Escape from Ticketing: Insights into the Travel Industry

By Hillel Jonathan Gadkar

This book is not just about my journey in the travel industry, but the journey of the Travel Industry itself. And some insights and solutions for the betterment of it. This book offers a lot to the Travel Industry and a description of a lot of practices of the last century and what is prevelant in this century. I have tried my best to give examples. I have also given a lot of solutions to the existing problems.

The main intention is to awake the staff which has been relentlessly working day and night to ensure that his industry standards are not compromised. But at the end of the day, their results do not bear the desired fruits.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pencil
• Release date: Aug 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9789354584848

Book preview

2. Introduction

One day you will tell your story of how you overcame what you went through, and it will be someone else’s survival guide.

Let us start by looking at some questions? Because if there are no questions, we will not find or get the answers.

Whydosomanyprudentpeopleinvestinbooksandcoursesonmoneyandyetveryfewpeopleactuallyaccomplishitandreachthegoal?

Whyisitthatthepeoplewhomakethemostprofitsoutoftheincomeandprofit-makingcoursesarethepeopletosellthecourses?

Whyisitthatindividualswhoactuallyseemtoachievesuccessortriumphoversomething,payahighpriceforit–intermsoftheirrelationships,theirfamilies,andtheirhealth?

I wanted to elaborate on Question 2. How many have you realized that any course (Private course or Diploma) is more profitable for the institute than the students? It is a known fact that you open a Tailoring shop you will not earn as much if you open a Tailoring School. You open a Hotel (yes it has a lot of profits, still), you will earn more if you open a Catering College. You open a Travel Agency – you will not earn as much if you open an IATA Training Institute.

Probably the answer to this lies in the fact that most of the people deep down do not want and do not intend to be successful. Instead, they want to be fulfilled, satisfied, and that feeling of having deserved it.  There is a difference between satisfaction and achievement.  I am sure you must have got confused with this start if we must give importance to which aspect. I do not want to give anyone a feeling that am I giving importance to being successful or being satisfied. Well for me both are important. Which aspect you want to give importance to is totally your prerogative.

I had also read that Money (Abundance of it also) is a poor substitute for fulfilment. Wealth is great, but so is satisfaction. Both have their own place of importance. It is for each individual to decide which of these you need to give importance.

This book is meant for the Travel Industry – My Travel Fraternity which I am proud of. I have been a part of it for 3 decades plus now. I had dreamt of writing this for a long time. This edition of Escape From Ticketing , needs to be reached to the Industry and more so to the downline staff who strive so hard to accomplish their goals. I do hope the amount you spend on this book will be worth the time you spend reading it and will give worth to this outcome.

What incited me actually to take writing this book? Many instances give you an impetus to do something different in life. That impulse did exist for a long time, but every impulse needs to be triggered. The trigger can come in various forms. It can stimulate your emotional reaction to make you or break you. The circumstances around you also help, especially when there is an opponent who is hell-bent on wanting you not to succeed. Without an opponent, you cannot achieve anything in life.

Well, one fine day someone calls me on the intercom and says, Your future is in my hands. That someone actually had lesser experience than me but the power. When people have the power, they can use it in the best possible way. As said by the great Abraham Lincoln. Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power. Some people cannot make the right use of power.

To be said, Your future is in my hands, was something that triggered a lot of changes that were supposed to come in the future. Firstly, how I was going to react to it, and secondly how will I take it forward from there, when someone puts forth such a challenging assertion to you. Well as a normal human being I did react to it. Who will not? As far as I was concerned there was only one person who could decide my future and that was me. So, the reaction for such a claim would definitely come out. But more importantly, it was imperative what I did after that and how to not get affected and how much to use it for change to happen shortly was for consideration.

This reminded me of what happened in July 2006 during the finals of Football World Cup 2006. There was a large number of people watching the game at the stadium and an even larger number of people watching it live on their Television sets. It was surely a great game of football, but it served as an allegory for many symbolic ideas which can be interpreted in your own life incidences. 

You would know that Zinedine Zidane was evicted during the closing moments of the game. Zidane was shown the Red card of expulsion for suddenly head-butting Marco Materazzi, who was an Italian defensive player. It was surely not coming from one of the greatest footballers. Not just one of the greatest but also experienced one. Was Zidane not aware of the outcome of this foul? It would not only cost him his career but also the game (FINAL). And it did. France lost to Italy in that final.

