Star Alliance, the world's biggest airline network, said over the weekend at a semi-annual CEO conference that it is very interested in having a Chinese airline join the aviation alliance.
"China is a white spot and we know it is a very, very important market, definitely one of the major markets for our industry in the future," Juergen Weber, Lufthansa chief executive, told a press conference.
So far China's three main airlines -- flag carrier Air China, China Eastern and China Southern -- have shied away from global alliances, although China Eastern cooperates with Cathay Pacific and unlisted Air China has a limited code-sharing agreement with Lufthansa.
"We will develop cooperation with a goal of one day having Air China in Star Alliance," Weber said, but he admitted that they had also spoken with several other Chinese airlines.
Although Lufthansa and United have repeatedly said they want Air China in the alliance, officials from China's flag carrier said they have not yet decided whether to join Star or some other alliance.
A source with Air China who asked not to be named said whether or not the airline joins any alliance depends entirely on what benefits such a deal would bring to Air China.
Many Asian Star Alliance members have convenient transfer arrangements, and passengers can be easily transferred to flights to other cities or countries from their airports, but Air China is weak in this aspect, he said.
If China joins a smaller alliance, which has few partners in Asia, Air China could get more passenger transfer business to other major Asian countries.
But the official also admitted that so-called seamless air service is very attractive to passengers throughout the world.
"So it might take awhile for Air China to make a decision."
Star Alliance, established in May 1997, was the first global airline alliance. The member airlines are Air Canada, Air New Zealand, All Nippon Airways, Austrian Airlines, British Midland, Lauda Air, Lufthansa German Airlines, Mexicana Airlines, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways International, Tyrolean Airways, United Airlines and VARIG Brazilian Airlines. Its network serves 729 airports in 124 countries.
(China Daily June 03, 2002)
