Ai In Tieup Talks With Five Foreign Airlines

National carrier in consolidation drive as battle for the skies hots up

Air India is seeking alliances with five major international airlines to challenge the Lufthansa-United-Air Canada-Thai-SAS Star Alliance in India.

The national carrier signed an extended marketing alliance with Air France last Sunday, while talks are at an advanced stage with Continental, Uniteds perennial competitor in the US. Tie-up talks are also being conducted with Swissair, Emirates and Singapore Airlines, confirmed an AI spokesperson.

The pact with Air France gives AI access to Charles De Gaulle airport in Paris for networking with the French carrier. Subsequently, the alliance will also involve code-sharing on new flights and on points beyond Paris. This means that tickets of both airlines will be issued as one.

 

AI sources said similar pacts are being planned with the other airlines. Shared frequent flyer programmes, preferential arrangement on cargo and joint incentive schemes could be other features of the proposed alliances.

If AI manages to clinch a deal with all five carriers, it could offer a stiff challenge to the formidable Lufthansa-led alliance on various routes. For example, an AI pact with Singapore Airlines would threaten Thai-Uniteds operations on the South East Asia-Gulf and Far East-US west coast routes. Singapore Airlines has excellent networking on the Singapore-US routes, which would solve AIs problem of offering services to the US west coast to a large extent.

Travel industry sources said several other large players in the world aviation industry, including British Airways, Delta and KLM also plan to forge alliances with regional players to check the onslaught of the Lufthansa-led juggernaut.

Analysing the impact of the latest developments on the Indian customer, the sources said it would ensure better servicing for customers, but at higher ticket cost.

The sources pointed out that discounting by airlines has already become a thing of the past following the withdrawal of fare buster Tower Air from India and reduction of flights by Delta.

Besides, international air traffic to and from India has risen by over 10 per cent over last year, leading to packed loads. Unless the capacity of some airlines is hiked, passengers would continue to have to pay more for an airline seat, said an executive of a leading travel agency.