When conflict redraws flight paths and departure boards start blinking cancelled, travel stops feeling exciting and starts feeling fragile. In moments like this, travellers see uncertainty. What they don’t see is their travel advisor already moving into crisis mode behind the scenes, protecting bookings, chasing waivers and working the phones before panic sets in.
“The coming days will be intense for travel agents across the country,” says Anna Shannon, Owner of Travel Agent Finder.
“Phones running hot, inboxes overflowing, constant schedule changes and late nights. It’s exhausting work.”
To understand what actually happens when global events spill into aviation, Karryon spoke with Andrew Sullivan, Director of The Don’t Forget Travel Group. When disruption hits, he’s one of the people fielding the calls, auditing bookings and trying to stay one step ahead of the chaos.
Here’s what that looks like.
When major disruptions happen, what immediately changes in a travel advisor’s workflow?
Everything changes. Your To Do List goes out the window.
You basically have to do a travel audit and identify clients currently travelling, clients just about to travel in the next few days, then clients who are travelling to a region that might be affected if the disruption continues.
Once the clients most affected are identified, you go into travel triage mode and work out what needs to be done immediately, what can wait and what can be ignored for now.
Unfortunately, clients travelling weeks or months later get put on the back burner for a while until things calm down. And it’s our job to stay calm while the chaos is all around.
Even if only a small number of clients are directly affected, how much extra work does that create for travel advisors?
It creates a lot more work no matter if only a couple of clients are affected or hundreds.
You are in a constant state of heightened awareness and monitoring. Checking airline policies and waivers, travel insurance, watching and reading the media, both mainstream, social and trade, for updates on the situation.
You’re looking for alternatives and workarounds for clients, plus fielding a lot of questions from clients about their concerns and trying to reassure them.
Plus you seem to get questions from people who book their own flights asking for advice. Funny how they seek out a travel advisor’s advice when things turn to sh*t.
What’s a travel advisor’s unseen work travellers don’t realise is happening in the background?
Probably everything I just mentioned.
All of that happens in the background, except for the phone calls and texts of course.
What do travel advisors most need from airlines and suppliers during moments like this?
Information.
Timely information on timelines, waivers, alternatives and have it readily available. Simple information or instructions. Don’t make it complicated.
When the pressure builds, how can travel advisors best support each other?
Agents can best support each other by doing what they always do when there is a travel disruption, and that is support each other.
The travel community really does shine in situations like this. This is our super power.
Without a travel advisor, you’re on your own
When the headlines move on and flights slowly return, most travellers will remember the disruption.
They may not remember the audit, the triage, the monitoring, the hours spent refreshing airline updates.
Anna Shannon says trust is forged under pressure.
“Trust isn’t built in calm waters. It’s built in moments like these – when we’re securing the last available seats on alternative routes before they disappear. When we’re applying airline waivers we have insider access to and leveraging trade contacts to have clients reaccommodated faster than they could ever manage direct with airlines. When we’re proactively reaching out before they even know there’s a disruption, reassuring them with a plan instead of leaving them on hold for six hours.”
“Speed, clear communication and confident guidance in moments like this are what turn a one-time booking into a client for life. Anyone can issue a ticket in stable times, or book a flight online. It’s how we show up in crisis that defines our professionalism.
“And as tough as the next few days may be, this is exactly when the true strength of working with a qualified travel agent – and paying that service fee – becomes undeniably a no-brainer in future.”