Come to think of it. This was surely planned by Italy. They planned it in such a manner and the outcome of it was just the same that the Italian team expected. That it was easy to beat France without Zidane was a foregone conclusion. The only way was to get him off the field. Something must have triggered the anger that a veteran like Zidane did what he was not supposed to do.  

No one would really know what was said that such a foul happened. And that does not matter. What the world saw was what Zidane did. But the fact of the matter is that the instantaneous reaction of Zidane did not work in his own favour. This not only took him out of the game but also out of the game of his own life, his own objective of life. These are the kinds of opponents we meet in our lives, like the one I met who said, Your future is in my hands. They use the most compelling buttons that trigger you and in turn, trigger a reaction. It is thus your reaction to it that matters most. Will your reaction jeopardize your future or enhance your future? Whether you resist the temptation to react with a BUTT or to use your words properly to get your revenge later at a more suitable time is what defines you as a person. I wish to share with you some experiences of this industry and possibly allow myself to find peace with my own self and in turn, if you all find peace with yourself and the industry, I would feel I have served a cause.

3. Planning

It was well thought conscious decision to write the memoirs after having been in the Travel Industry for more than 3 decades. This book should be able to give each one of my Travel Fraternity and Brethren a possible insight into the Industry which was once considered the most lucrative and slowly it became a place where the values and aims started changing. More with the advent of the newer generations and when processes became more than the actual business in hand.  I will try my best to bring forth the best and the worst of the industry, in the most transparent manner and to throw light on the various changing aspect.

The Travel Industry in this century is very much the opposite that it was in the previous century. It has been adversely affected by a lot of factors. With adverse effects comes change and change is good. Change comes with a lot of positives and some negatives too.

Travelplanninghaschanged.Thefocusonfollowingaguidechangedtofollowingablog.Wegotmorehands-oninsightstomakeourplanning.

Bookingoftripschangedfromofflinetoonline.Permitmetosaythatnowthisisthenorm.Letusallacceptit.Twitter,TripAdvisor,andothersocialplatformsarenotonlygivingpeopleinformationbutalsoawaytocomplainiftheyareunhappy.Whethertheyarejustifiedisadifferentissue.IfyouareaTravelAgent(Owneroremployee)youhavetobesurethatyouareright.

LCC–Low-CostAirlineshavetakenoffmorevigorouslyinthiscentury.TheaircraftflownbytheLCChasgoneupsince2009.TheyhavealsoreachedInternationaldestinations.Thewastheneededcompetition,whichhelpedtopushdowntheprices.Theaveragecostofaflighthasbeenreducedtoamoremanageablelevel.Peoplecouldnotswapplaneswithatrain.

Thelodgingandboardingconcepthaschangedforgood.TheAirBreadandBreakfastconceptwasintroduced.AirBnBwasaboonformany.Whereelsecouldyouget7millionoptionsincludingtreehouses,penthouses,andevenhuts?Awidechoicewasonoffer.AirBnBhasanegativesimpactalso,buttheyhavemorepositivestolookupto.

KeepingintouchwithFamily,Friendsorofficewasmoreconvenientinthiscentury.YouneednothavetolookaroundforInternetcafé,oranyslowdial-upinternetaccess.Youcouldcheckintheairport,hotel,orabarandatthesametimecheck-intheSocialnetworkingsites. Inthiscenturyyoucantakephotographs,seetheoutput,anduploadthematthesametime.Youneednotwaittoreturnanddevelop/printyourrolls.

TravelTechnologyhaschanged.YoudonothaveKINDLEandI-PODSonly.Younowhavenoise-cancellingheadphonesandBluetoothspeakers,portableharddrives,aUSBcharger,andaGPStracker.Whatmoredoyouwant?

Sustainability,TravelTrends,etc.AllthischangedthewaywelookatourTravelandTourismIndustry.Therewillbemanyaspectstolookathere,buttheintentionistohighlighttheimportantoneswhichaffectedtheTravelIndustryanditsgrowth–positivelyandnegatively.

