Air Canada Aeroplan has teamed up with ITA Software to offer real-time access to airline inventory for award shoppers. ITA’s proprietary technology promises to calculate every possible itinerary faster and more efficiently than traditional airline mainframe-based systems, searching billions of combinations of flights in order to deliver better and more comprehensive results. With the new software for Aeroplan award travelers, Aeroplan offers improved ease and speed with which members may browse and book awards. Aeroplan issues one award ticket approximately every 22 seconds. In 2005 alone, more than 1.35 million roundtrip flight awards were issued.

Aeroplan members who would like to use their miles for stays at Best Western can now search, book and confirm their hotel stays online. There are no vouchers or coupons to deal with and members do not have to book seven days in advance or call the hotel directly. Reservations can also be cancelled for a full refund of Aeroplan miles according to the terms and conditions. Aeroplan already offers car rental award redemption with Avis, Hertz and National.