MUMBAI, Dec 14 (Bernama) — National air-carrier Air India Thursday said it has been formally invited to join the world’s premier airline grouping Star Alliance.
A formal invitation was extended to Air India’s Chairman V. Thulasidas during Star Alliance’s Board meeting in Beijing Thursday, according to a PTI report.
Following the invitation, Air India will announce the date of joining the alliance soon, he was quoted as saying.
“It will be a win-win situation for both Air India and Star Alliance,” he added.
Joining the alliance would increase Air India’s revenue by 3-4 percent, which would come out to be about RS 4 billion, Thulasidas said.
The Star Alliance would provide better and more lounge facilities to Air India travelers in various international airports. It will also help in getting them better fares besides frequent flier benefits to its customers. “The alliance will increase Air India’s reach,” Thulasidas said.
While Star Alliance had airlines from the US, Europe, South-East Asia and the Far East, geographically there was a void in the Indian region which would disappear with Air India joining the alliance, he said.
With the possibility of Air India setting up an European hub in Munich or Vienna, joining Star Alliance would help its operations as most of the European airlines were its members.
The alliance includes Lufthansa, Air Canada, Austrian, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), South African Airways and Singapore Airlines.
Only Wednesday, Air China and Shanghai Airlines formally joined Star Alliance at a ceremony in Beijing International Airport.
With the addition of two Chinese airlines, Star Alliance now has 19 member-carriers operating 17,000 daily flights to 897 destinations in 160 countries, offering international travellers more choice than any other airline alliance.
This year is the tenth anniversary of Star Alliance network and as the year closes, air-carriers from two major Asian giants, India and China are entering its fold.
Air India has been having discussions with Star Alliance besides two other groupings, OneWorld and Sky Team since early this year.