Malaysian Airlines in countdown towards joining oneworld airline alliance

by M F Jabir in KUALA LUMPUR

Malaysia Airlines had begun the final countdown towards joining the ‘oneworld’ global airline alliance from Friday, February 1, said Ismadi bin Mohd Yusuff, Controller Media Relations Strategic Communications Malaysia Airlines.

The final preparations are being initiated for a massive communications programme to highlight the development, which is a key element of Malaysia's national flag carrier’s turnaround strategy, as it marks 40 years of delivering its unique Malaysian hospitality to its guests since it first took wings as Malaysia Airlines.

The airline would stage a two day of celebration, to mark its addition to the world’s premier airline alliance.

Senior Executives from the existing partners of the award-winning global alliance, would be flying into Kuala Lumpur, to welcome Malaysia Airlines as the latest member of their airline family.

On Friday, February 1, its first day as a partner of the alliance, representatives from all oneworld member airlines, would join Malaysia Airlines Group CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya and his top team at KL International Airport to welcome the passengers on the airline’s first departure, by offering oneworld services and benefits.

Being part of 'oneworld,' represents the latest key step by the Malaysian flag carrier and multi award winner in its repositioning programme, it would fly alongside some of the largest and best known brands in the world airline industry such as Airberlin, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LAN, Qantas, Royal Jordanian and Russia’s S7 Airlines.

During the 15 years since global airline alliances first emerged, oneworld and the other two have grown to such an extent that their member airlines now account for some two-thirds of total global airline capacity.

Malaysia Airlines, in addition to oneworld, would expand the alliance’s global coverage to more than 840 destinations in 155 countries, served by some 9,000 departures a day and operated by a combined fleet of some 2,500 aircraft, carrying nearly 340 million passengers an year, with annual revenues of US$ 110 billion.

Group CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said, “oneworld enables its member airlines to deliver more services and benefits to their customers, particularly frequent flyers than any airline can on its own.