Lao Airlines receives ISO certification for ticketing and booking

On June 11, Lao Airlines received International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certification for ticket sales and booking services. Speaking at the certificate presentation ceremony in Vientiane Capital, Laos, Head of the airline’s ISO Project Rada Sunthorn said that “this event is not just a first for the airline but is a historic occasion.”

Lao Airlines received the ISO 9001:2008 certificate from the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), after being inspected by the Societe Generale de Surveillance (SGS).

Informing the travel industry about the recent development, Rezsõ Sárdi, Managing Director of Aviation Co., General Sales Agent (GSA) of Lao Airlines in Austria, Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic, said that the new ISO certification will further contribute to the airline’s excellent reputation and hopes to boost sales and income from the East-Central European market. Lao Airlines opened its General Sales Agency in Budapest in 2010, and is now proud that the airline has received such an important recognition as the ISO certification for its quality services, efficiency and high standards in catering for passengers.

Lao Airlines employs professional staff and has a fleet consisting of modern aircraft (Airbus A320 and ATR-72s), which fly several domestic routes within Laos and operate direct flights between Vientiane and Luang Prabang as its two hubs to the neighboring capitals and other important cities in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and China. It has recently opened its direct flight between Vientiane and Singapore, and further route openings are expected to take place in the foreseeable future.

ISO 9001:2008 is the management standard quality system that is accepted for organizations and private businesses throughout the world for production, service, and human resource development. The SGS organized a certificate presentation ceremony for Lao Airlines on June 11. Attending the event were Minister of Public Works and Transport Sommad Pholsena, General Director of Lao Airlines Dr- Somphone Duangdara, Director of the Civil Aviation Department Yakua Lorpangkua, and SGS staff. Lao Airlines has been working towards ISO certification for ticket sales and booking since 2006, and is considered one of the fastest-growing carriers in the Southeast Asian region. Sunthorn said that Lao Airlines wanted their logo, services, quality, international standards and customer satisfaction to be further developed.

Sárdi emphasized that Lao Airlines has played a crucial role in building further bridges between Hungary the small Southeast Asian country of exquisite natural beauty and rich cultural heritage. The diplomatic relations and otherwise have been traditionally good between the two countries, and it seems that Lao Airlines has been instrumental in deepening this old friendship. “We hope that Lao Airlines will continue contributing to the development of tourism, and more and more Hungarian travelers will choose to travel their for the unique and attractive features the country has to offer,” concluded Sárdi.