Who is part of SkyTeam?
Sky Team Airline Alliance: Background and Members I. Starting Point II. Definition of the term "Association". III. Types of an Association Trade Associations; Professional Associations; Non-Governmental Associations C. IV. Association's Roles: A trade association; a professional association; a non-governmental association; V. Non-Governmental Associations C; Trade Associations A; Professional Associations B; Formation of an Association VI. Final Thought
Established in 2000, SkyTeam is an international airline alliance consisting of 190 members—Star Alliance and Oneworld included—that includes different carriers worldwide. Comprising 19 airline partners, SkyTeam is an alliance whose primary objective is to link customers with a great range of locations and guarantee that, whenever feasible, they are presented with as many travel alternatives as possible. Who, however, speaks for this strong airline alliance?
founding members SkyTeam began in 2000 with four members: Aeromexico, Air France, Delta Air Lines, and Korean Air. With all of them aiming at creating strategic cooperation that would provide a competitive advantage and consumer pleasure, it was Mexico's flagship airline, France's Air France, United Airlines Continental Airlines, and South Korea's Korean airlines correspondingly.
Second Wave of Readers Following its founding, SkyTeam grew to include three additional carriers in 2001: CSA Czech carriers of the Czech Republic, Alitalia of Italy, and a Brazilian airline, Grupo TACA. Through the purchase of Group TACA, CSA and Alitalia, we greatly raised the supply in Latin America. They also extended the coverage towards Central Europe and improved the availability of flights inside the European continent.
The increase in the number of members helps enhance visibility among the targeted clients. A year later, in 2005, SkyTeam remained consistent in its expansion and added Aeroflot, which is the flag and the largest airline in Russia, to complete its total membership of nine airlines. This important player from the CIS region was a significant addition to the SkyTeam in its pursuit of being an international alliance. This was followed in 2007 by the admission of three other members of the airline, namely Air Europa from Spain, China Southern Airlines, and Kenya Airlines.
The entrance of China Southern unlocked a vast domestic route map in China with over 140 destinations, which was strategic to establish a monopoly in the growing aviation industry in China. On the other hand, Air Europa and Kenya Airways established significant hubs in southern Europe the Mediterranean, and East Africa, respectively.
The Middle East & Southeast Asia New List To strengthen its position in the following few years, SkyTeam sourced selective members from the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The member carriers of this alliance are KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Air France, Czech Airlines, Alitalia from Italy, and in 2010, Tarom from Romania joined the alliance. The year 2012 witnessed Saudi Arabian Airlines from Saudi Arabia and Middle East Airlines from Lebanon entering the platform. Garuda Indonesia was the newest member that joined in 2014 and the most recent member that joined the partnership was Vietnam Airlines in 2017.
With these additions, SkyTeam was able to create a network of airlines that is well-connected and truly global, making it a true player in the airline alliance industry. For instance, about 30 domestic destinations were available from Vietnam Airlines for SkyTeam customers at the same time, the company was able to offer access to potentially growing transport markets in the Indochina area.
New Formation of Departures and Newcomers Among the changes SkyTeam has undergone in the last five years are a few members leaving the alliance and new members joining it as well. Due to financial problems and bankruptcy, several of its main partners—Alitalia and Aerolineas Argentinas—ended their collaboration in 2019 and 2014. MEA stopped running in 2020 because of many political and economic problems Lebanon is facing.
However, these exits were counterbalanced by new memberships in SkyTeam, where three new member airlines were admitted during the same period. Lastly, in 2016, China Eastern Airlines, one of the three largest Chinese carriers, became a member of SkyTeam, with Shanghai as the new strategic connecting hub for over 90 domestic connections to SkyTeam’s China presence. SkyTeam’s presence in China has become even broader in 2019 since the Chinese Taiwan airline, China Airlines, joined the association. In the end, in 2022, Ukraine International Airlines joined SkyTeam after Ukrainian airspace was restored, which was closed due to the conflict with Russia.
Current SkyTeam Members As of 2023, there are currently 19 member airlines under the SkyTeam umbrella: As of 2023, there are currently 19 member airlines under the SkyTeam umbrella:
• Aeroflot
• Aeromexico
• Air Europa; • Air France
• China Airlines
• China Eastern
• China Southern Airlines
• Czech Airlines
• Delta Air Lines
• Garuda Indonesia
Kenya Airways
• KLM
• Korean Air
• Saudia
• TAROM
• Ukraine International Airlines
• Vietnam Airlines
More than 13 % of the international traffic is covered by the members of the Sky Team alliance, which offers customers direct access to more than 14,500 flights every day across 170+ countries. They both boast a fleet of over 4,000 aircraft Currently. Common membership in these specific networks, as well as in the use of lounge areas and frequent flyer programs, ensures that the SkyTeam brands collectively provide uniform service quality across a vast integrated network.
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