UPDATE: American Airlines today obtained a temporary restraining order barring Sabre from biasing its flights in the Sabre GDS.
Sabre confirmed that the airline got the temporary restraining order it sought.
The move should get American Airlines' flights and fares back in the Sabre GDS in the manner they appeared before Sabre took the action Jan. 5.
The original post follows:
American Airlines filed a complaint against Sabre, asking for an immediate court order barring the GDS provider from continuing to bias the airline's flights.
The airline characterizes Sabre's Jan. 5 action to bias American availability and shopping displays in the Sabre GDS as "wrongful and unjustified retaliation that threatens to seriously disrupt American's business and harm members of the public and the travel industry."
American alleges that the biasing action, which makes it difficult for travel agents to find and book American's flights in Sabre, is a violation of the American-Sabre full-content agreement.
The airline says Sabre also more than doubled the booking fees it charges to American, a move that would increase the airline's distribution costs by $157 million annually.
American said in 2010 some $7 billion of its sales were booked through Sabre, the airline's largest source of non-direct bookings.
American alleges that Sabre's "skewing" of the airline's flight and fare data will harm American and the public and cause "massive disruption" to the travel industry.
American seeks a temporary restraining order barring Sabre from biasing its displays and the airline is seeking damages.
The complaint was filed Jan. 10 in the District Court of Tarrant County, Texas.
The complaint, which is an amended original petition, also names Travelport as a defendant.
American seeks a declaration from the court regarding the parties' rights and obligations under the American-Travelport preferred fares agreement as it relates to the airline's termination of its contract with Orbitz.