There’s so much happening in the aviation industry. On one side, airlines are discontinuing flights to China, (thanks to Coronavirus), others like American Airlines continue to expand their market.
Further, the air carrier begins long-haul service from Seattle to Bangalore in October 2020.
Concurrently, Alaska Airlines is seeking a place in Oneworld. From a passenger’s standpoint, airline alliances are beneficial. You can enjoy the same privileges on a single ticket, regardless of the air carrier.
How many of the world’s airline alliances do you know? Let’s start with the largest:
1. Star Alliance
(a) Headquarter: Frankfurt am Main, Germany
(b) Passenger Count: 762.27 million
(c) Alliance Slogan: The Way the Earth Connects
(d) Fleet: 5000+
(e) Countries Served: 195
(f) Airports Served: 1294
(g) Full Members: Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air India, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Avianca, Brussels Airlines, Copa Airlines, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, EVA Air, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, Swiss International Air Lines, TAP Air Portugal, Thai Airways, Turkish Airlines, and United Airlines.
Star Alliance came to existence on 14th May 1997. Today, it offers smooth connections amongst various destinations and airports.
Also, people from over 20 countries have come together to operate from the Star Alliance headquarters at the Frankfurt Airport.
Star Alliance Flight Network
Star Alliance’s daily departure count is 19,000. The largest global airline alliance covers over 1300 destinations across 195 countries. That is approximately 98% of countries in the world.
Create Personalized Flight Route
If you want to travel the world, you may use Star Alliance’s online tool and make your flight itinerary.
The interactive tool helps you select the destinations of your choice. And you can even travel the world with just one ticket!
Star Alliance Loyalty Program
The Star Alliance loyalty program allows you to earn miles by flying with any Star Alliance member airlines.
This is great since you don’t have to enroll for multiple frequent flyer programs.
Not just that, you get a plethora of benefits like priority check-in, baggage handling, and boarding. Star Alliance website also features stories and firsthand experience of an elite status member.
There is no generalized membership for all Star Alliance airlines. Therefore, you can enroll in one of the member airlines’ loyalty programs to gain access to the whole Star Alliance network.
This also means that as you earn points and elite member status, you can access over 1000 lounges worldwide. So, how do you start earning miles? It is simple:
- Enroll with any of the full member airlines.
- Attach your frequent flyer number to travel flight ticket booking.
- Start collecting points or earning miles.
2. SkyTeam
(a) Headquarters: Amsterdam Airport Schipol, Haarlemmermeer, Netherlands
(b) Passenger Count: 630 million
(c) Alliance Slogan: Caring more about you
(d) Fleet: 3050+
(e) Countries Served: 175
(f) Airports Served: 1150+
(g) Members: Aeroflot, Aerolíneas Argentinas, Aeromexico, Air Europa, Air France, Alitalia, China Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, Czech Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Garuda Indonesia, Kenya Airways, KLM, Korean Air, Middle East Airlines, Saudia, TAROM, Vietnam Airlines, and XiamenAir.
SkyTeam airline alliance took place in June of 2000. SkyTeam also has a cargo alliance, SkyTeam Cargo. Skyteam’s daily flight count is about 14,500.
The Skyteam Central that is the centralized management team of the Alliance, is based in Amsterdam Airport Schipol.
SkyTeam Round the World Planner
Skyteam also offers an online tool to plan your business, leisure or other travel. You can use it to create the perfect itinerary according to your convenience.
Explore alternatives and select routes. Moreover, Skyteam’s ‘Go Round the World’ program lets you choose two to 15 stops on your journey.
SkyTeam Loyalty Program
Miles are credited automatically after you add the frequent flyer number to your flight booking. However, the SkyTeam loyalty program goes the extra step.
If you forget to attach the frequent flyer number to your travel flight tickets, don’t worry. You may receive credits. However, keep the receipt of plane ticket booking until the credit is posted to your account.
Further, you can avail of free award tickets online by performing a few clicks here and there. Other benefits of the program include priority services at more than 1000 airports across the world.
You may even provide your feedback and explain your experience by posting comments, pictures, and more on the airline app. It is called SkyPriority Panel App.
SkyTeam Lounge Finder
Layovers not only make a trip comfortable, but they also lead to cheap flight deals. And, what makes layovers great are lounges.
If you are an elite status member or flying in the First or Business Class, you can access more than 750 SkyTeam lounges.
Use the lounge finder to locate the greatest amenities and facilities you can attach to all the air flight bookings you make.
Also, you may even invite a guest to the lounge. Further, all you have to do is present the person’s boarding pass, and you’re in.
3. Oneworld
(a) Headquarters: Manhattan, New York, USA
(b)Passenger Count: 528 million
(c) Alliance Slogan: Travel bright
(d) Fleet: 3500+
(e) Countries Served: 158
(f) Airports Served: 1012
(g) Full Members: American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LATAM Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines and SriLankan Airlines, and Fiji Airways (connect partner).
The third-largest global airline alliance is Oneworld. The Alliance came to life on February 1, 1999. The alliance has 13 full members, and also partners with 30 affiliated members.
These members are regional airline owned or sharing strong links to the full-time members. Oneworld alliance covers about 78% of the countries.
