United Airlines and Travelport Introduce Innovative Tools for Travel Agencies in 2026

Published on December 4, 2025

United Airlines has teamed up with Travelport, a leader in travel commerce, to introduce a series of innovative technological features designed to enhance the booking experience for travel agencies and corporate buyers. This collaboration marks a new era in airline distribution, combining United’s customer-centric services with Travelport’s cutting-edge retailing platform, offering travel professionals faster, more flexible ways to book flights and access a broader range of travel services.

This long-term strategic partnership, announced in December 2025, focuses on streamlining airline bookings, leveraging the potential of the New Distribution Capability (NDC) framework. NDC enables airlines to offer more tailored content and services to travel agencies, enhancing the customer journey from booking to boarding.

Innovative Features Set to Transform Travel Bookings

Through the United and Travelport partnership, a variety of new tools and capabilities will be available for travel agencies and corporate clients starting in 2026. One key feature is the ability to pool unused United travel credits, allowing corporate buyers and frequent travellers to redeem any remaining credits seamlessly across future bookings. Additionally, United’s MileagePlus loyalty program will be integrated into the Travelport and Deem platforms, enabling users to enrol directly while making their bookings.

Incorporating United’s Jetstream amenity fund into the booking system provides another innovation. Corporate travellers will now be able to use this fund as a method of payment for ancillary services, such as seat upgrades and extra baggage, further streamlining the booking process. These changes aim to simplify the journey for business travellers by providing more options for customisation and convenience.

Moreover, the integration of NDC-enabled content into the Travelport+ platform means that travel agencies will have direct access to rich content and new fare bundles, making it easier to tailor travel packages that meet the unique needs of their clients. This collaboration eliminates many of the barriers previously faced by agencies using traditional distribution methods, offering a more fluid and dynamic experience.

Seamless Experience for Travel Agencies and Corporate Buyers

For travel agencies, this partnership provides access to real-time updates and more dynamic content through Travelport’s all-in-one retailing platform, Travelport+. Agencies can expect more customisation and flexibility, making it easier to find the right flights and ancillary services for their customers. The streamlined, user-friendly interface on Travelport+ will allow agencies to offer a wide range of flight options while ensuring a smoother, more personalised booking process.

Corporate buyers will also benefit from the enhanced features, as they will now be able to take advantage of integrated loyalty benefits, track travel credits, and enjoy greater flexibility in managing their travel policies. The ease of using a single platform to manage bookings, credits, and loyalty programmes helps companies save time and increase efficiency in managing corporate travel.

As the partnership develops, agencies will have access to a dedicated support team, ensuring a smooth transition to these new tools. Travelport will work closely with agencies to implement these solutions and guide them through the process, addressing any technical or operational challenges.

United’s Commitment to Innovation in Travel Distribution

This collaboration is part of United Airlines’ ongoing efforts to modernise its travel distribution systems and better serve the needs of its partners. With this partnership, United aims to set new standards for transparency, flexibility, and value in air travel distribution. By utilising the latest technology, United continues to provide its partners with innovative retail travel solutions that respond to the evolving demands of today’s travel market.

The airline’s commitment to the partnership with Travelport reflects its broader strategy to leverage technology and innovation to improve customer experiences across all touchpoints. United aims to provide more personalised options for its passengers, offering them greater choice and control over their bookings.

What This Means for the Future of Travel Booking

The collaboration between United Airlines and Travelport signals a significant shift in how airlines and travel agencies collaborate. By adopting the NDC standard, this partnership will enable travel agencies to offer more dynamic content and tailored packages, ultimately improving the traveller experience.

This partnership also positions United as a leader in innovative airline retailing, ensuring that travel agencies and corporate buyers have access to the latest tools and capabilities. As the travel industry continues to evolve, these technological advancements will be crucial in shaping the future of travel distribution.

For corporate buyers and travel agencies, this is a major step forward, offering more flexibility, efficiency, and transparency. For travellers, it will mean more streamlined bookings, access to more personalised services, and the convenience of managing travel credits and loyalty benefits seamlessly.

A New Era for Travel Agencies and Corporate Buyers

The partnership between United Airlines and Travelport is set to redefine the way travel agencies and corporate buyers interact with airline content and services. With new tech features like pooled travel credits, direct loyalty programme enrolment, and improved payment methods for ancillary services, the collaboration will provide a more dynamic, efficient, and customised travel experience.

As the partnership moves into 2026 and beyond, it will drive innovation in travel booking and distribution, making it easier for agencies and corporate clients to manage bookings and enhance customer satisfaction. This strategic collaboration is set to deliver long-term benefits, ensuring United Airlines remains at the forefront of travel technology innovation.