The final factor and right now the more defining moment that has hit the Travel and Tourism Industry is the pandemic, Coronavirus, Covid-19, whatever you like to call it. Ours is not the only industry affected, but ours is the most impacted industry which has taken a steep fall. The technological revolution that made travel all the more viable, easy, and affordable in this century is helpless. Helpless not because it cannot halt the spread, but it has no answer as to how to sustain this industry. No other industry would have closed the doors on its staff as much as what our Industry has done. If you think about deciding what is the loss that people have suffered and taking a glimpse of it, will be difficult to visualize. The statistics change as quickly as the virus proliferates. It is predicted that the loss is huge – around 75 million jobs and US$ 2.1 trillion in revenue and increasing worldwide.

This impact is temporary and should be taken as a wake-up call by the industry folks. There is no hiding fact that the Travel Industry will bounce back, and I hope they will consider all the factors that impacted the industry even before that pandemic had spread. Maybe this is wake-up call was needed to give an afterthought for the unsatisfactory situations that needed corrective measures and remedies.

4. Preparation before Take off

PREPARATION OF THE FLIGHT BEFORE TAKE-OFF

There are times when your career is decided much before you even pass your 10th and 12th Standard, but here I was a mediocre student having done his Science, who was not sure where his career was going. After finishing my B.Sc. in Chemistry, and after giving a few interviews, I gave up. This was not what I wanted to be.

A journey of 1000 miles begins with a Single-step. – Lao Tzu

Some people come into your life when you are a kid, some during your school and college days, some people come into your life when you are into your Sport, Club, Social activities, etc. One such person, who came into my life a month and a week after I was born, was the person responsible for me getting into the Travel Industry. Mr Samson Divekar. A friend and a cousin, who was one of my first partners in crime. He lured me to do a correspondence course, (much against my will). And we enrolled in IITC for this correspondence course of 3 months. And my journey started. I passed with more than 95% marks, and that was too much for a person who had never seen 70% ever. Immediately I was searching for Travel and Tourism institutes, and I came upon Sound Travels, (which later became Travelmart). Sound Travels was also running the Sound Travel and Tourism Institute at Tulsiani Chambers, Nariman Point. 

Here I met my Mentor, my Guru Mr Leslie D’Souza. This man knew his subject and was a fantastic teacher. He made us all prepared for the basic exam. During the course, we enjoyed it a lot and Mr Leslie had his way of teaching a boring subject in an interesting humorous manner. Having now got the Travel and Tourism basic Diploma, getting a job was not tough. As luck could have it, one of the students with was having his IATA Agency. He gave me a break from working with his company and learning the nuances of Travel and Ticketing. All this happened in the latter half of the 1990’s decade.

After having done this course Mr Leslie D’Souza convinced me to go for IATA-UFTAA. Before that, I took a lot of experience in various agencies.

Which brings me to the question which all must be wondering, Why am I writing my memoirs, my experience? Why do I want to convert all this into a set of pages? The answer to this would be lengthy if I start penning it here. I am sure the answer would be in all the coming pages and chapters, as to why I decided on this.  And coming to the next question, What is this book about?

Thisbookisnotjustaboutmeandmyjourneyinthetravelindustry.

ThisbookisaboutthejourneyoftheTravelIndustryinitself.

ThisbookisaboutthetransformationofthisIndustry.

Thisbookisaboutthechange-overfromhandwrittenpaperticketstoprinterticketsandfromthattoE-Tickets.

ThisbookisaboutTravelAgenciesandtheirevolutionintoonlineTravelAgents(OTAs)

Thisbookisabouthowconsolidationchangedthefaceofwork.

Thisbookisaboutthedigitalizationofwork.

Thisbookisaboutpolicieshavingmoreprecedentoverworkethics.

Thisbookisaboutthediminishingvalueofstafftosatisfytheegoofvariouscommodities.

ThisbookisaboutthedifferencebetweenaBossandaLeader.

Let us check out here the impact, trends and that has changed the shape of the Travel and Tourism industry in this century.

The identification, maintenance, and management of this threshold of balance will be the single most important requirement for the tourism industry of the 21st century Those companies, institutions and destinations that perform the balancing act well will attain that elusive goal of sustainable development. Those that do not, or will not, will be trapped forever in vicious boom and bust cycles. We saw how the major players of the 20th Century had to bite the dust in the 21st Century.

