For 15 years, Theo Panagiotoulias worked on the airline side of the fence, spending most of his career with American Airlines.

Then earlier this year, he switched to the supplier side, joining Sabre Airlines Solutions as its vice president for Asia Pacific.

Why the jump over the fence, I asked?

"Airlines are facing very interesting challenges right now and they require different solutions. This allows me to be part of a business than can add value to helping airlines meet these challenges.

"The point is, we don't survive unless we enable airlines to succeed and being a driven person, I am excited to be part of the solution to the significant challenges being faced by airlines."

So what are the new challenges being faced by airlines that weren't there before?

"Some of the challenges that existed before are more permanent now, for example, fuel costs which spiked several years ago and remain stubbornly high. We don't expect much change there and it's now the highest or second highest portion of costs – about 30% – and there's no short-term relief in sight.

"So we have to deliver solutions that address this problem head-on such as helping them with flight planning, optimizing their earnings, network planning and flying the most efficient, direct routes. The investment is minimal but the savings substantial, in some cases, enabling significant cost reductions of 5-8%."

The other challenge is "capacity discipline". Asia Pacific is seeing the strongest passenger growth globally, fuelled by the rapid growth in low cost airlines, and the dynamics between supply and demand are never easy to balance.

"You want to compete, yet you don't want to add too much supply, especially with passenger demand fluctuating at the moment due to the global economic uncertainties.

"Growth is moderating right now and it's challenging for airlines to forecast where it's going to go. So you need forecasting tools that can help you optimize in an uncertain environment."

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