Using SATO
The Coast Guard has contracted with
SatoTravel to be our new travel service provider effective 1
January 2005.
How
will this impact me?
You will now have to contact SatoTravel when
booking travel reservations. For Official travel reservations
please call 800-753-7286 during normal business hours 7:30am -
5:30pm ET.
Is
there anything I need to do before I begin using SatoTravel?
Yes.
For members who DON'T possess a government
credit card you need to fill-out the
USCG Profile form and fax it to (210) 824-0312.
For members who DO possess a government credit
card you need to go to
http://www.tc.faa.gov/fedtrip/ and fill-out an online form. The
instructions for this process are in the attached
USCGAdminRefGuide document. FedTrip is a self-booking
online tool. You will also be required to fill-out the
USCG Profile form and fax it to (210) 824-0312 because the
FedTrip profile is separate from the profiles that are used when
a traveler calls to book a reservation via the phone.
I
was able to log on to FedTrip and complete a profile for myself
but it asked for a mail-stop code. What is a mail-stop code?
This is an unique code that is assigned to
your unit. It is the last 4 digits of your unit zip-code.
New
procedure for making reservations:
If
you don't possess a government credit card:
When you call SatoTravel to make a reservation, the agent will
ask you to fax your travel orders before the ticket can be
issued. Again, if SatoTravel does not receive the orders the
ticket will not be issued.
If
you Do possess a government credit card:
When you call SatoTravel to make a reservation, the
SatoTravel agent will ask for your TONO. If you don't have that
information when booking the reservation the agent will remind
you to call back with the required TONO, so the ticket can be
issued. If you don't call back the ticket will not be issued!
You can also logon to FedTrip to make your reservations. There
is a significant savings to the Coast Guard if you book your
reservations online via FedTrip. The requirement to provide a
TONO only applies when you physically call SatoTravel to make
reservations and does not apply if reservations are made through
FedTrip.
How
long will it take to receive my tickets?
SatoTravel will normally issue electronic
tickets 2-3 days prior to travel unless requested earlier by the
traveler. Paper tickets are normally issued 5-7 days prior to
travel to ensure on time delivery via an overnight courier
service.
How will refunds be
processed?
You need to notify SatoTravel if you need to
request a refund of an unused electronic ticket in order for the
refund process to begin. If the you fail to call, the
reservation system will automatically print a report 30-days
after the ticket was issued to advise SatoTravel that the ticket
was not used. Paper tickets must be returned to SatoTravel
before the refund process can start.
What
are the new fees associated with SatoTravel?
Transaction fees are charged at time of
ticketing. If a traveler needs to cancel a reservation, please
make sure you do so 2-3 days prior to not incur the transaction
fee. Transaction fees are non-refundable once the ticket has
been issued.
Domestic/International Tickets $24.00
Paper ticket if not e-ticketable $24.00
Paper ticket if e-ticketable $29.00
Overnight/Fedex $10.00
Car/Hotel only $8.00
Fedtrip $9.00
Fedtrip car/hotel only $6.00