SITA announced details of a partnership with Athens International Airport (AIA) as SITA continues to develop the $2 billion mass airport market by creating a global network of resellers.AIA becomes SITA’s third partner since it first announced plans in February to establish a global network of Indirect Channel partners to provide the company’s IT solutions to medium and small-sized airports which handle five million passengers or less per year.

Fotis Karonis, AIA’s Information Technology and Telecommunications Director, said: “This alliance will bring great innovation into the Greek airport market. For the first time, small to medium size airports will be able to tap into the latest IT technology for passenger and baggage management at a price they can afford. We are very pleased to be partnering with SITA in this initiative to simplify and improve the Greek travel experience.”

The role of AIA’s Information Technology & Telecommunications Business Unit is that of an integrator and operator of reliable, state-of-the-art, cost effective and innovative services to its customers in the air transport community (airports, airlines, ground handlers, passengers, concessionaires, governmental authorities etc) in Greece and abroad.

Announcing details of the agreement at the 16th Airports Council International (ACI) European Annual Assembly*, Umar Khan, SITA’s Vice-President, Indirect Channels, said, “The agreement will make shared-use passenger and baggage processing solutions such as baggage management, common use terminal equipment and kiosks, widely available in Greece.  SITA products and services will be offered on an Applications Service Provider-basis which will reduce the total cost of ownership to the airports.”

SITA estimates there is a worldwide market of over 1,000 airports in this category with an estimated value of $2 billion over the next five years. Five years is the typical length of an airport IT contract.

The product set which SITA will make available under the Indirect Channel label includes market leading IT applications such as AirportConnect CUTE, AirportConnect Kiosk, BagManager and BagMessage.
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