Cooperation agreement between two or more airlines
An airline alliance is an aviation industry arrangement between two or more airlines agreeing to cooperate on a substantial level. Alliances may provide marketing branding to facilitate travelers making inter-airline codeshare connections within countries. This branding may involve unified aircraft liveries of member aircraft.[1]
Benefits can consist of an extended network, often realised through codeshare agreements. Many alliances started as only codeshare networks. Cost reductions come from sharing operation facilities (e.g. catering or computer systems), operation staff (e.g. ground handling personnel, at check-in and boarding desks), investments and purchases (e.g. in order to negotiate extra volume discounts).[6] Traveler benefits can include lower prices due to lowered operational costs for a given route, different times to choose from, more destinations within easy reach, shorter travel times, more options of airport lounges shared with alliance members, fast track access on all alliance members if having frequent flyer status, faster mileage rewards by earning miles for a single account on several different carriers, round-the-world tickets, enabling travellers to fly over the world for a relatively low price.[7]
Airline alliances may also create disadvantages for the traveller, such as higher prices when competition is erased on a certain route or less frequent flights; for instance, if two airlines separately fly three and two times a day respectively on a shared route, their alliance might fly less than 5 (3+2) times a day on the same route. This might be especially true between hub cities for each airline. e.g., flights between Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (a Delta Air Lines fortress hub) and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (a KLM fortress hub).[8][9][10]
History
The first airline alliance was formed in the 1930s, when Panair do Brasil and its parent company Pan American World Airways agreed to exchange routes to Latin America. In 1990, the African Joint Air Services (AJAS) Accord between Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia led to the launch of Alliance Air in 1994, with South African Airways, Air Tanzania, Uganda Airlines and the governments of Uganda and Tanzania as shareholders.[citation needed]
The first large alliance began in 1989, when Northwest Airlines and KLM agreed to large-scale codesharing. In 1992, the Netherlands signed the first open skies agreement with the United States, in spite of objections from the European Union, which gave both countries unrestricted landing rights on the other's soil. Normally landing rights are granted for a fixed number of flights per week to a fixed destination. Each adjustment requires negotiations, often between governments rather than between the companies involved. In return, the United States granted antitrust immunity to the alliance between Northwest Airlines and KLM. Other alliances would struggle for years to overcome the transnational barriers and lack of antitrust immunity, and still do so.[citation needed]
In 2010 Richard Branson, chairman of the Virgin Group, announced his intention to form a fourth alliance among Virgin branded airlines (Virgin Atlantic; Virgin America; and the Virgin Australia Holdings group of airlines).[14] Then in September 2011, Branson said that Virgin Atlantic would join one of the existing alliances;[15] this idea was repeated in October 2012.[16] In December 2012, Delta Air Lines purchased Singapore Airlines' 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic for £224 million.[17]Virgin America was absorbed into Alaska Airlines by 2018, which joined the Oneworld alliance in 2021.[18][19] Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic joined SkyTeam in 2023.[20]
On February 14, 2013, it was announced that American Airlines and US Airways would merge, retaining the American Airlines name and would remain in the Oneworld alliance. US Airways' participation in Star Alliance lapsed. In 2012, in South America, LAN Airlines and TAM Airlines began their merger. In March 2014, with the merger complete, TAM left Star Alliance and became part of LAN in Oneworld.[citation needed]
Virgin Atlantic, a trading name of Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic International Limited, is a British airline with its head office in Crawley, West Sussex, England. The airline was established in 1984 as British Atlantic Airways, and was originally planned by its co-founders Randolph Fields and Alan Hellary to fly between London and the Falkland Islands. Soon after changing the name to Virgin Atlantic Airways, Fields sold his shares in the company to Richard Branson in return for unlimited free travel. The maiden flight from London–Gatwick to Newark took place on 22 June 1984.
Star Alliance is an airline alliance headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. Founded on 14 May 1997, it was the world's first global airline alliance. As of April 2024, it is also the world's largest airline alliance by market share, holding 17.4%, compared to 13.7% for SkyTeam and 11.9% for Oneworld.
Oneworld is a global airline alliance consisting of 13 member airlines. It was founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance for the world's frequent international travellers. Its headquarters have been located in Fort Worth, Texas, since December 2022.
