SkyTeam, the global airline alliance partnering eleven members - including Aeroflot, Aeroméxico, Air France, Alitalia, China Southern Airlines, Continental Airlines, CSA, Delta Air Lines, KLM, Korean Air and Northwest Airlines - and three Associate carriers - Air Europa, Copa Airlines and Kenya Airways - sets itself apart by offering an exclusive experience for all passengers. Issued monthly, SkyTeam NewsFlash provides media with key updates and insights on alliance activities.

SkyTeam Responds to Passenger Demand for More E-Services

According to the annual Corporate Air Travel Survey conducted by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), passengers are demanding more opportunities to take control of their travel experience. Survey results showed that 54 percent of travelers around the world want more self-service options, including greater access to e-tickets, Internet check-in and self-service kiosks.

In line with the IATA survey results, SkyTeam offers a number of e-services to its customers to streamline their travel experience. The alliance plans to continue to expand and improve its current offerings for passengers to manage their travel with ease.

SkyTeam is on track to meet the May 2008 deadline set by IATA to have complete interline e-ticketing (IET), which allows passengers to manage seamless connections- particularly when traveling on multiple SkyTeam partners during the same itinerary. All partner-to-partner implementations have been completed and the alliance has made great progress finalizing the GDS aspect of IET.

In addition, SkyTeam members are also working to offer passengers additional self check-in kiosks at highly trafficked airports, including Paris Charles de Gaulle, Amsterdam Schiphol and Newark Liberty. Through Common Use Self-Service (CUSS), multiple airlines share one self service kiosk, allowing travelers to save time, airlines to save costs, and airports to save space. At the end of 2007, 25 additional airports served by SkyTeam members will offer Common Use Self-Service kiosks.

Since baggage handling is an important aspect of air travel, SkyTeam has completed Inter Airline Through Check in (IATCI). IATCI enables passengers to check their baggage through to their final destination when traveling entirely via SkyTeam-operated flights. For example, a traveler transferring from one SkyTeam flight to another is not be required to claim their baggage and recheck their items.

"As e-services continue to evolve, passengers will be able to gain greater control of their air travel experience," said Mr. Chul Woo Kim, vice president, Korean Air, and SkyTeam Customer System Team manager. "SkyTeam is proud to offer customers the opportunity to be self-reliant, while knowledgeable frontline staff is available to assist as needed."

SkyTeam Welcomes China Southern as 11th Full Member



China Southern Airlines officially became the 11th full member of SkyTeam on 15 November 2007, making the alliance the first to welcome a carrier from the mainland of China. China is one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world and the addition of China Southern allows SkyTeam to provide its customers around the world with greater travel options to one of the world's top tourist destinations. SkyTeam now serves nearly 428 million annual passengers through a worldwide system of 16,400 daily flights covering 841 destinations in 162 countries.