Economicimpactandleakagefromtourism: Thisprobablyisthemostsignificanthotpotatoissueintheearly21stcentury.Asiancountriesseekingtomaximisetheeconomicimpactbyfirstkeepingmoreearningsathomeandafterthat,withintheregion.Thisresultedintheincreasedadvancesofglobalmultinationalgroupswhicharesendingmoreandmoremoneyoutintheformoffranchise,distribution,managementfeesandvariousotherformsofearnings.Asexpected,universities,localresearchthink-tanksandregionalgroupingsliketheUnitedNationsEconomicandSocialCommissionforAsiaandthePacificarefocusingintensivelyonthissubject.ThisimpactisseenwiththekindofTravelAgenciesthathaveemergedinthiscentury.

ExtensionofU.S.influencethroughoutthetravelandtourismindustry: ThemostobservablesignsofU.S.existencearemovies,fast-foodchains,hotels,airlines,themeparks,creditcardcompanies,media,andInternetdistributiontechnology.TheseprominentsignsofU.S.presencehavegrowntremendouslyinthiscenturythroughoutPacificAsiathroughequitydeals,management,andfranchisecontracts.Astourismisahigh-profileindustry,theresponsefromlocalcommunitieswasunpredictable,especiallyinplaceswheresuchimagesarenotpopular.

Impactofglobalisation: Thisislinkedtopoint2butimpactedtheissueslikeenvironmentalandconsumerprotectionregulations,changesincurrency(suchastheimplementationoftheeuro)andaviationpolicies.Whileliberalisationofbureaucratictradepractisescontinued,PATAregionNTOsareunderpressuretoshowthattheyarenotbeingdictatedtobyoutsidepowersnorgivingmorethantheyaregetting.

Greaterliberalisationofvisas:SeveralmajorregionalconventionsliketheAsia-PacificEconomicCooperationandASEANhavethree-foldissuesontheiragendasgiventherecognitionthattheyaremajorobstaclestotheflowofpeopleandgoods.Stepbystep,thesebarriershavefallenascountriescametotermswiththenewrealities.Somewereencouraged,andsomewerepushed,tomakethechanges.

Taxation: Countries,statesandevencitiesthatgavetaxbreakstothetourismindustrywereadvertisingitasapromotionaltool.Inmanycountries,therewasatendencytodotheopposite,i.e.,totaxtravelandtourismbecausevisitorsdonotvote.Thatwasadelusion;visitorsvotewiththeirfeet.Theygoelsewhere.Monitoringmechanismswerekeepingawatchonthesetaxincreasesintheformofaperformancescorecard.Asiandestinationshitbycurrencydevaluationsdidnotfarewell,mainlybecausetheyhadtoadjustvariousairporttaxesinlinewiththeextentofthedevaluation.

Socialissues: Thehardestworkfortheindustryliesinconvincingitsconstituentsthatitisnotanindustrybytherichfortherich.InmanypartsofAsia,luxuryhotelsarestillanincongruous(odd)embarrassmentinthemidstofsurroundingpovertyEitherostentation(flashiness)willhavetobereplacedbymodestyortheindustrywillhavetoworkharderatexplainingwhyitispayinghousekeepersasmuchasitchargesguestsfor20cupsofcoffee.Non-governmentalorganisationsstillblametravelandtourismforabettingtheproblemofchildprostitution,eventhoughtheindustryisworkingveryhardtocombatit.

Employment: Astheindustrygainedgreaterrespectabilityandrecognition,itattractedmorethanitsfairshareofqualifiedyoungpeopleseekingtoseetheworldandenjoythesightsandsoundstheyareexposedtoovertheInternet.MobilityincreasedasInternetwebsitesallowpeopletofindworkindifferentpartsoftheworld.Therewasagreatdemandforpeoplewithlanguageskillsandtheabilitytoworkindifferentcultures.

