Siren-3 booking system gets its first user, Ural Airlines

Published: 9/28/1999

Ural Airlines has become the first Russian airline to go online with the new airline booking system, Siren-3, according to Lev Ilyuchuk, General director of MTK Sirena, , the company responsible for the system controlled by the FSVT. Sirena expects that Ural will soon be joined by Samara Airlines and five other carriers before the end of 1999. From 2000, it is anticipated that 12-15 airlines will connect to the system, which has been funded by foreign loans, totalling $115m since the project began in 1996. The main lender, Eximbank, has lent $90m, under a Russian government guarantee. The Siren-3 project was developed in the late 1980s, when it became clear that the existing Siren-2 system could not support the 125m passengers in the Soviet air transport system. Sirena claims that declining passenger numbers in the early 1990s reduced the urgency for a replacement system, so allowing it more time to create a fuller service range, including car rentals and hotel reservations. However, other sources suggest that the project has been undermined by lack of funding and software problems, leading to delays. It must also now compete with alternative system Polyot Siren.

Article ID: 909