SkyTeam is one of the world's three major airline alliances. Founded in June 2000, SkyTeam was the last of the three alliances to be formed, after Star Alliance and Oneworld. Its annual passenger count is 624 million customers (2024), the second largest of the three major alliances. As of October 2024, SkyTeam consists of 19 active carriers; it also operates a cargo alliance named SkyTeam Cargo, which partners with ten carriers, all SkyTeam members. Its centralised management team, SkyTeam Central, is based in Amstelveen, Netherlands.
Air France–KLM S.A., also known as Air France–KLM Group, is a French-Dutch multinational airline holding company with its headquarters in the rue du Cirque, Paris, France. The group’s three major brands are Air France, KLM and Transavia. Air France-KLM is the result of the merger in 2004 between Air France and KLM. Both Air France and KLM are members of the SkyTeam airline alliance. The group's main hubs are Paris–Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris Orly Airport and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Air France-KLM Airlines transported 83 million passengers in 2022.
Tiger Airways Singapore Pte Ltd, operating as Tigerair, was a low-cost airline headquartered in Singapore. It operated services to regional destinations in Southeast Asia, Bangladesh, Taiwan, China and India from its main base at Singapore Changi Airport. It was founded as an independent airline in 2003, and was listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange under the Tiger Airways Holdings name in 2010. In October 2014, parent company Tiger Airways Holdings became a subsidiary of the SIA Group, who took a 56% ownership stake.
Wings Alliance was the working name of a proposed airline alliance to be anchored by the American carriers Northwest Airlines and Continental Airlines of USA with the European flag carriers KLM of the Netherlands and Italy's Alitalia. Although these airlines cooperated with one another through code-sharing and frequent flyer program coordination, no formal association was ever announced. It was rendered superfluous in September 2004 when most of its participants joined the SkyTeam alliance.
Tiger Airways Australia Pty Ltd, operating as Tigerair Australia, was an Australian low-cost airline. Founded by Tiger Airways Holdings, it commenced services in the domestic airline market on 23 November 2007 as Tiger Airways Australia. It later became a subsidiary of Virgin Australia Holdings. On 25 March 2020, Tigerair suspended all operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Following Virgin Australia Holdings going into voluntary administration and later sold, new owner Bain Capital confirmed the brand would be retired.
Tiger Airways Holdings Limited was a Singapore-based airline holding company for a group of low-cost carriers operating in the Asia-Pacific region. It was formed in 2007 to allow for easier management of the airline subsidiaries, as well as any future expansion, without having to focus on operational issues, leaving those to the airlines themselves. In 2016, Singapore Airlines purchased the company and it was delisted from the Singapore Exchange.
Air France, stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France, and is headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. The airline is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and is one of the founding members of the SkyTeam airline alliance. As of 2013, Air France served 29 destinations in France and operates worldwide scheduled passenger and cargo services to 201 destinations in 78 countries and also carried 46,803,000 passengers in 2019. The airline's global hub is at Charles de Gaulle Airport, with Orly Airport as the primary domestic hub. Air France's corporate headquarters, previously in Montparnasse, Paris, are located at the Roissypôle complex on the grounds of Charles de Gaulle Airport, north of Paris.
Heathrow Terminal 3 is an airport terminal at Heathrow Airport, serving London, the capital city of the United Kingdom. Terminal 3 is currently used as one of the main global hubs of the International Airlines Group members British Airways and Iberia since 12 July 2022. It is also used by the majority of members of the Oneworld and a few SkyTeam alliances along with several long-haul non-affiliated airlines. It is also the base for Virgin Atlantic.
Mileage Plan is the frequent-flyer program of Alaska Airlines. Members accrue program "miles" by flying Alaska Airlines and partner-operated flights, using co-branded credit cards, and booking vacation and hotel packages, among other methods. Mileage Plan miles can be redeemed for award flights on Alaska Airlines and partner carriers and provide eligibility for elite status with Mileage Plan.
The Atlantic Excellence was a trans-Atlantic airline alliance between Swissair, Delta Air Lines, Sabena and Austrian Airlines that was formed in 1997 and disbanded in 1999-2000. The dissolution of the code share agreement came soon after an announcement by Delta Air Lines that it was starting cooperative arrangements with Air France which led into the formation of the SkyTeam alliance. SAirGroup had held negotiations with American Airlines about extending their cooperative arrangements, with both Swissair and Sabena intending to commence code-share services on North Atlantic routes with American Airlines which led into Qualiflyer.
Scoot Pte Ltd, operating as Scoot, is a low-cost airline based in Singapore and is a subsidiary of the country's flag carrier Singapore Airlines. It began its operations on 4 June 2012 on medium and long-haul routes from Singapore, predominantly to various airports throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Scoot's airline slogan is Escape the Ordinary.