Safetyconcerns,crime,andpoliticalproblems,includingterrorism,dictatedtheagendas.In1998,manyPATAdestinationssufferedfromsuchchallenges,leadingtoamarkedincreaseinvisitorarrivalsinplacesfreeofthem.Somecountries,includingafewwithinthePATAregion,exploitedthemiseriesoftheircompetitorstostresstheirpoliticalandeconomicsafetyinanattempttoregainmarketshare.Thestruggletocomeupwitheffectivecrisismanagementscenariosforthetourismindustrycontinued.

Influenceoforganisedcrime:Thecash-richstatusoftheindustrywasaconvenientchannelforglobalmoney-launderingrackets,especiallythroughcasinos,realestatedealsandpurchasesofluxuryitems.Thisattractedtheinterestoflawenforcementofficersandwasasubjectofmanyamediascandalasprominentinvestorswereandareidentifiedaspotentialsuspects.

Technology: Itisacceptedthattravelagentshavebecomearegularpartofthedistributionequationandtheirearningswerebasedontheirproductivity.Newmulti-channelstrategieswereannouncedbyairlines,andHotelsfollowingsoon,involveddistributingtheirproductsthroughtheInternet,directsales,frequentflyerdatabases,corporatesuppliers,andagents.

Environmentalissues: Thetravelindustryhadgotthemessagethatastrongenvironmentalethicwasattheheartofitssurvival.Hotelchains,airlinesandtouroperatorsrespondedenergeticallytocallsfortheindustrytoprotectthelong-termviabilityofitslifeline.Travelandtourism'smainproblemremainstheenvironmentalimpactofotherpollutingindustriesintheneighbourhood.

Airlinesandaviation: Theglobalpoweroftheairlinealliancesbegantomanifestitself,parlaying(doublingup)intocode-sharing,jointpurchasing,databasemarketingandmoreallianceswiththesmallerairlinesofAsia.Airlinesareinaheaviercost-cuttingmoodthaneverbefore.Privatisationofbothairportsandairlinescontinuedtoimpacttheindustry.

Across-the-boardalliances betweenthepublicandprivatesectors.Asaccesstodatabasesbecamecritical,anddirectmarketingbecametherage,theseallianceshavedriventheindustry. Oneinterestingtrendisthegrowinglinkbetweentourismanditsassociated/supportiveindustriessuchasagriculture,textiles,gems,andjewellery,retailingandevenarts/culture.Aproductsoldtoatouristisasgoodasaproductexported.

Hotels: Asianhotelswere/areinformajortake-oversandexpansioneffortsbythebrand-nameU.S.-ownedchains,especiallyfranchiseoperatorswhoseoffersweredifficulttoresistorrefuse.Asbrandinggainsstrength,theunbrandedfoundthemselvesisolated.Brandedhotelsreceivethebackingofmarketingandnetworkingpower.IntheU.S.,somebrandedhotelsarealsoreceivinglow-interestorno-interestloanstohelpthemwithrenovations.

Cruiseandmarinetourism–Havetakenoffinabigwaythroughouttherivers,seas,andoceansofAsia.ButmajorupgradingofstandardsandimprovedfacilitationwasnecessaryifAsiaistocompeteagainstEuropeandtheCaribbeanandHawaii.

Tradeshows: Theclutterofinternationaltradeshowsbrokeupintosmallerniche-marketshowsfocusingonbothcountriesandproductcategories.Thisopenedupopportunitiesforbuyerstospecialiseinvarioussegments,butthisalsorunstheriskofputtingtheireggsinonebasket.

TheemergenceoftheMiddleEast: Likelytostartrunningoutofoilinthiscentury,andwithnootherresourcestosell,manyMiddleEastcountriesgraduallyturnedtotourism,capitalismontheirhistoriccultures.DubaiisasusualattheforefrontandplaysaprominentroleinguidingthetourismdestiniesofotherGulfcountries.

Growthinreligioustourism: ThepublicityandpromotionoftheBethlehem2000project commemoratethebirthofChrististhemajorcatalystforarevivalinreligioustourismglobally.Holidaypatterns,too,areheadinginthatdirection.Spiritualrejuvenationisquitelikelytobenext.

