Air India to Hold Talks with Lufthansa for Entry in to Star Alliance
Air India Boeing 747
Air India (AI) says they will hold discussions with Lufthansa for entry in to global inter-airline pact Star Alliance.
AI was held out of induction last year by Star Alliance do to labor unrest and financial difficulties at the time.
‘”We are going to talk to Lufthansa about the induction plan under which Air India was supposed to have joined the Star Alliance. We will ask them to honour the plan that was decided. We are going to ask them to look at it again,” Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh said at the Economic Editors’ conference here.
The national carrier was invited to join Star Alliance in December 2007 in Beijing, with Lufthansa as the sponsor. But delays in software and other operational integration after the merger of Indian Airlines and Air India had put paid to the plan.
Singh said the government was not opposed to two Indian carriers joining Star Alliance at the same time, as recent reports have suggested that Jet Airways was interested in joining the pact.
“They both can join in together. We have no issues if two Indian carriers join the alliance.”‘
An official from Air India said they have met the preliminary requirements for induction and has deposited $10 million and allowed code-sharing with the German carrier.
“We have provided a number of facilities like code-share because of which Lufthansa now operates from 11 Indian cities on our code. All this was done to faciliate our entry into the Star Alliance,” the official said.
Global interline packs like Star Alliance and Oneworld 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.
Such pacts also allow sharing of airport lounges across airports, common rewards schemes and synchronised flight schedules that will permit seamless travel for a passenger on a single air ticket, even if it requires flying several carriers on a single journey.
Image: Flickr [bcorreira]
Category: Airnation