The Vanilla Alliance is an airline alliance formed in September 2015. The alliance is the fourth largest in the world as of 2018, trailing Oneworld, Star Alliance, and SkyTeam. All of the airlines within the alliance operate in the Indian Ocean region and are based in sovereign states that are members of the Indian Ocean Commission or French overseas territories in the Indian Ocean.
Value Alliance was an airline alliance formed in May 2016. It is the world's second alliance, after the U-FLY Alliance, to consist only of low-cost carriers (LCCs). It is the first pan-regional LCC alliance. It comprises five, originally eight, Asia-Pacific airlines: Cebu Pacific, Cebgo, Jeju Air, Nok Air and Scoot.
Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A., doing business as ITA Airways, is the flag carrier airline of Italy. It is owned by the government of Italy via the Ministry of Economy and Finance and was founded in 2020 as bankrupt Alitalia's successor. The airline flies to over 70 scheduled domestic, European, and intercontinental destinations. ITA is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. Its main hub is Rome Fiumicino Airport near Rome and a focus city is Linate Airport near Milan. ITA Airways will leave SkyTeam and join Star Alliance as part of the process of its acquisition by Lufthansa Group.
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Aegean Airlines, 2010
Air Canada, founder
Air China, 2007
Air India, 2014
Air New Zealand, 1999
All Nippon Airways, 1999
Asiana Airlines, 2003
Austrian Airlines, 2000
Avianca, 2012
Brussels Airlines, 2009
Copa Airlines, 2012
Croatia Airlines, 2004
EgyptAir, 2008
Ethiopian Airlines, 2011
EVA Air, 2013
LOT Polish Airlines, 2003
Lufthansa, founder
Singapore Airlines, 2000
South African Airways, 2006
Swiss International Air Lines, 2006
TAP Air Portugal, 2005
Thai Airways International, founder
Turkish Airlines, 2008
United Airlines, founder
ITA Airways, Lufthansa takeover
Adria Airways, 2004–2019, defunct
Ansett Australia, 1999–2001, defunct
Blue1, 2004–2012, defunct
BMI, 2000–2012, absorbed into British Airways [24] 
Continental Airlines, 2009–2012, merged with United Airlines 
Mexicana de Aviación, 2000–2004, joined Oneworld in 2009
Scandinavian Airlines, founder, 1997–2024, joined SkyTeam in 2024
Shanghai Airlines, 2007–2010, merged with China Eastern Airlines and joined SkyTeam in 2011
Spanair, 2003–2012, defunct
TACA, 2012–2013, merged with Avianca 
TAM Airlines, 2010–2014, merged with LAN Airlines and joined Oneworld in 2014
Deutsche Bahn, 2022 [25] [26] 
British Airways, founder
Cathay Pacific, founder
Finnair, 1999
Iberia Airlines, 1999
Malaysia Airlines, 2013
Qantas, founder
Qatar Airways, 2013
Royal Air Maroc, 2020
Royal Jordanian, 2007
SriLankan Airlines, 2014
Aer Lingus, 2000–2007, left the alliance [28] 
Canadian Airlines, founder, 1999–2000, acquired by Air Canada 
LATAM Chile, 2000–2020
Malév Hungarian Airlines, 2007–2012, defunct
S7 Airlines, 2010–2022, suspended from alliance
Oman Air, joining on 30 June 2025 [29] 
Fiji Airways, joining in 2025 (currently as Oneworld Connect Partners)
Aerolíneas Argentinas, 2012
Aeroméxico, founder
Air France, founder
Garuda Indonesia, 2014
Kenya Airways, 2007
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, 2004
Middle East Airlines, 2012 
Saudia, 2012
Scandinavian Airlines, 2024
TAROM, 2010 
Vietnam Airlines, 2010
Alitalia, 2001–2021, defunct
Copa Airlines, 2007–2009, joined Star Alliance in 2012
Czech Airlines, 2001–2024, defunct
Air Austral, founder
Air Madagascar, founder
Air Mauritius, founder
Air Seychelles, founder
Int'Air Îles, founder
HK Express, 2016-2019, founder, acquired by Cathay Pacific in 2019.
Cebu Pacific, founder
NokScoot, 2016–2020, defunct
Tigerair, 2016–2017, merged with Scoot 
Vanilla Air, 2016–2018, founder, merged with Peach Aviation 
