Kingfisher Airlines has become a member-elect of oneworld alliance after completing a formal membership agreement. The company received approval from the ministry of civil aviation to become a part of the alliance, just weeks after the airline filed its request with the authority to proceed with the alliance.
Kingfisher?s addition to the alliance will link oneworld?s unrivalled alliance network with India?s most extensive domestic network. It will bring 56 Indian cities on the map of oneworld alliance. The contract was signed among Kingfisher?s chairman and CEO Vijay Mallya and his counterparts from the alliance.
Oneworld?s global coverage will now cover 800 destinations in almost 150 countries, served by a combined fleet of 2,350 aircraft operating some 9,000 flights a day. The alliance will carry 340 million passengers a year.
Kingfisher, with a market share of 21.4%, is India?s only private airline to announce its decision to join a global alliance like oneworld. In 2006, public sector airline Air India had announced that it will join the Star Alliance, a global network of 17 airlines linking 855 airports in 155 countries.
Meanwhile, oneworld members have started working on bilateral agreements with Kingfisher. On Monday, British Airways announced a code-share agreement with the airline. Th arrangement will help BA access various points across India and vice-versa for Kingfisher.
Vijay Mallya, chairman and CEO, Kingfisher Airlines, said, ?I am delighted that Kingfisher Airlines has been invited to join what is very clearly the world?s best airline alliance and to fly alongside the best collection of airline brands in the world. By becoming part of oneworld, we will be able to offer our guests travel to more than 800 destinations in 150 countries, on a network that offers the best coverage of the routes and places that really count, flying with the highest quality airline partners.?
The process to bring any airline on board the oneworld normally takes around 18 months. Global interline packs like oneworld and Star Alliance entail several benefits to member carriers like improved product offering, better service standards, access to new markets and premium customers and partnership with leading global carriers.
Kingfisher was launched in 2005 and now has an average of 383 daily departures. It launched its first international route in September 2008 and now serves the oneworld hubs of Bangkok, Hong Kong, London Heathrow and Singapore. It also serves Colombo, Dubai and Dhaka, flying to 70 destinations, 63 of them in India.