Oneworld Status Levels
Like other alliances, Oneworld doesn’t have an individual loyalty program. Therefore, to achieve Oneworld status, you have to join the frequent flyer program of one of the full-member airlines.
After this, an equivalent Oneworld status is given to you.
However, you cannot merge the points or miles from multiple airlines. There are three status levels, namely, Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald.
- Ruby: Minimum 13-30 thousand miles, and/or 14 – 35 segments or legs
- Sapphire: This status requires twice as many miles and segments as ruby.
- Emerald: Reaching this status means that you are eligible for all the benefits.
Oneworld Round the World
Oneworld’s round the world program offers a lot of choices. Also, you can choose to travel continent-wise or plan it by distance. There are three divisions:
- Oneworld Explorer: if you want to plan your itinerary continent-to-continent, Oneworld explorer fare is what you need. The alliance offers you readymade routes such as three-continent, four continents, or six continents itineraries.
- Global Explorer: If you want an even wider choice, and want to base your travel on the distance covered, then Global Explorer fare works fine for you. Oneworld alliance offers fares based on miles, such as 26,000 miles, 29,000 miles, 34,000 miles, and 39,000 miles. You can select the mileage tier that suits your travel plans. To book flight tickets, you can go through the plan in-depth online.
- Oneworld Circle Pacific
Oneworld Business Solutions
Business span across the globe. Therefore, Oneworld offers various business travel solutions. Hence, you can expect excellent flight experience and book air tickets at low fares.
- Global Corporate Program: Under this fare, you can connect to all the major business markets in the world. Oneworld offers global coverage. You also get flexible services and facilities, such as fully-flat seats and more. Further, you get a one-to-one service. That means a single point of contact takes care of all your travel needs.
- Oneworld Events: Next, Oneworld even has a fare for events. International conferences and meetings are common for large firms and businesses. Therefore, to streamline bulk airline ticket bookings, you may go for Oneworld events fare. However, there are prerequisites to this. For instance, there must be at least 50 attendees flying to international gatherings. The request for the same must be made at least three months before the start of the event. You can book as early as five years from the date of the event.
4. U-Fly Alliance
(a) Headquarters: Hong Kong
(b) Passenger Count: 44 million
(c) Alliance Slogan: U fly the world
(d) Fleet: 129
(e) Countries Served: 18
(f) Airports Served: 149
(e) Full Members: HK Express, Lucky Air, Urumqi Air, West Air, and Eastar Jet
U-Fly alliance is different in the sense that it consists of only low-cost air carriers. Hello, cheap international flight tickets!
Moreover, the focus of the alliance is to promote travel to Hong Kong, mainland China, and Southeast Asia regions.
Idea behind the U-Fly Alliance
The alliance was formed to assist smaller air carriers to go large scale without merging into one company. This is great, since, China’s provinces varying rules on airlines makes it tough for airlines to collaborate. The aim is to help people book cheap international flight tickets.
5. Value Alliance
(a) Passenger Count: 92 million
(b) Alliance Slogan: Asia Pacific’s Best Value Airlines
(c) Fleet: 201
(d) Countries Served: 30
(e) Airports Served: 183
(f) Full Members: Cebu Pacific, Cebgo, Jeju Air, Nok Air, NokScoot, and Scoot.
Value Alliance is the first pan-regional airline alliance in the world. Also, like U-Fly, Value Alliance members are low-cost air carriers. Further, the alliance aims to promote travel across Australia, North, and Southeast Asia.
This Alliance has a considerable reach as it covers almost one-third of the world’s destinations.
Value Alliance and ABB Technology
Value Alliance uses one-of-a-kind technology to plan your travel. The alliance has also patented the same. Using only a single platform, you can book air tickets for two or more airlines.
You can also select the add-ons, seat preferences, and more. The objective is to make online air travel booking easy, simple, and fast.
Value Alliance Connection Guarantee
Value Alliance gives a choice of rebooking to passengers that have missed their connecting flight due to delays, etc.
Alliance rebooks you on the next flight and reimburses a goodwill gesture amount of up to 500 US dollars. You shall get an email from the connecting airline.
6. Vanilla Alliance
(a) Passenger Count: 2.3 million
(b) Fleet: 46
(c) Countries Served: 26
(d) Airports Served: 89
(e) Full Members: Air Austral, Air Madagascar, Air Mauritius, Air Seychelles, and Int’Air Îles.
The Vanilla Alliance is the sixth and last world airline alliance as of now. The alliance was formed in September 2015.
The sole aim of Vanilla Alliance was to improve air travel and connectivity within the Indian Ocean region.
Vanilla Islands
In the august of 2010, six islands came together under the alias ‘Vanilla Islands’ to strengthen tourism. These are Maldives, Comoros Reunion, Mauritius, Madagascar Mayotte, and Seychelles.
The alliance promotes better air connectivity, cheap air ticket booking offers and optimizing codeshare partners.
So, airlines alliance is a modern phenomenon that is beneficial for the airlines as well as the passengers.
It paves the way for extended network and results in considerable cost reductions for the airlines, especially if you take into account the sharing of ticket sales offices, operational facilities, and maintenance.
For travelers, the foremost advantage is the cheapest flight ticket booking. Also, this means shorter travel times, extended reach, and a plethora of services. You can avail of the same perks under a particular alliance regardless of the air carrier.