Imparting Expertise: The GDS Seminar-Workshop
Education in Hospitality (HM) and Tourism Management (TM) often hits a wall when it comes to Global Distribution Systems (GDS). While these platforms—like Amadeus or Sabre—are the industry backbone, they are often inaccessible for students to practice on.
On April 11, 2026, I served as a Resource Speaker at SCC, leading a workshop for the course "Applied Business Tools and Technology."
The Technical Challenge: Replicating Amadeus
To move beyond theory, I developed a GDS Simulator from scratch using C Programming. This allowed students to experience a realistic Command-Line Interface (CLI) that mimicked real-world GDS syntax.
Technical Specifications:
- Engine: C-based Command Parser.
- Data Structure: CSV-based storage for Passenger Name Records (PNR).
- Syntax: Replicated Amadeus commands (AN, SS, NM1).
Insight: By using CSV as a backend, students could open the spreadsheet after the simulation to see how their terminal commands were translated into structured data.
Hands-on Simulation
The workshop was highly interactive. Students didn't just watch a presentation; they performed "live" bookings. It was rewarding to see the transition from confusion to confidence as they mastered the cryptic logic of the GDS terminal.
- Availability Neutral (AN): Checking flight loads.
- Sell Segment (SS): Locking in seats.
- End of Transaction (ER): Finalizing the PNR.
Recognition
At the conclusion of the event, I was honored to receive a certificate of recognition for my dedication to knowledge-sharing and for enhancing the students' understanding of technology in a business context.
Technical Note: This entry documents the intersection of travel industry expertise and software development, aimed at empowering the next generation of tourism professionals.