For airlines, understanding the market, knowing what your competitors are doing and tracking traffic flow can be as important as having working landing gear. But for years, valuable booking data available to airlines through global distribution systems came at a hefty price, essentially locking out small, regional carriers. The time and effort required to analyze the data made the undertaking unjustifiable for the smaller carriers, says Chris Collaco, senior vice president of Bradenton-based Shepherd Systems.
