Travel tech · Air and distribution
GDS, NDC and airline technology recruitment
Travel Tech Talent recruits for global distribution systems (GDS), NDC aggregators and airline technology vendors. We hire distribution sellers, airline account managers, solutions consultants, product managers and engineers who understand how air content is shopped, priced, booked and serviced.
500K+
Travel and hospitality tech professionals in our network
250+
Companies partnered with
5,000+
Vacancies filled
19–33 days
Average from briefing to offer, by engagement tier
Why air distribution is hiring
Airline distribution has been changing for years. NDC, the IATA standard that lets airlines sell richer offers through modern APIs, has moved more content outside the traditional GDS model, and the industry is working towards offer and order management. That shift creates demand for people who understand both the legacy world and the new one.
Typical hires include:
- Distribution sales and airline account management for GDS, aggregators and retailing platforms.
- Solutions consultants and pre-sales who can explain NDC, offers and orders to airline and agency buyers.
- Product managers for shopping, booking, servicing and retailing.
- Engineers working on APIs, fares, availability and servicing at scale.
- Airline technology roles in revenue optimisation, departure control, crew, loyalty and ancillary sales.
Where the talent comes from
Most experienced air distribution people have worked at a GDS, an airline's distribution or digital team, a travel management company or an online travel agency. Engineers who know fares, PNRs and servicing are especially scarce, so we often look at adjacent payments and high-volume transaction backgrounds and test their ability to learn the domain.
Why it is hard to hire for
The knowledge is specialist and the number of companies is small, so most strong candidates are passive and well known. Senior roles often need contacts at airlines or agencies as well as technical understanding. We approach confidentially and qualify for both.
How we run the search
Every search runs on our eight-stage process with one named recruiter from brief to start date. Across our engagements the average from briefing call to accepted offer is 33 days on a contingent search, 26 on an exclusive Partner search and 19 with a Dedicated team (how the tiers compare).
FAQs
Questions employers ask
What is NDC in air distribution?
NDC (New Distribution Capability) is a data standard developed by IATA that lets airlines distribute richer offers, such as bundles, seats and ancillaries, to travel sellers through modern APIs, rather than relying only on the traditional GDS model.
What skills do air distribution roles need?
Most need a working understanding of how air content is shopped, priced, booked and serviced, including fares, PNRs and changes. Commercial roles also need relationships with airlines or travel agencies, and technical roles need API and high-volume transaction experience.
Can candidates move into air distribution from other industries?
Engineers and product people from payments and other high-volume transaction businesses can make the move if they are willing to learn the domain. Commercial roles usually need prior travel distribution experience because buyers expect it.
Do you recruit airline technology roles in the US and Europe?
Yes. We recruit across the UK, the US, the DACH countries, Benelux and the Nordics.