Finnair has launched a program on its website that enables customers to donate to United Nations children's organization UNICEF, Amadeus announced. Finnair follows Oneworld partner Iberia, which in late 2013 was the first airline to get involved in the UNICEF effort, backed by Amadeus technology.
An Amadeus official told The Beat that Iberia since activating the program has collected €170,000 from 32,000 travelers for the UNICEF "100% Let's Vaccinate Every Child" initiative, and expects to reach €180,000 next month.
Similar to Iberia's program, Finnair customers who book tickets on the carrier's website as of Oct. 27 are presented the option to donate €1, €5 or €10 for UNICEF's "Schools for Asia," a program aimed at supporting education for particularly disadvantaged children in 11 Asian countries.
"We've traditionally made the collection in-flight, but now passengers can donate as they book their flights at Finnair.com," according to a statement from Finnair CEO Pekka Vauramo.
According to Amadeus, the donation engine is "free of charge to UNICEF" and any airlines that agree to participate.