Holidaytrends: AstudybytheWorldTourismOrganizationontheimpactofglobaleconomicchangesonemploymentandholiday-takingpatternsconcludedthattherewasatrendtowardsmoreandshorterholidaysagainstfewerandlongerholidays,mainlyduetotimeconstraintsandjobinsecurities.Thoughlabourlawsandworkingconditionsinmanycountriesaremovingtowardsgivingmorefreetime,corporatedownsizingisleadingmanyexecutivestoworkovertimeanyway,mostlyathome.

Theemergenceofsecondarycities,bothassourceanddestinations.Inthelastcentury,mostoftheworld'stouristshaveoriginatedinthemajorcitiesandheadedforthemajorcities,usuallyasaninitialstoppingoffpointen-routetosomewhereelse.However,worldwide,therearehundredsofstateandprovincialcapitalswithsizeablepopulations,allgotapieceoftheaction.Asthesecitiesemergedfromthebackwaters,increasingairlineandtransportationlinkshelpedthembecomeinbound/outboundmarketsintheirownright.

5. Thought-process

Thought-process & Manual to E-Tickets

The thought and the journey to write this started to develop into my mind in mid-2019 when my mind was totally sure of leaving the travel industry and looking to work outside this industry. BUT continue to work and fight for the Travel Fraternity. It is said that you cannot blame the position and the chair when you are in the chair. It is always better to leave your chair and then you can do justice to your work. In other words, You can move me out of a Travel agency, but you cannot move the Travel Agent out of me.

Foresight and Hindsight work wonderfully when things want to go your way. Come Mid Oct 2019, and the urge to move out of the Travel Industry was getting more intense. The heart and the mind were having a tussle with each other and on 26 Nov 2019, I put my papers. A different chapter will definitely cover this time between 26 Nov – 26 Dec 2019. This was the most eventful one month of my career in the Travel Industry.  What better day!! Then the Day after Christmas!! The way things panned out after the end of Feb 2020. This was the time when the entire world was getting into a phase of Yes and No. Is it there? Is it not there? The pandemic of Coronavirus was spreading slowly and steadily havoc all throughout the world. This phase of Covid-19 and the waves that followed brought a lot of change not only in the Travel Industry but the entire world as such.

The journey has never been smooth for this industry and many changes and adverse factors have always been reflecting in a challenging manner. The challenges came more from within, rather than outside.  And within Challenges are so difficult to meet. These challenges mentally prepare one to deal with adversaries.  Many times, these adversaries are not in front of you, but inside you. Your own thoughts, your instincts, and your desires can become your enemies. And dealing with this foe is difficult than dealing with the adversary in front of you.

Let us have an insight into the Saga of change. Of course, this is entirely from the angle with which I am looking at it and well we all know the Theory of Relativity, as perspectives can differ.

The first change that happened and a sort of a revolutionary change was the introduction of E-Ticketing (Electronic Ticketing) that which replaced the Paper Tickets. From the 70s to the 90s and early of this century we had Paper tickets which had Jackets and coupons. And interestingly each airline had its own stock. So much so that we had the Lockers with tons of jackets piled by all the airlines. Then the process eased, and we had IATA tickets where we had to validate it through a machine with the various airlines. Thus, now we did not have different ticket stocks, but one common IATA stock. In this concept, the ticket numbers were in a serial order only the first 3 digits changed to the Airline 3-digit codes.

For E.g., you would have 098-4545 361 461 as the First ticket. The next ticket would be 125-4545 361 462. And the next 220-4545 361 463. If you observe this order:

098-4545 361 461

125-4545 361 462

220-4545 361 463

The above numbers are changing in order of 461,462, 463, and so on but the first 3 numbers are changing, and the following 10 digits are the ticket numbers. In the order of 4-3-3. We were taught to give the 10-digit ticket number in the order of 4-3-3 only. The first ticket is on AIR INDIA (098), the next one is on BRITISH AIRWAYS (125) and the next one is LUFTHANSA (220). This process became simpler. Of course, still handwritten ticketing was happening, and we all were very comfortable with it.

Also, there was something as a check-digit with each ticket number. The check digit scheme used for the Document Numbers and Stock Control Numbers of plane tickets is easy to understand.

The stock control number on this ticket is 5530516478 and its check digit is 4. The way the check digit is computed is to divide the whole control number by 7, and the check digit is the remainder.

Similarly, for the Document Number, you take the whole