Costa Cruises is aiming to gain increased visibility on the status of its air programs by using SITA’s flight monitoring application.

According to a press release, SITA, an IT provider to the travel industry, was selected by Costa to assist them in mitigating trip disruptions.

By using a cloud-based application to provide accurate real-time flight updates, Costa’s Operations Control Center (OCC) should now have the ability to link each flight to the associated vessel and the relevant booking codes, Costa said.

The flight updates provided by the SITA’s flight monitoring solution should further enable the OCC to handle the embarkation and disembarkation processes for Fly & Cruise guests more efficiently, as well as improve planning for crew movements and allocations, the company said.

In the event of a canceled or delayed flight, the continuously refreshed set of data should also allow for prompt arranging of guest transfers to the next port of call, minimizing associated costs, avoiding inefficiencies, and improving guest experience, according to the press release. Costa also hopes to optimize airport transfers.

The application makes use of SITA Flight Global APIs and offers direct integration with the airlines to benefit from real-time updates for both scheduled and charter flights, the company said.

“At Costa, it was imperative to find a supplier that could offer accurate and timely flight updates through a cloud-based solution featuring a user-friendly interface and direct integration with the charter airlines. Significant operational challenges are shared between cruise companies and airlines, and, with its strong footprint in the air transport industry, SITA clearly understands how they could help us enhance the management of our Fly & Cruise operations,” said Massimo Callegari, director of guest and corporate travel service at Costa.

“The world of travel is becoming increasingly intermodal. Essential for the success of this model is guaranteeing smooth connections among the different modes of transport. This presents a significant challenge that we comprehend thoroughly, as we have traditionally acted as the unseen orchestrator for the air transport industry, ensuring collaboration among multiple stakeholders to ensure efficient operations,” said Sergio Colella, president for Europe at SITA.