18 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.
You usually start by checking the Computer Reservation System (CRS) — Amadeus Altea, Galileo 360, or Delphi — for today's flights and bookings. Many shifts begin with scanning outstanding reservations, ticket inventories, and special requests for the first departures.
During the shift you sell or issue tickets, update inventories, announce arrivals/departures on the PA, answer schedule questions by phone or email (Outlook), and handle walk-up customers or groups. Expect intermittent baggage tracing and coordinating with carriers and GuestServe for special needs or ground services.
Learn a CRS first: Amadeus Altea and Galileo 360 are common; Delphi and other reservation tools are similar in how they show availability and fares. Practice making reservations, retrieving PNRs (passenger name records), and issuing e-tickets inside the CRS.
Also learn Microsoft Outlook for customer emails, Excel for simple reports of inventory or sales, and Word for standard documents. GuestServe appears when coordinating ground or special assistance. Most offices provide short, task-focused training on their specific CRS.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS, 2025), 118,710 people were employed as ticketing agents. The median pay is $44,390 per year; the lowest tenth earn about $32,140, and the top tenth about $78,150.
Pay varies by employer (airline vs. travel agency), location, shift differentials for nights/weekends, and experience with systems like Amadeus or Galileo. BLS gives national-level figures; check local job listings for exact offers.
Start with free or low-cost CRS basics: look for Amadeus or Galileo intro courses (some community colleges or online providers offer them). Practice making reservations, holds, and issuing tickets in demo or classroom systems.
Get familiar with customer-service tasks: writing clear emails in Outlook, basic Excel for inventories, and handling payment procedures. Apply for entry roles at travel agencies or airport ground teams that offer on-the-job CRS and systems training.
AI can draft polite emails, summarize fare rules, or suggest upsell lines, but never paste AI-generated booking details into a CRS without checking. CRSs and carrier rules are precise: a wrong fare code, date, or name spelling causes refunds or denied boarding.
Keep passenger privacy in mind. Do not upload full passenger name records (PNRs) to public AI tools. Use AI as a drafting assistant, then copy only verified, manual entries into Amadeus/Galileo and your email system.
Ticketing agents focus on reservations, fares, issuing tickets, and maintaining ticket inventory in the CRS (Amadeus, Galileo). You spend more time with fare rules, invoicing, and reservations than gate agents do.
Gate agents work at departure gates handling boarding, last-minute seat changes, and immediate irregular operations. Customer service reps may handle broader issues by phone or in person. In practice roles overlap: you’ll still announce departures, direct passengers, and trace baggage sometimes.
Accuracy with the CRS and fares: fast, error-free entries in Amadeus, Galileo, or Delphi prevent misbookings and refunds. Knowing how to check inventory, issue e-tickets, and apply correct fare rules saves time and money.
Clear communication and upselling: write precise emails in Outlook, explain restrictions simply to customers, and suggest upgrades or packages without sounding pushy. Also, fast baggage-tracing coordination with carriers and GuestServe for special needs wins repeat customers.