patterns to tailor its marketing strategy for individual customers, or even quickly and efficiently fix service problems identified by passengers.

Though the plans sound exceptionally grand, changing information technology at the airlines have always been fraught with trouble, due to the size and complexity of the whole operation. To make matters even more complex, American Airlines has decided to come up with a completely new system from HP, instead of installing technology that already exists from the dozen or so vendors that cater to the airline industry.

However, American officials are extremely positive about this new move and are convinced that it will revolutionize the manner in which airlines run, by making use of state-of-the-art hardware and software. Many of the positive benefits will not be apparent to the customers - like faster processing speeds and greater reliability and flexibility. But, the system will allow workers in American Airlines to cope with massive delays at airports by using social networking sites to share information with passengers, as well as with themselves.

Though Monte Ford, American's Chief Information Officer did not reveal how much American is spending on this high-tech system, Analysts think that costs could easily run into hundreds of millions of dollars. Finally, they have announced that to control the shock to the system, American plans to phase out the old system over a period of four years. They will install one "module" at a time, thus tackling the overhaul piecemeal.