airline reservation system

A seat reservation system that (a) consists of a central computer and distributed data stations, (b) has a database of available flights and up-to-the-moment available seats on those flights, (c) accepts seat reservations for each flight, and (d) allows inquiry from any data station and identification of seats that remain available at a given instant. See also computer, database, data station, identification, inquiry station, instant, system, transaction processing system.