Clarity CEO Pat McDonagh (pictured) said its fellow TMC “has a real strength in the corporate, education and charity sectors and we believe that through both businesses we have the best talent, quality, innovation and solutions for our customers.”

Paul Allan, Chairman of Ian Allan Travel, added: “The whole travel industry has seen, and continues to see dramatic changes in every area of our business, and the family felt the time was right for our company, having traded independently for over 55 years, to find a new home within a significantly larger organisation, capable of providing additional support for the ever increasing demands of our customer base and the aspirations of a rapidly changing business environment.”

BCD Travel and integrated maritime solutions leader Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM) have sealed a new joint venture to create a specialised global marine travel services offering.

The arrangement bolsters BCD’s expansion of its global Energy, Resources & Marine practice, adding specialised services for the marine sector.

Radius Travel, a network of TMCs around the world, has signed two new members: Incanto Travel, based in the Dominican Republic, and TOV Travel, based in South Korea.

The Radius network comprises over 100 agencies worldwide and manages more than $30billion of annual corporate travel spending.

The UK-based Advantage Travel Partnership has teamed up with Travelicity Consulting to offer professional TMC consultancy services with an operational focus.

Member TMCs will be able to access services including an operational business review, support with systems implementation, training and project management services.

Etihad Airways is boosting services between London Heathrow and Abu Dhabi this summer.

The current three-times-daily operation will increase to four flights a day from May 26 to June 22 and from September 29 to October 26, and to five flights a day for the peak summer season from June 23 to September 28.

The extra flights are timed to provide easy connections via Abu Dhabi to and from key destinations across the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia.

Passengers travelling with Virgin Trains can now bid for First Class upgrades through a collaboration with Seatfrog.

Customers will be able to bid from 24 hours through to 30 minutes before departure, with upgrades costing as little as £10.